He had no servants, yet they called Him Master.
He had no degrees, yet they called Him Teacher.
He had no medicines, yet they called Him Healer.
He had no army, yet kings feared Him.
He won no military battles, yet He conquered the world.
He committed no crime, yet….they crucified Him….
He was buried in a tomb, yet He lives today.
I do not know who originally wrote the above, but I do know that everyone should think about these facts and decide personally, whether they choose to believe in God’s perfect salvation plan or not. Who do you say Christ is? Peter had to answer this question directly to Jesus. Peter said, “You are the Christ, The Son of The Living God”. You can read about the presentation of this question in the following scripture passages: Mark 8:27-33, Luke 9:18-20, and Matthew 16:13-20.
Have you answered this question in your own life? Pray, honestly seek, and ask The Holy Spirit to reveal the truth to your heart and spirit. He Will!
Wishing everyone the Blessings of Christ’s Resurrection as you celebrate Easter!
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Peace is Precious
True peace is found in the presence of God. The absence of peace is strife, uneasiness, stressfulness, and even war. We cannot experience peace when we are at war with God. Philippians 4:7 tells us that when we receive God into our lives He will give us the “peace that passeth understanding”. This promised peace can’t be bought or worked for. It is God’s gift to believers. It is a fruit of the Spirit. Galatians 5: 19 says, “When you follow the desires of your sinful (carnal) nature your lives will produce evil results”. Strife and stressfulness will be consequences. Galatians 5: 22 says, “But when The Holy Spirit controls our lives, He will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control”. Galatians 5: 24-26 says, “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to His cross and crucified them there. If we are living now by The Holy Spirit, let us follow The Holy Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. Let us not become conceited, or irritate one another, or be jealous of one another”. God’s peace within us will show us how to respond to the circumstances of life and help us to know how to react to people who are irritating or harming us.
Judges 6:24 says, “The Lord is Peace”.
Psalm 34:14 says, “Seek peace, and pursue it”.
Isaiah 48: 17-18 says, “I am The Lord, your God, who teaches you what is good and leads you along the paths you should follow. Oh that you had listened to my commands! Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river and righteousness rolling like waves”.
Romans 15:33 says, “May the God of peace be with you all”.
With God, we can experience peace in times of trouble. There is peace in the middle of a battle, in a raging storm, and in the darkest valley which we walk through. Peace is the consequence of believing. We should not seek peace, we should seek a personal relationship with The Peacemaker, our Creator God. God helps us rise above our weaknesses, our infirmities, and our failures. He puts us onto the path of righteousness and peace. Matthew 6:33 tells us to “seek first The Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you”. When we seek and find God, peace and the other gifts of the spirit will follow.
Judges 6:24 says, “The Lord is Peace”.
Psalm 34:14 says, “Seek peace, and pursue it”.
Isaiah 48: 17-18 says, “I am The Lord, your God, who teaches you what is good and leads you along the paths you should follow. Oh that you had listened to my commands! Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river and righteousness rolling like waves”.
Romans 15:33 says, “May the God of peace be with you all”.
With God, we can experience peace in times of trouble. There is peace in the middle of a battle, in a raging storm, and in the darkest valley which we walk through. Peace is the consequence of believing. We should not seek peace, we should seek a personal relationship with The Peacemaker, our Creator God. God helps us rise above our weaknesses, our infirmities, and our failures. He puts us onto the path of righteousness and peace. Matthew 6:33 tells us to “seek first The Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you”. When we seek and find God, peace and the other gifts of the spirit will follow.
Monday, April 11, 2011
FAITH
Faith is believing in, or for, something that seems impossible. It is knowing that nothing is impossible with God. Faith cannot be logically described. I think that is why it is harder, and takes longer, for a very logically minded person to accept God’s free gift of faith. Faith defies logic. Faith cannot be worked for. Faith is believing in, and hoping for that which is not seen. The scriptures say that if we see what we hope for we stop hoping for it, whatever it may be.
We live in a three dimensional world. Logic only sees, hears, feels, tastes, or smells that which is around us. God is greater than our five senses. He is in us and all around us. There is a supernatural world. Deep faith, in a Supernatural God, opens up this supernatural world to the believer. We let ourselves think out of the box as we read the Bible and read God’s promises in the scriptures. We believe that God can do anything.
