Spiritual Endurance Against Satan's Whip.

Do good.

Seek peace.

Refrain from evil speaking.

Speak no lies.

Be compassionate.

Pity those needing pity.

Be courteous.

Don't return evil for the evil done to you.

Love others.

Love life.

See good days.

Being a Christ follower is a very active pursuit, not something for those who cannot strive to do His will. Being a Christ follower isn't a pursuit in inactivity.

1Pe 3:8 Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: 

1Pe 3:9 Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. 

1Pe 3:10 For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: 

1Pe 3:11 Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. 

1Pe 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil

We are told what to THINK-

Php_4:8  Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Think on truth.

Think on honesty.

Think on the just.

Think on the pure.

Think on the lovely.

Think on things of good report.

Think on the virtuous.

Think on the praiseworthy things.

So why do we insist on allowing our thoughts to run rampant steering us towards things that aren't good, things that aren't pure or lovely, or truthful, or honest, or of good report and virtuous and not praiseworthy at all?  Satan will guide our thoughts if we let him. We need to pick up the SWORD of the SPIRIT - the WORD of GOD and use it against Satan and his attacking our minds, our thoughts! We need to delve into the Word of God! We need to study the truth and all things our Savior would have us know. We have to sometimes force ourselves to do what we know we should do rather than succumb to the apathy of Satan who wants to keep us from God's Word. If you don't FEEL like studying, reading, or thinking on the things we are told to think on, you need to PRAY PRAY PRAY! Not that the feeling changes because being a Christian isn't about FEELING. We need to pray earnestly for the will to open God's word. We need to pray to choose God over self. We are sinners,  sin-sick sinners who have been battered and beaten spiritually bloody until we have almost no desire at all to fight the good fight, to run the race. We are Satan scarred and he loves nothing more than to ply his evil whip across our spiritual backs so that we cry out for him to stop, giving in to his demands that we keep away from the very thing that can help us endure the pain.  God's word may not free us from the pain we are in, the agony we writhe under, we don't need to ask for release from the pain but rather that we can endure all pain until the end. We can't be taken out of this world, but we can ask to be kept from the evil of this world. If our Savior suffered, if His apostles suffered, if all the men and women of God throughout His word suffered, we cannot ask to be kept from suffering. We ask for endurance as we cling to the hope, the promise given to all that we will one day- when our Savior returns- be united fully with Him and no longer in this world gone so horrifically wrong.

Help us, Savior! Help us! We need YOU and YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS! Our hope is in YOU, not in ourselves, please! We believe, help our unbelief!

All through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior, now and forever!

Obey- Christ Commands

Often we ask ourselves how people can put up with those who aren't very nice to them. We all know about bosses who are very unkind and downright mean and often cruel to those that work under them. We believe that those who are treated unfairly need to speak up for themselves and not put up with abuse by authority. However, most people can't afford to lose their jobs by speaking up against the abuse. Most people have to live under the authority of bosses. Most people have to live under the authority of others in one way or another, answering to people who are higher up. When we are led to believe we shouldn't have to have anyone in authority above us we are fueled with resentment and that is the last thing we need to be fueled with. The Word of God has this to say--

Eph 6:5 Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ; 

Eph 6:6 Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; 

Eph 6:7 With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: 

Eph 6:8 Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free. 

Eph 6:9 And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him.

Servants need to be obedient to all who are in authority over them. We need to be obedient not with resentment- eyeservice, menpleasing otherwise known as being two-faced.  We need to be obedient in truth as we need to be obedient to Christ. Christ wants us to be obedient towards those over us just as if we were being obedient to Him.

We need to be obedient even when our bosses, even when those in authority over us are not being Christ-like at all. In a world ruled by Christ- the masters would be fair and - unthreatening, but this is not a perfect world at all. Does not living in a world ruled by Christ mean we aren't to be obedient to our bosses, to those who have authority over us? No. We are to live for Christ in ANY situation we find ourselves. I know there will be those who argue against this bringing up one scenario after another where a person should disobey our Savior's word, but the heart of His word must be obeyed. I'm not advocating being abused in any way, it's wrong but we know this is true…

Mat 5:43  Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. 

Mat 5:44  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 

Love our enemies.

Bless them that curse us.

Do good to them that hate us.

Pray for them which despitefully use us.

Pray for them which persecute us.

