Friday, March 23, 2012

The love of God perfected

1Jn 2:5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.

Keeping the word of God PERFECTS US in GOD'S LOVE.

Do we want to know that we know HIM? Then keep His commandments.

Do we want to have the LOVE of GOD perfected in us? Then keep His commands.

We CAN know we are in Him and NOT fooled into believing we are when we really aren't.

Does this mean you'll be perfect? No. It means you'll be forgiven, fully forgiven, fully covered in HIS love.

So what happens when you realize that you are coveting daily- breaking a commandment of our Savior's? Does this mean you are NOT in God's love, that you don't know God? Absolutely NOT.

Contradictory? It might appear so but the truth is in the heart.

Was Paul loved by God? Did Paul know God, did he know that He knew God? YES.

This same Paul spoke these words--

Rom 7:14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.
Rom 7:15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.

Rom 7:16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.

Rom 7:17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

Rom 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

Rom 7:19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.

Rom 7:20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

Rom 7:21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.

Rom 7:22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:

Rom 7:23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

Rom 7:24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?

Rom 7:25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

*

So tell me, did Paul know the EXACT same struggle that we today are facing?

We would KEEP the law of God the spiritual law that is His MORAL law as He has commanded us- this spiritual law will be written upon our hearts and we will keep it fully in our changed flesh when our Savior returns to give us new life. That new flesh we are given will no longer be carnal but changed into a spiritual nature no longer corrupted by sin.

We have to KNOW this--

FOR I DELIGHT IN THE LAW OF GOD AFTER THE INWARD MAN.

This delight in the law of God is a spiritual delight. This delight in the law makes us feel the stinging pain of conscience when we see ourselves sinning. The deep need to repent, to ask for forgiveness to seek to be free from the propensity towards the sins we cherish, the sins we enjoy- that our carnal nature exalts in making us slaves to those sins, making us believe we cannot be happy without those sins, that our lives would be deprived of a need if we have to give up something we find so convenient, so pleasurable, so normal, natural, so status quo, so conformed to the world that we can't imagine our lives at all without the sins whatever they may be.

We are called to be PILGRIMS, to be STRANGERS walking in a strange land not to be natives to the land, not people at home and content in this world, not seeking to plant our roots deep in this worldly sin stained soil. Heaven is our HOME. Heaven is where our Savior has prepared a place for us! Heaven is the place sought for by all of those who would be God's. This world is NOT our home! Is it any wonder Satan does every thing in His power to get us to believe differently?

1Jn 2:5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.

God's word tells us to LOVE.
God's word tells us to have FAITH.
God's word tells us we have an ADVOCATE with the FATHER.
God's word tells us that when we fall to the carnal flesh we have a SAVIOR and it's to HIM we must go, HE has the righteousness we need, we do not possess it.
We must keep God's commandments and He commands that we LOVE HIM, and LOVE EACH OTHER.

More on this tomorrow ALL by the grace and mercy of our SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST!

In HIS LOVE.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

We can know if we know Him- this is how...

1Jn 2:3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.

Do you wonder if you know God?

Many people do.

How can we know if we know Him?

We KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS!

He tells us how we know if we know Him, we do not have to wonder.

Are we keeping HIS commandments?

If we are NOT keeping His commandments we do NOT KNOW HIM.

We might think we know Him, but we don't if we are not keeping the commandments He's given to us.

All of the commandments our Savior has given to us are enveloped fully in His MORAL law. That law was put into the heart of mankind upon their creation and when man sinned they cut themselves off from the source of love that put the law of love into their hearts.

Once man was cut off from that source a WAY had to immediately be put into action for man to obtain the love of the law in their hearts again. The separating breach had to be mended and that was done in this promise…

Gen 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

The heel that was to be bruised was our SAVIOR'S.

This promise was put into action the MOMENT God confronted mankind and Satan in that garden. In truth read this…

Tit 1:2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began

2Ti 1:9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began

BEFORE THE WORLD BEGAN!

The plan was in place before the world began! The promise we given before mankind existed. Knowing the risk they were taking in creating human beings, flesh and spirit mingled, they realized all the pros and cons and knowing there was that possibility of sinning and separating themselves from God through the urging of the corrupt one-- our Creators had a plan.

Yes, before the world began the plan was there ready to put into action.

When heartbreakingly it became necessary to do so, the plan was enacted and it's STILL being carried out and until our Savior returns and we are united with HIM in eternity it will be unfolding. The completion of the plan will be when we are inhabiting the new heavens and new earth with our God, with our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ.

The commandments we must keep are commandments of love all encompassed in the moral law of our ten commandments and summed up by our Savior in this verse…

Mat 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Mat 22:38 This is the first and great commandment.
Mat 22:39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Mat 22:40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

LOVE GOD.
LOVE OUR NEIGHBORS.

1Jn 2:3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.

We must love this is our Savior's commandment to us.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

For the sins of the whole world

1Jn 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

Our Savior is THE propitiation-

-the one who appeases-

for our sins.

