Living Forever

John 11:26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?

Living forever and ever and never dying is hard to grasp living in these bodies that are corruptible. Surely, this earthy body will pass away and return to the dust of the earth. The words of Jesus give us hope that even tho this earthen vessel will one day vanish, that the essence of who we are will live on eternally. The conditions given to us by God is that we live and believe that Jesus is the way, the truth, and life. He is the source of eternal life and those who believe that He is, God will reward them that will seek after Him. For in Him, is the resurrection of life from the dead. Once dead in our trespasses and sin, He has quicken us in our spiritual essences to be alive unto God. Death in this human body is certain for all of us, but life is just as certain to whosoever will believe in Him. Not only do I desire to believe in Him, but I also desire to live in Him. “I’m crucify with Christ, nevertheless, it is not I, but Christ that lives within me” We see through a glass darkly, but one day, we will see clearly, and we will live eternally with the One who saves us by His grace.

Go, and Sin No More

John 8:11  She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.

Christ came to fulfill the law to perfection that through His life and death, He enables us by His grace to sin no more. The concept of living a life without sinning is foreign to many who see themselves struggling with life’s temptations and fleshly desires to please self. The carnal nature of man is enmity against God and is not subject to His holiness. Without grace, man is helpless to live a life that is sinless. The heart of man is desperately wicked, even a person trained to be good will stand before God naked and see the uncleanness of his heart. What is man to do? All have sinned and come short of pleasing God, we have only one remedy, flee to the cross, confess our sins, ask Him to forgive us of our transgression, and to clean our hearts of all that is unlike Him. His love and grace without fail will speak,”Neither do I condemn thee, go and sin more” He promise to them that would believe in Him that He would send a Comforter, the Holy Spirit will come as we seek more of Him. The Holy Spirit, as in the day of Pentecost will come to them that seek Him and He will give us power to live a life that can love God with all our hearts, mind, body and soul. Without Him, it is impossible to fulfill this commandment. But with God, all things are possible.

Follower of the Lord

1 Thess 1:6 And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost.

I became a follower of the Lord on this day 43 years ago. This is my story. I grew up in a religious home. Went to church every Sunday, taught to respect the sacred things of God. The church was my religion. I had a sense of security knowing I went to a church that promised that as long as I kept the tenants of the church and was faithful to its teaching, that I would have a place in heaven when I died. I never recalled anyone telling me that I could have a personal relationship with God and know Him through Christ. Yes, there was a lot of symbolic rituals that pointed toward having communion with Christ, but I was never told that I could go personally to Christ and asked for forgiveness and that the Bible taught that He and He alone is able to forgive. I never was encouraged to read the Bible for myself. We had a large  Bible in our home, but it was never opened and read in our home. We were sent to church school to learn about the teachings of the church, but I never recalled ever opening a Bible. So at the age of 15, I began my quest to learn what the Bible taught. A whole new world was opened up to me. I thought I knew a lot about God and His love, but His Word opened my heart to truths that went far beyond the teaching of the church. It was in the Word that I learned about the life of Jesus, how He lived and how He wanted me to live. Reading the writings of Paul opened my eyes about human nature and how we overcome the flesh and the temptations of life. I found that stories in the OT held truths and life applications that were invaluable. Being a follow of the Lord was more that going to church on Sunday, it was a life style that I would seek to live to this very day. I don’t claim to be perfect, and I have made my share of mistakes in life, but this one thing I know, once I was blind, but now I see. Thank God, I became a follower of the Lord and received His Word in much affliction, but with joy in the Holy Spirit. 

Planted by the Waters

Jer. 17:7,8a - Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.

For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river…

A tree that is planted by the water never worries about staying alive. As long as the river flows, the roots of that tree are feed and refreshed daily. A man who puts their trust in God does not have to worry about the circumstances that surround them. They have tapped into the source of life and are refreshed in their spirits day by day. Those who trust in the flesh have been deceived and their hearts are far from knowing the true source of life. They think they have life, but they are living a lie. At the end of the day, they are empty and void of any real spiritual life. Real life comes from trusting in the Lord and putting our hope in the one who able to work all things to His glory. 

Walking by Faith

2 Corinth 5:7 (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

“Seeing is believing” is often said among those who are skeptical of things happening that are unnatural. I sometime find myself in that camp when it comes to the supernatural, and unexplained healing. Yes, I believe God is able and can do things that are unbelievable, but my practical mine often wonders at the methods I see others using to bring about miraculous healing. To me living by faith, it not necessary having faith to heal and restore everything that is wrong. To me, faith is believing in God to do what is good and right regardless of what I think should be the outcome. Sometimes He chosen to heal that baby who is struggling to stay alive, other times He choose to take the baby. Faith in God is not seeing God heal that baby, and yet believing He is God and knows what is best. For God is good and will work all things out for His pleasure. Walking by faith is to know that God is in control of my life and in control of the circumstances that surround me. Even when I look to the left and to the right and do not see Him, I still believe that He is there and will guide my every step. 

Dwelling in Love

1 john 4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

Dwelling in God is to dwell in love. There is no room for hate when we are dwelling in love in the presence of God. God is love, and in Him we can know what real love is. The world has perverted the meaning of love with the pleasures of sin and self satisfaction. The love of God that is shed in our heart by the Holy Spirit gives us power over hate and we can not only survive, but we can be victors over hate. We are surrounded by the worldly view that we need to take care of self, or no one else will. I’m so thankful, that the God of Love cares for us and will provide for all our needs. For those that live in God, God lives in them and the fruit of love is seen in the actions and reactions of our life. We do what we do because the love of God constrains us to. What a pleasure to dwell in God and bathe in the presence of His love.

Leaning on Jesus

John 13:23 Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved.

Leaning on Jesus is to draw close and depend on Him for all of our needs. He is our “go to” when life starts to shake around us and we are tempted to fall and call it quits. He is our crutch and often the one who will just pick us up and carry us across those difficult times. We cannot make it on our own strength, we are no match for the devil, he is the fathers of lies and exploits our weaknesses. He works on our human desires and tempts our flesh to seek and fulfill our human desires. That is why we need a Savior, one that we can lean strong on. We must have the Holy Spirit in our lives to empower us to fight against the enemy of our soul. Leaning on Jesus is the secret to victory. Draw close to Him, let Him hold us tight!

Peace Through Christ

Phil 4:7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.-

I don’t understand how there can be peace in the midst of conflict and unrest. The mind is constantly thinking and wrestling with life’s problems. The heart, the seed of our emotions and affections daily dealing with interpersonal relationships that often are made difficult by miscommunication and mistrust. How can one be at peace is such a state of mind and soul? The peace of God is a divine intervention that comes from heaven above. It does not come from any human source or formula. In the midst of war and confusion, the God of creation send His Son to earth to dwell among us and to give us peace. He is the Prince of peace, the everlasting God. Knowing Christ and His forgiveness and love fills the mind and heart with peace that the world can never give. The world does not understand how a person can be at rest when all seems to be going wrong. His peace is our stabilizer, He keeps us in perfect accord and provides peace that only a true Christian can understand. 

Our Inheritance

Psalm 47. He shall choose our inheritance for us…”

Read this morning in a devotional that went with last nights sermon. “Some Plants die if they have too much sunshine. It may be that you are planted where you get but little. You are put there by your loving Husbandman, because it is only in that situation that you will bring fruit unto perfection”- Spurgeon. God, the all knowing chooses the valley we walk through because He knows what is best for us. Let us trust His will for our lives even when life does not seem fair. Our inheritance is His plan for our lives.

My Hiding Place

Psalm 32:7 Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.

A hiding place is where we can get away from the rat race of life and be alone with God. It is a place of shelter from the storms of life and protection from the attacks of Satan. When we hide in the clef of the rock, or in the palm of His hand, we can know He will keep us from trouble and evil. The storm may rag around us and we may feel and sense the fierceness surround us, but we our safe from destruction because we are hiding in Him. He is our hiding place, and we can know that He cares for we are His and He loves us so.