The believer can visualize the Creation Story as described in Genesis. The believer knows that Moses received the 10 Commandments directly from God on Mount Sinai as recorded in Exodus. We believe the story of the Angel of the Lord, Balaam, and the talking donkey as found in Numbers 22. We want to have faith like that which was demonstrated by Joseph in Egypt, by Daniel in the lion’s den, and by the three Hebrew boys, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego when they were in the Fiery Furnace, as seen in Daniel 3.
We are all God’s children, His unique, individual creations. Each of us is directly connected to Him. No matter how logical you think you are, you are not a mutation; you are a creation. God created you, God loves you, and God has a plan for your life. It is up to you to believe and receive these facts. And yes, it takes faith, not logic! Each of us chooses to believe that God is who He says He is, or we choose not to believe that He is who He says He is; our creator. All have free will; all of us have a choice to make. It will not be forced upon us. Everyone has an internal longing for truth and meaning in our lives. We search for faith. Many find faith, meaning, success, and love in all the wrong places. When we find God, who was there for us all the time, we find the love and meaning that we were looking for. We experience a changed life. When we accept God and His plan of Salvation, we are given the gift of a measure of faith. Galatians 5:22 tells us that Faith is a fruit of the Spirit, one of the gifts of the Spirit. The bible says that every believer is given a mustard seed sized faith.
How does the small mustard seed faith that we are given grow into the great faith we search for? Romans 10:17 tells us that Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. We cannot sit back and expect our faith to increase by osmosis. When we hear and read God’s word, look for and experience God working in our lives, and become bold in our faith and obedience to Him, we will see our faith grow from small mustard seed faith into mountain moving faith. Faith has to become an action word. When we stand out in faith, not wavering, we will see God working in our life and see the situation we are believing in and for, become a reality. As we stand on His promises and see His outcomes, we get bolder and our faith increases. We learn to trust Him more and obey that which we believe He is saying to us. Our faith leads us to follow where He is growing us and where He bringing us to. We now live in anticipation of what He will be doing next in our life. The faith journey is a very exciting one. I am excited and humbled by what God has done and continues to do in my life. I wish the same for you!
We live in a three dimensional world. Logic only sees, hears, feels, tastes, or smells that which is around us. God is greater than our five senses. He is in us and all around us. There is a supernatural world. Deep faith, in a Supernatural God, opens up this supernatural world to the believer. We let ourselves think out of the box as we read the Bible and read God’s promises in the scriptures. We believe that God can do anything.
The believer can visualize the Creation Story as described in Genesis. The believer knows that Moses received the 10 Commandments directly from God on Mount Sinai as recorded in Exodus. We believe the story of the Angel of the Lord, Balaam, and the talking donkey as found in Numbers 22. We want to have faith like that which was demonstrated by Joseph in Egypt, by Daniel in the lion’s den, and by the three Hebrew boys, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego when they were in the Fiery Furnace, as seen in Daniel 3.
We are all God’s children, His unique, individual creations. Each of us is directly connected to Him. No matter how logical you think you are, you are not a mutation; you are a creation. God created you, God loves you, and God has a plan for your life. It is up to you to believe and receive these facts. And yes, it takes faith, not logic! Each of us chooses to believe that God is who He says He is, or we choose not to believe that He is who He says He is; our creator. All have free will; all of us have a choice to make. It will not be forced upon us. Everyone has an internal longing for truth and meaning in our lives. We search for faith. Many find faith, meaning, success, and love in all the wrong places. When we find God, who was there for us all the time, we find the love and meaning that we were looking for. We experience a changed life. When we accept God and His plan of Salvation, we are given the gift of a measure of faith. Galatians 5:22 tells us that Faith is a fruit of the Spirit, one of the gifts of the Spirit. The bible says that every believer is given a mustard seed sized faith.
How does the small mustard seed faith that we are given grow into the great faith we search for? Romans 10:17 tells us that Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. We cannot sit back and expect our faith to increase by osmosis. When we hear and read God’s word, look for and experience God working in our lives, and become bold in our faith and obedience to Him, we will see our faith grow from small mustard seed faith into mountain moving faith. Faith has to become an action word. When we stand out in faith, not wavering, we will see God working in our life and see the situation we are believing in and for, become a reality. As we stand on His promises and see His outcomes, we get bolder and our faith increases. We learn to trust Him more and obey that which we believe He is saying to us. Our faith leads us to follow where He is growing us and where He bringing us to. We now live in anticipation of what He will be doing next in our life. The faith journey is a very exciting one. I am excited and humbled by what God has done and continues to do in my life. I wish the same for you!
Sunday, April 3, 2011
ONE WAY ?