Our Savior stands between us and God the Father.

Our Savior stands between us and the wrath of God the Father.

Our Savior is our Advocate, our Mediator, our Propitiation for our sins and NOT just a few people, not just for special people, not for a select few but HE is the ONLY ONE who can stand as the propitiation for our sins and the SINS of the whole world.

THE WHOLE WORLD.

Our world could not be saved, our world could not exist without Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior intervening.

So many people believe that our world exists on its own. They believe the world came into existence by chance not design. They believe the world will exist forever unless we human and our ways destroy it. They believe that all the natural disasters exist for reasons that are easily comprehended and every single planet has it's own natural issues all existing by mere chance.

This world was not accidentally created perfect and then slowly started to fall apart. This world was not created a mess and then put itself together magically.

This world was created PERFECTLY by a PERFECT GOD filled with love we scarcely can comprehend. This perfect world was perfect in all its ways as were the inhabitants created to fill this world. ONLY after sin entered the world did it become corrupted. Only after the unimaginable chaos of the worldwide flood did this world develop the awful problems that plague it through so many natural disasters. Our God's wrath could have destroyed this earth in an instant and yet the compassion that flows from the LOVE He is didn't allow Him to do that. There was a WAY made for the world to be reconciled to Him.

Rom 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

1Jn 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

The sins of the WHOLE WORLD CAN BE FORGIVEN. The possibility is there, it exists. Sadly, so tragically, heartbreakingly all the sins won't be forgiven because so many don't believe they even have a need to seek forgiveness. The unforgiven sins will be punished fully, every single one. Those who do NOT accept what our Savior has done for us, shedding His innocent blood to cover our sins, to wipe them away completely, so that we are truly and fully RIGHTEOUS in HIM with HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, those who do not accept this will perish eternally they will no longer exist in any way at all ever. They have to answer for their own sins they have no mediator, no advocate, no one to stand between them and the awesome LOVE of God.

Please LORD help us to seek salvation, to seek the gospel of the kingdom in Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, His righteousness. Please…please.

In Your LOVE.

Monday, March 19, 2012

An Advocate

1Jn 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

We should NOT sin.
Anyone who thinks it's okay to sin is deceived.
Anyone who thinks there is any sin no matter how small that doesn't need to be forgiven is gravely mistaken.
We cannot commit even the tiniest of deliberate sins and expect that we are forgiven.
Any sin that we are aware of MUST be forgiven and in order for that sin to be forgiven we have to ASK for it to be forgiven.

We are NOT to sin.

However…

IF ANY MAN SIN we do have and ADVOCATE with the FATHER, and JESUS CHRIST the RIGHTEOUS.

We have an ADVOCATE!

We don't have to pay for this Advocate.
When you need an advocate in worldly matters you more often than not must pay for them or go unrepresented by anyone but yourself.

Have you ever had to represent yourself in court? I have and it's not easy, especially when you have a judge ignoring all your attempts to follow things to the legal level of the law, the judges I've had to deal with have taken offense at my audacity to even try to think I might know something of the law. They say over and over that I should get a lawyer, get a lawyer, hire a lawyer, get someone to represent you. But when you just CAN'T afford to hire representation then you only have yourself to rely upon and the mercy of the court which isn't all that understanding. They want those who have gone to school and studied to speak with them, not someone ignorant of all that learning. Judges, lawyers, and those they represent.

Spiritually we have a judge, spiritually we have an advocate, and spiritually we exist as those who will be judged and those who have a need for an advocate because in this spiritual trial we cannot survive representing ourselves. We need someone to advocate for us. In fact we need someone to actually TAKE OUR PLACE, someone willing to STAND IN for us, someone willing to ACCEPT our punishment because we are GUILTY!

We cannot plead our case, we are GUILTY.
We can only stand before the judge and admit our guilt and pray that our Advocate Jesus Christ our Savior will stand in our place and take our guilt. He's already served the sentence and it was the death penalty. A God- taking on flesh and dying an innocent man.

Only by the grace of our Savior will we live and no other way at all whatsoever.

If we do sin we must confess our sins and repent of them, seeking forgiveness in our God, our ADVOCATE, this is our only hope.

By His LOVE always!

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Walk in light

1Jn 1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
1Jn 1:6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
1Jn 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
1Jn 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1Jn 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

Joh 1:4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
Joh 1:5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

God is light.
There is NO darkness in God at all.

When we live in darkness we are living in ignorance.
There is NO blindness with God- He sees all and knows all.

If we say we are living in Christ and then do the works of darkness we are LIARS.

We cannot do the works of darkness and say we are Christ's.