Enemies, cursed, hated, despised, persecuted….  so many people live every day facing these things. 

May God help us all, may God help us as we ALL strive to live for Christ, revealing Christ in us with the hope that all who are abusers may come to know Christ as their Savior as well!

All by the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, now and forever!

Fathers

Message to Fathers-

Too often fathers believe provoking their children is acceptable. They don't care if their children get angry with them, why should they, they're the adult and the child needs to be in subjection to them. A lot of times men feel this way because they were raised that way, they see that way portrayed by others and want to follow suit. Yet our God tells us not to provoke our children to wrath, to anger. We aren't supposed to encourage their discouragement. We aren't toughening our children when we treat them in a way God does not approve. Fathers are supposed to bring their children up in the LORD. The Lord will admonish our children through His word, through His teachings.

Eph 6:4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

Col 3:21  Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.

Fathers can't start too early when teaching their children the holy scriptures. We place so much emphasis on teaching worldly ways yet very little on teaching the holy scriptures and why is this? Because the world does not want our children to know truth, they do not want our children raised with the Lord.  We hold off on teaching the Holy Word of God until we think they are old enough but even infants hearing the Word can only be influenced for the good.

2Ti 3:15  And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 

A father is to exhort, comfort, and charge their children to know the Lord, to live to the Lord.

1Th 2:11  As ye know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father doth his children

When a father loves his children he corrects them and this doesn't mean he does so in a way that can be termed abusive.

Pro 3:12  For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. 

How many of you as adults have only praise for the way you were raised? I'm not saying all have praise because some of you have probably been abused in many ways leading you to despise your father, your parents. But there are those of us who can only say, Praise God, for the parents we had as children. Our parents weren't necessarily easy on us, a lot of us can remember spankings and punishing, time outs, groundings, and even a lot of harsh words. We remember our acting out being punished, we remember our correction and today we are thankful for it. We may have been filled with angst as we lived through the punishments, but they taught us and we know our parents punished us out of love. We can say our parents did the best they knew how to do. 

Heb 12:7  If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? 

Heb 12:8  But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. 

Heb 12:9  Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? 

Heb 12:10  For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. 

Heb 12:11  Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. 

God deals with us adults as still being His children.

We must teach our children of the Heavenly Father's love, of His chastising, of His admonishing even as we living in this harsh world today must do our best to raise our children by guiding them in love towards God.

Fathers search the scriptures and as you fulfil the role that you've been given to raise children, remember they are the Lord's, not simple yours. They are gifts God has given you.

Is it always easy to raise children? No. Sometimes it's incredibly hard to raise children, but we can't forget that some of us have been incredibly hard for God to raise, yes?

May God bless all fathers, all mothers, as they seek to raise their children unto God!

All through Jesus Christ our Lord, our Savior!

Who are the dead in Christ?

The Lord our Savior is in heaven.

Luk 24:50  And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them. 

Luk 24:51  And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. 

Mar 16:19  So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. 

But there will come a time when our Savior rises from His seat at the right hand of God-

Dan 12:1  And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. 

Dan 12:2  And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. 

Dan 12:3  And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever. 

1Th 4:16  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 

1Th 4:17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 

1Th 4:18  Wherefore comfort one another with these words. 

When our Savior leaves heaven and appears once more in the air above earth He will call many who sleep in the dust- who are these many sleeping in the dust? We refuse to believe in our society today that anyone sleeps in the dust. We've taken all from the dust instantaneously not allowing them a single moment of sleep. As far as most people are concerned there will be no one dead in Christ that will rise because most people have their dead already risen, already having met their Savior, already in heaven. Does this make God's word a lie? Are there really going to be no dead in Christ to rise and meet Him? Are there really going to be none sleeping in the dust of the earth awakened to everlasting life?

Why have we placed our dead in heaven resurrected in a way our Savior never was?

Our Savior hung on a cross and after His death He did not go to heaven.  Many celebrate His dying on the cross and staying in the grave, then being resurrected. Many realize that our Savior walked the earth conversing with His disciples and only after many days did He rise up to heaven.

People will say Jesus told the thief next to Him that he'd be in heaven that day, but Jesus wasn't in heaven that day.  Did Jesus lie?  NEVER.  Jesus did tell the thief THAT DAY… and what He told him that day, was that He would be in heaven. Just as we are promised heaven, just as Abraham was promised heaven, just as many men and women were promised a better land and never lived to see that promise fulfilled but rather fell asleep before they could- remember this from yesterday?

Heb 11:13  These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. 

Heb 11:39  And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: 

Heb 11:40  God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect. 

According to God's word all those who die in Christ will rise up when Jesus returns- Abraham will rise up from his death sleep, Isaac, Jacob, David…. They will rise up on the same day as the person who died the moment before Christ returns.  They won't know of the thousands of years that have passed, to them the moments of cognizant awareness before they died will have been the last memory they possess. They'll open their eyes to see their beloved Savior in the air and they will rise up to meet Him. Time will have no meaning because all that matters is their Salvation in Christ. They will not have known  for thousands of years the pain of their descendants upon earth, pain they could do nothing about. They will have been sleeping death's sleep, unaware of the passage of all time.

There will be people to rise from death's sleep to meet Christ, God's word tells us so.

If we believe there is no such thing as death's sleep, but only constant awareness even after death, then why would Christ need to return for any of the dead?  If His people who have died are already in heaven with Him, He has no reason to call them from the graves. If we don't believe in death's sleep we don't believe in God's Holy Word.

People have taken a verse here, a parable there and created a scenario of the Devil's choosing, for it was Him who told Adam and Eve that they would not die.

Gen 3:2  And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 

Gen 3:3  But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 

Gen 3:4  And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die

The great lie of Satan- and so many believe this is true. So many believe that when we die, when any one of us dies that we are instantly alive and aware in spirit form in heaven living on, greeting and meeting happily all prior dead loved ones. People also believe that these same spirit loved ones can see us here below on earth and know all about our lives. This made up fictional life right after death isn't Biblical and it truly makes very little sense, but people are blinded by their beliefs, they are deceived.

Again, I have to ask, who are the dead in Christ that will rise if all that die in Christ are already in heaven? Who?

May God bless us with ONLY His truth! May our eyes be open to ONLY His truth! Please Lord, please help us - we believe, help our unbelief!

All through our Savior, our Lord, Jesus Christ now and forever!

When the Last Trump Sounds.

Emphasis on David - a beloved man of God-





-dying, buried, and seeing corruption-decay.

Act 13:36 For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption
Act 2:29 Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.
Act 2:34 For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
Act 2:35 Until I make thy foes thy footstool.
Act 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.

Why the emphasis? Because a comparison was being made with David and Jesus.  David did not ascend to heaven. Jesus ascended to heaven.  So why didn't David?  Because of this--

Heb 11:13  These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
Heb 11:39  And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:
Heb 11:40  God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

Numerous men and women of God died without seeing the promise of eternal life and they won't see it until all that sleep in Christ in their graves are called forth at the last trump.

1Th 4:16  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
1Th 4:17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
1Th 4:18  Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

May we truly heed God's word and COMFORT one another with these words. Our Savior will return and we will ALL meet  Him in the air- the living and the dead in Christ!

All by HIS mercy and grace!!!!

Have you crucified your flesh- its affections and lusts?

Seriously, have you? We tend to cling to our affections and lusts as if we'd perish without them.  You say you have no affections and lusts to crucify? Praise God! So many of us have them both and many of them, not just a few. 

Gal 5:24  And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. 

What sort of affections do you have?  What sort of passions do you have that supersede Christ in your life?

Is ANYTHING supposed to be before God in our lives? Seriously, is ANYTHING supposed to come before God?

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. 

We are to love God with ALL our heart, with ALL our soul, with ALL our mind.

If God is FIRST in our lives then we are crucifying our affections and lusts because they are not of God.

Too often we put things and OTHERS first in our lives and we tell ourselves that God wants us to put them first, but He doesn't, He really doesn't. God wants to be first in our lives and then with HIM first we truly can love others. If we put others before God- what love are we really loving them with? Ask yourself that question- what love can you give others if it's not God's love? It certainly isn't a real love but a love that mimics real love.

There is A LOT of false love that is completely disguised as being true, selfless love when in fact it is very selfish and not in the least bit selfless. We don't want to think about these things though. We don't want to believe any love that seems selfless and wonderful could be false love. 

We need God first in all things and when that happens, truly we are crucifying our affections and lusts, our selfishness, our self-serving.

May God HELP us all by the grace of our loving heavenly SAVIOR Jesus Christ our LORD now and forever!

Gal 5:16  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 

Gal 5:17  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. 

We have choices to make.

Pro 25:28  He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls. 

2Co 10:5  Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ

Col 3:2  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 

1Co 9:27  But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. 

What are all the above verses telling us?

We must rule over our own spirits.

We must cast down our imaginations.

We must cast down everything that tries to put itself above the knowledge of God.

We must bring into captivity EVERY thought- to the obedience of Christ.

We must set our affections on things above, not on things here on earth.

We must keep our bodies under subjection.

Do you comprehend the importance of realizing how truly involved in our own spiritual life we have to be?

None of those verses talk about God doing these things for them. We aren't told that God must keep our bodies under subjection. We aren't told God must set our affections on things above. We aren't told that God has to cast down our imaginations for us, that God has to bring captive our every thought. We aren't told that if God doesn't rule over our spirit we are like a broken city without walls of protection.

We have CHOICES to make, God won't choose for us!  Even if we want God to choose for us, He can't because CHOICE is ours and never taken from us. Being a Christian is a LIFE LONG choice, not a single choice and no more. We will daily face many choices that determine our spiritual walk and we must choose to have our God, our Savior, our Holy Spirit influence our choices. We will have every bit of help we need once we choose, but that power of choice will forever remain untouched by any other unless we choose to give it to one who has no qualms at all over stealing our power of choice and doing all he can to keep it. Satan wants to take away our power of choice and will do all he can to convince people that he can and has done that to them, it's a lie, it's deception, but the evil one deceives many in this way.  We must choose GOD all the time, not just once or twice a day, but in our entire lives we must make a choice for God. 

We have to knock but He will open for us. We have to seek but He is found. We have to ask but He is the giver.

We aren't told to open for ourselves, or to be what we find, or to give ourselves. We are told this--

Luk_11:9  And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

Ask, seek, knock.   Make the choice to ASK, make the choice to SEEK, make the choice to KNOCK.

We have a part to play in our spiritual life a huge part that so few want to talk about because it means comprehending that being a Christian is not something that is a part of us simply because we lay claim to the name. Being a Christian is an entire life endeavor, a way of life in all things.  Being a Christian is recognizing the war, the battle we are daily engaged in. Not a single day will pass by when we are not in that battle. There is no 'leave' for the soldiers in this war.

May our Savior forgive us, and may we be kept from evil, all through HIS Love!

*******

'What the Christian must therefore control by his will are:

(a) his own spirit, maintaining it in its proper state of being neither too hot nor too cold. The spirit needs the control of the will just as do the other parts of man. Only when one’s volition is renewed and is filled with the Holy Spirit is he able to direct his own spirit and keep it in its proper position. All who are experienced agree that they must engage their will to restrain the spirit when it becomes too wild or to uplift it when it sinks too low. Only so can the believer walk daily in his spirit. This is not contradictory to what we mentioned before about man’s spirit ruling over the whole person. For when we say the  spirit rules the total man we mean that the spirit, by knowing the mind of God intuitively, governs the whole being (including the volition) according to God’s will. Whereas in stating that the will

controls the man we mean the will directly controls the entire man (including the spirit) according to the will of God. In experience these two perfectly agree. “A man without self-control is like a city

broken into and left without walls” (Prov. 25.28).

(b) his own mind and all the rest of his soul’s abilities. All thoughts need to be subjected fully to the control of the will; wandering thoughts must be checked one by one—“take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Cor. 10.5). And “set your minds on things that are above” (Col. 3.2).

(c) his own body. It ought to be an instrument to man, not his master by virtue of unrestrained habits and lusts. The Christian should exercise his volition to control, discipline and subdue his body in order that it may be entirely submissive, ready to do God’s will and hindering not. “I pommel my body and subdue it” (1 Cor. 9.27). (KJV  1Co 9:27  But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.)  Once the believer’s volition has achieved a state of perfect self-control he will not be hindered by any part of his being, because the moment he senses God’s will he immediately performs it. Both the Holy Spirit and man’s spirit need a will under self-control by which to execute God’s revelation. Hence on the one hand we must  be united with God and on the other hand subdue our whole being so as to render it obedient to us. This is imperative to spiritual life. '

Excerpt The Spiritual Man by Watchman Nee