The Scriptures say that God created Heaven and earth.
His creation and His plan for us is recorded in His Word, the Scriptures.
Everyone on earth has a direct relationship to God because He made each of us. He has His stamp on each person’s life; “Made By God”. He is the potter, each of us is the clay. Whether a person believes in God or not, God has this direct relationship with each of us as His creation.
I do believe that The Bible is The Word of God. I believe that there is One Creator, Father God, True God, “Elohim”. The Hebrew word for God in Genesis 1:1 is Elohim. This word is a plural word meaning three or more; The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. Deuteronomy 6:4 says, “Hear, O Isreal, the Lord, our God is One!” Here again the name used for God is Elohim. Also the word ONE is “echad” which means unity in plurality. Our God is The Three in One, The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit. We read about Creator God, The awaited Messiah, and the Holy Spirit throughout the Old Testament as seen in Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22. The fulfillment of these old Testament prophesies is found in the Gospel accounts of the New Testament.
I found an article by Kevin Haag, parts of which I am going to paraphrase here:
The Old Testament tells us of God’s redemption of His chosen people, the Israelites. He brought them out of slavery, gave them his law, and delivered them into the Promised Land. They forsook the Lord and worshipped other gods. He gave them judges but they refused to give up their evil practices. He pleaded for his people to return to Him.
Today, most of us don’t worship idols made of stone but we are all sinners in the eyes of a Holy and Righteous God (Romans 3:23)
God has always had a plan for our redemption. He sent his son, Jesus Christ, to redeem the world (John 3:16). When Jesus became God incarnate, He was truly God and truly man. (Philippians 2:7,8). He had a divine nature and a human nature.
Jesus was unique, He lived without sin. No other religious leader can claim that.
Jesus was different than any other religious leader; we cannot give equal honor to Him and other leaders. Buddah (Siddhartha Gautama), Muhammad (claimed to be a “prophet” of God), and Confucius, did not claim to be deities, they were all mortal men.
Jesus was without sin. He was in a class by Himself. When He came to earth, He lived without sin (2Corinthians 5:21). No other religious leader can claim that, nor can any mortal (Romans 3:23- read verses 21-31).
The greatest of other religious leaders could mediate the law, instruct on the law, council others, think deeply, and speak wisely, but none was qualified to offer atonement for the sins of the world. Jesus’ death was made as a payment for the sins of mankind. His sacrifice was perfect. He voluntarily suffered an exhausting, agonizing, and painful death because He (God Incarnate) loved us. (John 10:11-18 and Romans 5:6-11)
Jesus was resurrected from the dead. He was raised from the dead by God. This fact gives Him credentials that no other religious leader possesses. Buddha, Mohammed, and Confucius are dead. Christ is alive!!
Religion doesn’t save, joining a church or a denomination doesn’t save, doing good works doesn’t save, nor does being a good person save.
The dictionary definition of “save” in a theological sense is “to deliver from sin”. The theological definition of “salvation” is “spiritual rescue from sin and death”. Every man comes into the world with a sinful nature. When we choose to believe, and receive God’s Spirit into our spirit, we allow Him to become greater and our own sinful nature to progressively decrease.
Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death”. We all will face physical death someday. The death which Proverbs is referring to is a spiritual death, the void of God’s spirit within us (The second death). By believing “He is” who He says He is, God says that He will come in to our hearts and dwell with us now and throughout eternity.
God does give us free will. We choose to believe or not to believe. That is why it is so very important to seek for the truth for ourselves. The bible tells us that if we seek, we shall find. We are saved by God’s Grace, not by anything which we do, in and of ourselves. Salvation and Faith are gifts from God to anyone, anywhere, who seeks, believes, and receives. They are free gifts from God to us; given because of His love, grace and mercy. Being born again of the spirit means that we have chosen to believe what God says in his word, to believe the whole council of God. Either we believe that the whole bible is the Word of God, or we don’t. Either we believe in God’s plan of salvation, which He planned from the beginning, or we choose not to believe.
It does matter what we believe; the decision is an eternal one. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, God incarnate, the Son in our triune God of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is the only way to God; the only way to heaven; the only way not to be absent from God throughout eternity. He alone is able to redeem. He alone is worthy of our devotion and worship. God’s word is true. Jesus is The Word. Jesus is Truth. He says, “I am The Way, The Truth, and The Life; no man comes unto the Father but by Me” (John 14:6).
1Timothy 2:5, says “For there is One God and One mediator between God and men, the man, Jesus Christ”.
His creation and His plan for us is recorded in His Word, the Scriptures.
Everyone on earth has a direct relationship to God because He made each of us. He has His stamp on each person’s life; “Made By God”. He is the potter, each of us is the clay. Whether a person believes in God or not, God has this direct relationship with each of us as His creation.
I do believe that The Bible is The Word of God. I believe that there is One Creator, Father God, True God, “Elohim”. The Hebrew word for God in Genesis 1:1 is Elohim. This word is a plural word meaning three or more; The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. Deuteronomy 6:4 says, “Hear, O Isreal, the Lord, our God is One!” Here again the name used for God is Elohim. Also the word ONE is “echad” which means unity in plurality. Our God is The Three in One, The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit. We read about Creator God, The awaited Messiah, and the Holy Spirit throughout the Old Testament as seen in Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22. The fulfillment of these old Testament prophesies is found in the Gospel accounts of the New Testament.
I found an article by Kevin Haag, parts of which I am going to paraphrase here:
The Old Testament tells us of God’s redemption of His chosen people, the Israelites. He brought them out of slavery, gave them his law, and delivered them into the Promised Land. They forsook the Lord and worshipped other gods. He gave them judges but they refused to give up their evil practices. He pleaded for his people to return to Him.
Today, most of us don’t worship idols made of stone but we are all sinners in the eyes of a Holy and Righteous God (Romans 3:23)
God has always had a plan for our redemption. He sent his son, Jesus Christ, to redeem the world (John 3:16). When Jesus became God incarnate, He was truly God and truly man. (Philippians 2:7,8). He had a divine nature and a human nature.
Jesus was unique, He lived without sin. No other religious leader can claim that.
Jesus was different than any other religious leader; we cannot give equal honor to Him and other leaders. Buddah (Siddhartha Gautama), Muhammad (claimed to be a “prophet” of God), and Confucius, did not claim to be deities, they were all mortal men.
Jesus was without sin. He was in a class by Himself. When He came to earth, He lived without sin (2Corinthians 5:21). No other religious leader can claim that, nor can any mortal (Romans 3:23- read verses 21-31).
The greatest of other religious leaders could mediate the law, instruct on the law, council others, think deeply, and speak wisely, but none was qualified to offer atonement for the sins of the world. Jesus’ death was made as a payment for the sins of mankind. His sacrifice was perfect. He voluntarily suffered an exhausting, agonizing, and painful death because He (God Incarnate) loved us. (John 10:11-18 and Romans 5:6-11)
Jesus was resurrected from the dead. He was raised from the dead by God. This fact gives Him credentials that no other religious leader possesses. Buddha, Mohammed, and Confucius are dead. Christ is alive!!
Religion doesn’t save, joining a church or a denomination doesn’t save, doing good works doesn’t save, nor does being a good person save.
The dictionary definition of “save” in a theological sense is “to deliver from sin”. The theological definition of “salvation” is “spiritual rescue from sin and death”. Every man comes into the world with a sinful nature. When we choose to believe, and receive God’s Spirit into our spirit, we allow Him to become greater and our own sinful nature to progressively decrease.
Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death”. We all will face physical death someday. The death which Proverbs is referring to is a spiritual death, the void of God’s spirit within us (The second death). By believing “He is” who He says He is, God says that He will come in to our hearts and dwell with us now and throughout eternity.
God does give us free will. We choose to believe or not to believe. That is why it is so very important to seek for the truth for ourselves. The bible tells us that if we seek, we shall find. We are saved by God’s Grace, not by anything which we do, in and of ourselves. Salvation and Faith are gifts from God to anyone, anywhere, who seeks, believes, and receives. They are free gifts from God to us; given because of His love, grace and mercy. Being born again of the spirit means that we have chosen to believe what God says in his word, to believe the whole council of God. Either we believe that the whole bible is the Word of God, or we don’t. Either we believe in God’s plan of salvation, which He planned from the beginning, or we choose not to believe.
It does matter what we believe; the decision is an eternal one. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, God incarnate, the Son in our triune God of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is the only way to God; the only way to heaven; the only way not to be absent from God throughout eternity. He alone is able to redeem. He alone is worthy of our devotion and worship. God’s word is true. Jesus is The Word. Jesus is Truth. He says, “I am The Way, The Truth, and The Life; no man comes unto the Father but by Me” (John 14:6).
1Timothy 2:5, says “For there is One God and One mediator between God and men, the man, Jesus Christ”.
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