Yes, we are all sinners and sinners who seek to be with Christ, sinners who seek Christ's forgiveness. We need to repent and that repentance means giving up the sin. If we don't give up the sin then we have to repent and seek forgiveness over and over again. We cannot keep sinful things in our lives willingly and not repent of them even if that means repenting constantly. Some will tell you that you can't repent constantly, that you aren't truly seeking forgiveness and repenting if you commit the sin again, but that is Satan trying to lead us into despair. We have to constantly seek the Light and to walk in that Light. We cannot allow ourselves to walk in darkness with no hope of light, we just can't. This isn't a free pass to sin and get by, not at all. God knows our hearts and knows whether or not we are truly repenting. He knows whether or not we truly want Him to lead our lives, to be the LOVE of our lives, HE knows our HEARTS and He alone can give a clean heart.

The blood of our Savior will truly CLEANSE us from ALL SIN.

We can't believe we have no sin, we can't deceive ourselves- NOT if the TRUTH is in us. We must confess our sins, we must realize that OUR LORD is faithful to us and WILL forgive us and HE will CLEANSE us from ALL UNRIGHTEOUSNESS!

If we pretend we have NO sin, then we call our LORD a liar and His truth, His word is NOT in us.

We have to remember always that God is LIGHT, God is LIFE. God will shine HIS TRUTH into our IGNORANCE, so that our IGNORANCE will not kill us.

We need to comprehend the LIGHT of God, the TRUTH because if we don't we will live in darkness and believe me, Satan loves to surround us in his darkness masquerading it as light.

2Co 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

If our arch enemy can transform himself into an angel of light we have to seek only the TRUTH and live in that TRUTH of God's so we are NOT deceived!

All through HIS GRACE!
All through HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS!
All through HIS LOVE!

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Fellowship with the Father and the Son

1Jn 1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
1Jn 1:2 (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)

That which was from beginning.
That which was heard.
That which was seen with their eyes.
That which they looked upon.
That which their hands touched.
The WORD of life.

How do you touch words?

You don't, not really.

Joh 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Joh 1:2 The same was in the beginning with God.

In beginning the WORD existed.
The WORD existed WITH GOD.
The WORD also was a GOD.
God with God in beginning.

The first word spoken was spoken by our Savior- He is the Word.
All things were made by our Savior.

Joh 1:3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

God with God, God the Father with God the Word creating our world, bringing us into existence.

God the Word with God throughout eternity no beginning, no end, ever existing. The Word gave us existence and the Word offers us salvation. The Creator, the Redeemer.

Some were witness to the miracle of the Word made flesh. They were blessed, able to see Him, touch Him, hear Him. These brought the message to us who would exist thousands of years later that through faith we would believe without seeing, without touching, without hearing.

1Jn 1:3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.
1Jn 1:4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.

We also may have FELLOWSHIP with those who lived thousands of years ago and this fellowship is possible through faith in the Father and with the Word made flesh, the God who became the Son and lived among us.

We are told that this fellowship is possible, this amazing fellowship with our eternal Gods and we must believe it because only in believing will our joy truly be full.

When our hope is in eternity and things eternal and not focused on here and now, we can have that joy because NOTHING can take away that joy, that hope, nothing!

As our existence here might seem unbearable - we suffer truly suffer- we can still lay hold of the hope that is found in our God the Father and our God the Son- our Savior. Eternity can be real through faith in our Lord. Satan would blind us to eternity, or make it so that eternity is something impossible to obtain, but the real truth is that eternity must be our hope, our truth because eternity exists in our Savior!

Remaining steadfast

2Pe 3:17 Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.
2Pe 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

Our only protection comes when we grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

If we are growing in grace, if we are growing in the knowledge of our LORD and SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST then we are much less likely to fall from our steadfastness.

When we are steadfast we are holding onto our faith looking forward to the coming of our Lord, looking forward to our heavenly home where our treasures are kept, looking forward to a new heavens and a new earth where there is no more sin. When we are steadfast we are fighting the good fight and it is a fight, a daily fight.

Just because life isn't going smoothly and everything is going just right doesn't mean you are lost. It is Satan who would have us give in to despair because he knows once we begin to despair then we lose hope. Despair pushes hope aside and tells us we will never be what we know God would have us to be. In truth, God would have us be His throughout all the trials and tribulations we face. As we are put into the fires of refining our God wants us to suffer through all that we must and holdfast to HIM knowing those fires, knowing that suffering is not going to last forever but is temporary. We have to fight, we have to make choices and we have to seek our Lord with all our heart, mind, and soul.

Satan would have us believe that we will never give up the sins we cherish, the sins that we believe are a part of our nature. Satan wants us to believe that we are too stained to be God's, too filthy to have hope. We have to fight the despair that Satan tempts us with and hang on to our Lord's promises. We won't see the sealing placed upon us, but God and His holy angels will. Satan would have us believe it's impossible, completely and utterly impossible to be God's in this world of sin, but it's NOT, nothing is impossible with God, nothing.

Mat 19:26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

Only with God are we saved and we must cling to Him and His saving grace praying all the while that the fires of refining do the work they are meant to do in us.

Please Lord, please help us to grow in grace!
Please Lord, please help us to grow in knowledge of YOU!
Please Lord, please help us NOT to lose our steadfastness but remain FOREVER in YOU, our LORD and SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST!