Rev. {21:1} And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the
first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there
was no more sea. {21:2} And I John saw the holy city, new
Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared
as a bride adorned for her husband. {21:3} And I heard a
great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of
God [is] with men, and he will dwell with them, and they
shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them,
[and be] their God. {21:4} And God shall wipe away all
tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death,
neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more
pain: for the former things are passed away. {21:5} And he
that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.
And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and
faithful. {21:6} And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha
and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him
that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
{21:7} He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will
be his God, and he shall be my son. {21:8} But the fearful,
and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and
whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars,
shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and
brimstone: which is the second death.
A new heaven and a new earth- for the first heaven and first earth were passed away. The world as we know it will be no more. A holy city, a new Jerusalem will come down from God out of heaven.
A holy city so special and amazing as a bride is on her wedding day. I've heard tell that on her wedding day adorned in her wedding gown a bride is made to feel as a princess, a queen. Even before wedding gowns brides were given special attention on that day as they were prepared for their grooms. A wedding day is special, incredibly special and here an entire new holy city, a new Jerusalem that has been prepared for us, for those of us that have united with Christ accepting His glorious sacrifice so that we may live in His righteousness.
The tabernacle of God is with men. God will dwell with us! We shall be God's people! How amazing is that? How wondrous is that? Love unlike anything we imagine.
Last night on some tv show I heard one of the actors say- 'How could God allow this to happen?' She was speaking of the tortured life of someone she loved. Where was the blame given to Satan? Where? It was alright and normal to question God but where were the accusations towards Satan? Why didn't she instead say 'Damn Satan for doing this!' People blame God, not Satan, he's just an afterthought, a given while God is the One who is supposed to intervene- and He has but He's intervened for eternity, not now, not for this life.
Soon, 'God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.'
In the new earth there will be no death, no sorrow, no crying, no pain- those things will be done away with.
It's true! Christ died to offer this life to us, all of us if we but repent and confess, accepting Christ's sacrifice and living for Him.
Rev. 'And he
that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.
And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and
faithful. {21:6} And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha
and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him
that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
{21:7} He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will
be his God, and he shall be my son. {21:8} But the fearful,
and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and
whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars,
shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and
brimstone: which is the second death.
Him that is athirst.
He that overcometh.
We need to thrist of the water of life that is found in Christ. We need to overcome this world we live in by living for Christ, in Christ. Overcoming isn't easy no matter what circumstances you find yourself in. On the outside people might think you have everything a person could want but in truth, your life is still to be a life of overcoming. It's harder to overcome a life of ease and riches than it is for a poor, hard working man to overcome. For a rich person living a life of ease they have to overcome their luxuries, their easy existence and it's not easy giving up good things, things that bring us ease and pleasure here on earth now. No wonder Christ said it is easier for a camel to get through an eye of a needle than a rich man to get to heaven. Who ever really thinks about having to overcome a life of ease?
We all have to be thirsty.
We all have to overcome if we are to inherit all God has for us to inherit in Him.
Those who aren't thirsty, those who aren't overcoming but giving in to their lives - those who are fearful, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, whoremongers, sorcerers, idolaters, and liars... they will not inherit the new promised world, they will not take part in the new Jerusalem, in fact they will be blotted out of existence entirely and endure the lake of fire.
May God have mercy upon us all through the Grace of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior! Only by His grace, only through His righteousness can we hope to be saved and it is that hope, that faith in Him that we need, by his mercy.
Amen.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Believing until the belief is forever realized.
2 Corinthians {5:7} For we walk by faith, not by sight.
Throughout life how are we asked to take things by faith. Would you buy a car by faith? Would you buy a house? Marry someone? Yes sometimes all these things happen but they are the rarity not the norm. By faith we might take someone at their word because they prove they can be trusted to follow through. If you have faith in someone that's a great thing isn't it?
Walking by faith.
Not by sight.
By faith.
Believing in the unseen. We have to believe in the unseen. The great unseen, the great I Am. In a Savior we've never touched, never seen, never spoken to we need to believe. We have to take the leap of faith and believe no matter what anyone says that God exists, that Jesus saves and that we are given the Holy Spirit to enable us to keep that faith.
Believing without proof. Believing without sight.
We walk by faith.
We have to believe in that, have faith in the fact we walk by faith. Have faith in faith? Seems impossible? Seems like one of those things that is a conundrum?
Have faith in faith. Believe in the unseen. In all actuality, faith multiplies that way, it grows that way. Faith is a constantly growing living thing. Believing is unending. Believing until the belief is forever realized. Believing in a God who loves us and will always love us and that one day we will be transformed into the creatures He intended us to be without all the sin and the results of sin. Faith.
We walk by faith, not by sight.
We need to remember this is the way we live- by faith now and forever.
May the grace and mercy of our precious Lord and Savior Jesus Christ increase our quality of faith in Him now and forever, by His love.
Amen.
Throughout life how are we asked to take things by faith. Would you buy a car by faith? Would you buy a house? Marry someone? Yes sometimes all these things happen but they are the rarity not the norm. By faith we might take someone at their word because they prove they can be trusted to follow through. If you have faith in someone that's a great thing isn't it?
Walking by faith.
Not by sight.
By faith.
Believing in the unseen. We have to believe in the unseen. The great unseen, the great I Am. In a Savior we've never touched, never seen, never spoken to we need to believe. We have to take the leap of faith and believe no matter what anyone says that God exists, that Jesus saves and that we are given the Holy Spirit to enable us to keep that faith.
Believing without proof. Believing without sight.
We walk by faith.
We have to believe in that, have faith in the fact we walk by faith. Have faith in faith? Seems impossible? Seems like one of those things that is a conundrum?
Have faith in faith. Believe in the unseen. In all actuality, faith multiplies that way, it grows that way. Faith is a constantly growing living thing. Believing is unending. Believing until the belief is forever realized. Believing in a God who loves us and will always love us and that one day we will be transformed into the creatures He intended us to be without all the sin and the results of sin. Faith.
We walk by faith, not by sight.
We need to remember this is the way we live- by faith now and forever.
May the grace and mercy of our precious Lord and Savior Jesus Christ increase our quality of faith in Him now and forever, by His love.
Amen.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Satan has done His work well hasn't He?
Lev. {19:31} Regard not them that have familiar spirits, neither
seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I [am] the LORD
your God.
Lev. {20:6} And the soul that turneth after such as have
familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after
them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut
him off from among his people.
Deut. {18:9} When thou art come into the land which the
LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after
the abominations of those nations. {18:10} There shall not
be found among you [any one] that maketh his son or his
daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination,
[or] an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch,
{18:11} Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or
a wizard, or a necromancer. {18:12} For all that do these
things [are] an abomination unto the LORD: and because of
these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out
from before thee.
*******
Are wizards, necromancers, consulters with familiar spirits, witches, enchanters, observers of times all real?
We want to say no don't we? We want to say they are stuff of movies, of fiction, of books, of entertainment. There is no such thing as any of those- so why then is there a warning from God not to do after the abominations of those people? Why? Is God fiction? NO! A resounding NO NO NO! God is real, very real and if God is real then all these things He warns against are real.
Did you read what I just said?
They're real! Witches are real! Enchanters are real! Observers of times are real! Consulters with familiar spirits are real!
Satan is real and He rules them all, He deceives them all and so many of them believe they are doing God's work when in truth they are doing Satan's. God states clearly things He considers an abomination, He couldn't be more clearer and yet we are fooled, so many of us are fooled. We believe it's all benign. Satan has us fooled and at this point in the world's existence if we went about accusing those we call pyschics, those we call witches and such those duped by Satan we are the ones who are labeled out of our minds, deluded. Satan has done His work well. We are fanatics, we are off kilter, we are troublemakers, non-conformist, unreasonable, you name it and we are the bad guys in this whole thing and if we aren't truly bad guys we are mentally impaired in some way.
Satan has done His work well hasn't He?
Deception and the best deceptions happen when the deceived are unaware of their being deceived until it's too late to do anything about it.
It's not real deception if we know about it, right? The deception once uncovered is no longer deception. The light does away with the darkness, the truth does away with deception- or at least it does if we believe the truth.
May God help us all to not be deceived. Open our eyes and our hearts, open our understanding to the truths found in Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. All but the very elect will be deceived without a doubt, may we be among the elect and not deceived, by the grace and mercy of Jesus now and forever.
Amen.
seek after wizards, to be defiled by them: I [am] the LORD
your God.
Lev. {20:6} And the soul that turneth after such as have
familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after
them, I will even set my face against that soul, and will cut
him off from among his people.
Deut. {18:9} When thou art come into the land which the
LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after
the abominations of those nations. {18:10} There shall not
be found among you [any one] that maketh his son or his
daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination,
[or] an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch,
{18:11} Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or
a wizard, or a necromancer. {18:12} For all that do these
things [are] an abomination unto the LORD: and because of
these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out
from before thee.
*******
Are wizards, necromancers, consulters with familiar spirits, witches, enchanters, observers of times all real?
We want to say no don't we? We want to say they are stuff of movies, of fiction, of books, of entertainment. There is no such thing as any of those- so why then is there a warning from God not to do after the abominations of those people? Why? Is God fiction? NO! A resounding NO NO NO! God is real, very real and if God is real then all these things He warns against are real.
Did you read what I just said?
They're real! Witches are real! Enchanters are real! Observers of times are real! Consulters with familiar spirits are real!
Satan is real and He rules them all, He deceives them all and so many of them believe they are doing God's work when in truth they are doing Satan's. God states clearly things He considers an abomination, He couldn't be more clearer and yet we are fooled, so many of us are fooled. We believe it's all benign. Satan has us fooled and at this point in the world's existence if we went about accusing those we call pyschics, those we call witches and such those duped by Satan we are the ones who are labeled out of our minds, deluded. Satan has done His work well. We are fanatics, we are off kilter, we are troublemakers, non-conformist, unreasonable, you name it and we are the bad guys in this whole thing and if we aren't truly bad guys we are mentally impaired in some way.
Satan has done His work well hasn't He?
Deception and the best deceptions happen when the deceived are unaware of their being deceived until it's too late to do anything about it.
It's not real deception if we know about it, right? The deception once uncovered is no longer deception. The light does away with the darkness, the truth does away with deception- or at least it does if we believe the truth.
May God help us all to not be deceived. Open our eyes and our hearts, open our understanding to the truths found in Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. All but the very elect will be deceived without a doubt, may we be among the elect and not deceived, by the grace and mercy of Jesus now and forever.
Amen.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
The kingdom is coming.
Rev. {12:10}
And I heard
a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and
strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his
Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which
accused them before our God day and night.
Satan accuses us before God day and night. So it's safe to say that Satan accuses God always, without ceasing. He accuses us, you and I. He accuses us of what? Sin. Satan accuses us of being failures, unworthy of God, unworthy of being saved and yet God tells Him otherwise. Jesus, God's son became human, He emptied Himself to become human. God could not be killed, God could not remain in the spirit form and die, Jesus had to take on humanity- empty himself of His divinity. Jesus could not be tempted like we are if He didn't divest Himself of that part of Him. In becoming human Jesus had to prove to Satan that man, that humans could live sinless. If Jesus had used ANY power of His own to remain sinless Satan would have laughed and said of course a God could keep sinless we know that God and His Son can remain sinless, that isn't a question. Jesus had to be human. Jesus was born as a baby, born of a woman who had sinned, born with the ability to sin. If he'd been born without the ability to sin then there was no point to His trying to save us failures. Jesus relied fully on the Father, just as we can rely on the Father. Jesus was sinless because He relied on the Father fully. Satan accuses us humans of being failures, of being His, of not being anything that God would want and God tells Him otherwise. Jesus proved that humans were and are worthy of God's love.
Salvation is coming.
Strength is coming.
The Kingdom of God is coming.
The power of His Christ is coming.
Satan will be cast down.
Satan will have his end. He's wrong and he knows he is wrong about humans. He can accuse all he wants to and it's to no avail. We are saved through Christ.
Satan even knowing he's wrong wants to take as many humans with him as he can and that is his objective now, right now.
He's REAL!
Just as real as Jesus, as God, as the Holy Spirit. Satan is real.
Satan is real and he wants us. He stops at nothing to get us, to get to us, to claim us as his successes and God's failures.
God stopped and stops at nothing to save us- but ONLY if we choose to let Him. Satan doesn't care what we choose. We can choose God and Satan laughs and proceeds to try harder to get to us. God will not force us into anything, Satan will try to force us into anything that will make us his, anything and everything.
Salvation is coming.
The kingdom is coming.
Choose and be ready. Pray. Watch. Pray. Don't lose hope, don't lose faith.
By the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ may we be ready for Him when He comes and Satan is put down forever.
Amen.
And I heard
a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and
strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his
Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which
accused them before our God day and night.
Satan accuses us before God day and night. So it's safe to say that Satan accuses God always, without ceasing. He accuses us, you and I. He accuses us of what? Sin. Satan accuses us of being failures, unworthy of God, unworthy of being saved and yet God tells Him otherwise. Jesus, God's son became human, He emptied Himself to become human. God could not be killed, God could not remain in the spirit form and die, Jesus had to take on humanity- empty himself of His divinity. Jesus could not be tempted like we are if He didn't divest Himself of that part of Him. In becoming human Jesus had to prove to Satan that man, that humans could live sinless. If Jesus had used ANY power of His own to remain sinless Satan would have laughed and said of course a God could keep sinless we know that God and His Son can remain sinless, that isn't a question. Jesus had to be human. Jesus was born as a baby, born of a woman who had sinned, born with the ability to sin. If he'd been born without the ability to sin then there was no point to His trying to save us failures. Jesus relied fully on the Father, just as we can rely on the Father. Jesus was sinless because He relied on the Father fully. Satan accuses us humans of being failures, of being His, of not being anything that God would want and God tells Him otherwise. Jesus proved that humans were and are worthy of God's love.
Salvation is coming.
Strength is coming.
The Kingdom of God is coming.
The power of His Christ is coming.
Satan will be cast down.
Satan will have his end. He's wrong and he knows he is wrong about humans. He can accuse all he wants to and it's to no avail. We are saved through Christ.
Satan even knowing he's wrong wants to take as many humans with him as he can and that is his objective now, right now.
He's REAL!
Just as real as Jesus, as God, as the Holy Spirit. Satan is real.
Satan is real and he wants us. He stops at nothing to get us, to get to us, to claim us as his successes and God's failures.
God stopped and stops at nothing to save us- but ONLY if we choose to let Him. Satan doesn't care what we choose. We can choose God and Satan laughs and proceeds to try harder to get to us. God will not force us into anything, Satan will try to force us into anything that will make us his, anything and everything.
Salvation is coming.
The kingdom is coming.
Choose and be ready. Pray. Watch. Pray. Don't lose hope, don't lose faith.
By the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ may we be ready for Him when He comes and Satan is put down forever.
Amen.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
The conclusion of the whole matter
Can you hide yourself from God? No. Can you hide yourself fomr man? Yes. Can you hide yourself from your loved ones, those who supposedly know you better than you're supposed to know yourself? Yes. How often is it someone does something that is shockingly out of character? More often than people probably like. Secret things, evil secret things and even good secret things. Thing are hid from people but not God. We are blind to a lot things in life, completely blind and yet there is One who sees everything little thing we do. God is our judge and the standard of that judgement is reverence towards God and keeping His commandments- that is our whole duty. Reverencing God, putting God where He belongs in our lives, the only supreme being, the only one worthy of any worship we have to give. Why is it so hard for us to reverence God? Why? Why is it hard to put God first? If we can't put God first are we going to keep His commandments? No. The first commandment is... Thou shall have no other gods before me.
Eccl. {12:13} Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this [is] the
whole [duty] of man. {12:14} For God shall bring every
work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether [it be]
good, or whether [it be] evil.
The conclusion of the WHOLE MATTER! There is a conclusion to the whole matter, to everything, to every question, ever moment of wondering, there is a conclusion, there is a bottom line. And in conclusion... when we hear those words we have a sense of expectation that we're coming to the end of the matter, we're coming to the last bit and if we haven't understood all the talk before at this point there is a recap that concludes the whole matter. In conclusion. In conclusion concerning man and life--
Fear God and keep his commandments, this is the whole duty of man.
But there is a little more to that conclusion-
For God shall bring every work into judgment with every secret thing whether good or whether evil.
There you have it, the conclusion to the whole matter of life.
Our lives are not hidden, they are not secrets to God. While no one on earth can really know us truly- know all the secret things of our heart, God knows. If you've nothing to hide from God you've no problem with Him knowing all there is to know, right? When we believe we are hiding anything from God we are mistaken. If we think that by ignoring Him and keeping Him out of our lives that He'll leave us alone, well no matter what we do He knows. There is no place a person can hide from God. We might be able to hide from each other, hide from a loved one, hide from the law, hide from strangers, hide from ourselves and yes, sometimes we fill our hearts with self-delusion to hide from ourselves and we do a darn good job of it too; but we can't hide anything from God. Some might say that's a cruel God who watches us, looking for us to make a mistake and obviously they don't know God's character at all. He is our Creator! He loves us! Out of love He wants us to be the creatures He made us to be and to be those creatures we must love Him and understand that He loves us. It's not by coincidence we are given life as we are- coupling and as a result children. A great lesson is learned, an imperfect lesson but a lesson nonetheless, when we have children. Generally parents want what is best for their children- God wants what is best for us. Our Heavenly Father wants His children to trust in Him. Can we always trust our earthly parents? No. But God is our Creator, our parents while having a hand in our creation only do so because God first gave them life.
May we come to understand the conclusion of the whole matter of life- it's no mystery.
Eccl. {12:13} Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this [is] the
whole [duty] of man.
May God bless and keep us, may we learn to fear God, to reverence God, to keep His commandments as He would have us keep them, in His love.
By the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ our Savior this is possible and only through Him. In His love now and forever.
Amen.
Eccl. {12:13} Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this [is] the
whole [duty] of man. {12:14} For God shall bring every
work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether [it be]
good, or whether [it be] evil.
The conclusion of the WHOLE MATTER! There is a conclusion to the whole matter, to everything, to every question, ever moment of wondering, there is a conclusion, there is a bottom line. And in conclusion... when we hear those words we have a sense of expectation that we're coming to the end of the matter, we're coming to the last bit and if we haven't understood all the talk before at this point there is a recap that concludes the whole matter. In conclusion. In conclusion concerning man and life--
Fear God and keep his commandments, this is the whole duty of man.
But there is a little more to that conclusion-
For God shall bring every work into judgment with every secret thing whether good or whether evil.
There you have it, the conclusion to the whole matter of life.
Our lives are not hidden, they are not secrets to God. While no one on earth can really know us truly- know all the secret things of our heart, God knows. If you've nothing to hide from God you've no problem with Him knowing all there is to know, right? When we believe we are hiding anything from God we are mistaken. If we think that by ignoring Him and keeping Him out of our lives that He'll leave us alone, well no matter what we do He knows. There is no place a person can hide from God. We might be able to hide from each other, hide from a loved one, hide from the law, hide from strangers, hide from ourselves and yes, sometimes we fill our hearts with self-delusion to hide from ourselves and we do a darn good job of it too; but we can't hide anything from God. Some might say that's a cruel God who watches us, looking for us to make a mistake and obviously they don't know God's character at all. He is our Creator! He loves us! Out of love He wants us to be the creatures He made us to be and to be those creatures we must love Him and understand that He loves us. It's not by coincidence we are given life as we are- coupling and as a result children. A great lesson is learned, an imperfect lesson but a lesson nonetheless, when we have children. Generally parents want what is best for their children- God wants what is best for us. Our Heavenly Father wants His children to trust in Him. Can we always trust our earthly parents? No. But God is our Creator, our parents while having a hand in our creation only do so because God first gave them life.
May we come to understand the conclusion of the whole matter of life- it's no mystery.
Eccl. {12:13} Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this [is] the
whole [duty] of man.
May God bless and keep us, may we learn to fear God, to reverence God, to keep His commandments as He would have us keep them, in His love.
By the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ our Savior this is possible and only through Him. In His love now and forever.
Amen.
Friday, June 5, 2009
The Kingdom Comes
Matthew
{6:10} Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as [it is] in heaven
Luke
{11:2} And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.
*******
Thy kingdom come.
Jesus said these words when the disciples asked Him to teach them to pray. He told them to pray to the Heavenly Father and in that prayer to pray... Thy kingdom come.
Kingdom.
Luke
{9:60} Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.
Jesus spoke a lot about the kingdom of God, before Jesus did though John the Baptist did.
Matt. {3:1} In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, {3:2} And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
{4:23} And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom
{5:3} Blessed [are] the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven
{5:10} Blessed [are] they which are persecuted for righteousness sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
{5:19} Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach [them,] the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
{5:20} For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed [the righteousness] of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
{4:17} From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
{6:10} Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as [it is] in heaven.
{6:13} And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
{6:33} But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you
{7:21} Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
{9:35} And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
{10:7} And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
{12:28} But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you
*******
The Kingdom of God.
We read fairy tales all the time and some of them have kingdoms- there are the tales of evil verses good and we've made them stories, games, unbelievable. We've taken the concept of good and evil and altered it so much that it is just that- fodder for entertainment. We've lost sight of true nobility, of a life dedicated to honor, to a purpose beyond the norm. We think living for a kingdom we can't touch, we can't see, we can't hear- totally ridiculous. People are called crazy who live for 'imaginary' things as if they are real. Try and make it real to another and we're more crazy still. This whole battle between good and evil isn't something real and if we make it real we're crazy. Satan surely has done his work well hasn't he? Seriously, he has. Yes, we allow for a certain amount of religion and we even tolerate zeolots, Jesus freaks, and religious nuts. We humor them and wish them to go away so they're not disturbing our little lives, lives not filled with belief of a kingdom to come, a real kingdom for you and for me.
The Kingdom of God.
Christ is the embodiment of that Kingdom. Christ preached the Kingdom. We too should preach the Kingdom as it is in Jesus.
The Kingdom is real! It's not something made up from someone's imagination, it is real as you and I are real. We are either for the Kingdom or we're not and there isn't any middle ground. Left to our own devices we are not seeking the kingdom and if not sought it won't be found.
May God help us all seek the Kingdom of God, to preach the Kingdom to others.
By the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ now and forever.
Amen.
{6:10} Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as [it is] in heaven
Luke
{11:2} And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.
*******
Thy kingdom come.
Jesus said these words when the disciples asked Him to teach them to pray. He told them to pray to the Heavenly Father and in that prayer to pray... Thy kingdom come.
Kingdom.
Luke
{9:60} Jesus said unto him, Let the dead bury their dead: but go thou and preach the kingdom of God.
Jesus spoke a lot about the kingdom of God, before Jesus did though John the Baptist did.
Matt. {3:1} In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, {3:2} And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
{4:23} And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom
{5:3} Blessed [are] the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven
{5:10} Blessed [are] they which are persecuted for righteousness sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
{5:19} Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach [them,] the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
{5:20} For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed [the righteousness] of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
{4:17} From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
{6:10} Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as [it is] in heaven.
{6:13} And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
{6:33} But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you
{7:21} Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
{9:35} And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
{10:7} And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
{12:28} But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you
*******
The Kingdom of God.
We read fairy tales all the time and some of them have kingdoms- there are the tales of evil verses good and we've made them stories, games, unbelievable. We've taken the concept of good and evil and altered it so much that it is just that- fodder for entertainment. We've lost sight of true nobility, of a life dedicated to honor, to a purpose beyond the norm. We think living for a kingdom we can't touch, we can't see, we can't hear- totally ridiculous. People are called crazy who live for 'imaginary' things as if they are real. Try and make it real to another and we're more crazy still. This whole battle between good and evil isn't something real and if we make it real we're crazy. Satan surely has done his work well hasn't he? Seriously, he has. Yes, we allow for a certain amount of religion and we even tolerate zeolots, Jesus freaks, and religious nuts. We humor them and wish them to go away so they're not disturbing our little lives, lives not filled with belief of a kingdom to come, a real kingdom for you and for me.
The Kingdom of God.
Christ is the embodiment of that Kingdom. Christ preached the Kingdom. We too should preach the Kingdom as it is in Jesus.
The Kingdom is real! It's not something made up from someone's imagination, it is real as you and I are real. We are either for the Kingdom or we're not and there isn't any middle ground. Left to our own devices we are not seeking the kingdom and if not sought it won't be found.
May God help us all seek the Kingdom of God, to preach the Kingdom to others.
By the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ now and forever.
Amen.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
We are blessed for having faith.
Luke
{24:36} And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in
the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace [be] unto you.
{24:37} But they were terrified and affrighted, and
supposed that they had seen a spirit. {24:38} And he said
unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise
in your hearts? {24:39} Behold my hands and my feet, that
it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh
and bones, as ye see me have. {24:40} And when he had
thus spoken, he shewed them [his] hands and [his] feet.
{24:41} And while they yet believed not for joy, and
wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?
{24:42} And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of
an honeycomb. {24:43} And he took [it,] and did eat before
them. {24:44} And he said unto them, These [are] the
words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you,
that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the
law of Moses, and [in] the prophets, and [in] the psalms,
concerning me. {24:45} Then opened he their
understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
{24:46} And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it
behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third
day: {24:47} And that repentance and remission of sins
should be preached in his name among all nations,
beginning at Jerusalem. {24:48} And ye are witnesses of
these things.
Jesus said unto the disciples gathered together on that third day, the day He rose from the grave-- Peace be unto you.
Don't you suppose that if Jesus said 'peace be unto you' that peace would overcome you instantly? You'd think that's what would happen and yet once again Jesus allows our free will reign He doesn't manipulate us of cause us to feel this way or that not without our consent. We can consent to remain sad, scared, angry. We don't have to choose to allow Jesus to bring us peace and yet peace is what He want's to give us- not the peace of this world but the peace that is found in Him.
After Jesus said, peace be unto you the Bible goes on to say- 'But they were terrified and affrighted and supposed they'd seen a spirit.'
Terrified, that's a pretty strong word isn't it? They weren't just scared but terrified, why? Because they thought they'd seen a spirit. Spirits were and are obviously something that isn't conducive to being calm about, yet worth being terrified of. If spirits were good things and things desired then you'd think that they'd have been happy to see a spirit. Yet Jesus goes on and says, 'Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.'
He wasn't a spirit, He was flesh and bones, he wanted them to look at his hands and feet. What would they see there looking at His hands and feet-- the marks of His crucifixtion? This was the crucified Christ standing there before them and they were scared, no, not just scared but terrified.
Jesus didn't tell them to calm down but rather gave the reason to calm down, to understand He was no evil spirit and worthy of being terrified of.
He told them outright He was no spirit, he asked for food and ate it in front of them, and He talked with them wanting them to understand that all things in the Scriptures (Old Testament) the Law of Moses and the prophets that talked of Him had been fulfilled in Him. Jesus opened their understanding why? Because their understanding was obviously dim, they couldn't understand what Jesus was saying, they had fear in them and so He opened their understanding, read this again--
'{24:45} Then opened he their
understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
{24:46} And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it
behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third
day: {24:47} And that repentance and remission of sins
should be preached in his name among all nations,
beginning at Jerusalem. {24:48} And ye are witnesses of
these things.'
Jesus opened their understanding to the reality of His being the risen Lord. He rose from the dead and this would be preached to all, His life would be preached. The fact He fulfilled all that was written in the Scriptures of HIm and He suffered, and then rose from the dead on the third day and because of this-- repentance and remission of sin should be preached in His name among all nations beginning at Jerusalem-- the disciples were witnessed to all these things.
There really is nothing like an eyewitness is there? As long as you can believe what they tell you. In our court system we have eyewitnesses who testify towards the happenstances that led up to their being in the court that day. They'll tell you they saw a person commit a crime and because of their testimony taken under oath swearing what they say is true people are put in jail, they're convicted of a crime based on eyewitnesses. The disciples were eyewitnesses to all Christ had done when He lived among them and now they were witnesses of His fulfilling prophecy and rising from the dead. The disciples were called to preach all this to others so that they could repent of their sins and be forgiven.
A lot of people want an eyewitness, not just a Holy book to reveal Christ to them and yet even should an eyewitness have been among them and they living back in the time of Jesus' death and resurrection the same people would refuse to believe the eyewitness.
No matter if it's a book or an eyewitness in the end you have to take what is said by faith and believe in it. The court system takes what an eyewitness testifies and believes in them and what they say. How often do you take the word of someone? We do it all the time. We ask someone to do something and we believe they will do it, we have faith.
Christ appeared before the disciples and they were terrified until He revealed fully that He was truly the Lord they loved risen from the grave.
The disciples in that moment didn't have to go by faith so much as fact because right before them Jesus lived, Jesus who had died was now living and they saw Him. Their understanding was being opened. We need to remember this verse-
John {20:29} Jesus saith unto him, Thomas,
because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed [are]
they that have not seen, and [yet] have believed.
We are blessed for beliving when we haven't seen.
We are blessed for having faith.
May God open our hearts and minds to understand all that we need to understand to be prepared and to help prepare others for His soon return. May our faith be strengthened, our hearts filled with love for one another, may the Lord guide us into all truth in Him and may His grace and mercy be real to us as well as His righteousness in our lives because it's only through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that we truly live- now and forever.
Amen.
{24:36} And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in
the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace [be] unto you.
{24:37} But they were terrified and affrighted, and
supposed that they had seen a spirit. {24:38} And he said
unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise
in your hearts? {24:39} Behold my hands and my feet, that
it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh
and bones, as ye see me have. {24:40} And when he had
thus spoken, he shewed them [his] hands and [his] feet.
{24:41} And while they yet believed not for joy, and
wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?
{24:42} And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of
an honeycomb. {24:43} And he took [it,] and did eat before
them. {24:44} And he said unto them, These [are] the
words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you,
that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the
law of Moses, and [in] the prophets, and [in] the psalms,
concerning me. {24:45} Then opened he their
understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
{24:46} And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it
behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third
day: {24:47} And that repentance and remission of sins
should be preached in his name among all nations,
beginning at Jerusalem. {24:48} And ye are witnesses of
these things.
Jesus said unto the disciples gathered together on that third day, the day He rose from the grave-- Peace be unto you.
Don't you suppose that if Jesus said 'peace be unto you' that peace would overcome you instantly? You'd think that's what would happen and yet once again Jesus allows our free will reign He doesn't manipulate us of cause us to feel this way or that not without our consent. We can consent to remain sad, scared, angry. We don't have to choose to allow Jesus to bring us peace and yet peace is what He want's to give us- not the peace of this world but the peace that is found in Him.
After Jesus said, peace be unto you the Bible goes on to say- 'But they were terrified and affrighted and supposed they'd seen a spirit.'
Terrified, that's a pretty strong word isn't it? They weren't just scared but terrified, why? Because they thought they'd seen a spirit. Spirits were and are obviously something that isn't conducive to being calm about, yet worth being terrified of. If spirits were good things and things desired then you'd think that they'd have been happy to see a spirit. Yet Jesus goes on and says, 'Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.'
He wasn't a spirit, He was flesh and bones, he wanted them to look at his hands and feet. What would they see there looking at His hands and feet-- the marks of His crucifixtion? This was the crucified Christ standing there before them and they were scared, no, not just scared but terrified.
Jesus didn't tell them to calm down but rather gave the reason to calm down, to understand He was no evil spirit and worthy of being terrified of.
He told them outright He was no spirit, he asked for food and ate it in front of them, and He talked with them wanting them to understand that all things in the Scriptures (Old Testament) the Law of Moses and the prophets that talked of Him had been fulfilled in Him. Jesus opened their understanding why? Because their understanding was obviously dim, they couldn't understand what Jesus was saying, they had fear in them and so He opened their understanding, read this again--
'{24:45} Then opened he their
understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,
{24:46} And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it
behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third
day: {24:47} And that repentance and remission of sins
should be preached in his name among all nations,
beginning at Jerusalem. {24:48} And ye are witnesses of
these things.'
Jesus opened their understanding to the reality of His being the risen Lord. He rose from the dead and this would be preached to all, His life would be preached. The fact He fulfilled all that was written in the Scriptures of HIm and He suffered, and then rose from the dead on the third day and because of this-- repentance and remission of sin should be preached in His name among all nations beginning at Jerusalem-- the disciples were witnessed to all these things.
There really is nothing like an eyewitness is there? As long as you can believe what they tell you. In our court system we have eyewitnesses who testify towards the happenstances that led up to their being in the court that day. They'll tell you they saw a person commit a crime and because of their testimony taken under oath swearing what they say is true people are put in jail, they're convicted of a crime based on eyewitnesses. The disciples were eyewitnesses to all Christ had done when He lived among them and now they were witnesses of His fulfilling prophecy and rising from the dead. The disciples were called to preach all this to others so that they could repent of their sins and be forgiven.
A lot of people want an eyewitness, not just a Holy book to reveal Christ to them and yet even should an eyewitness have been among them and they living back in the time of Jesus' death and resurrection the same people would refuse to believe the eyewitness.
No matter if it's a book or an eyewitness in the end you have to take what is said by faith and believe in it. The court system takes what an eyewitness testifies and believes in them and what they say. How often do you take the word of someone? We do it all the time. We ask someone to do something and we believe they will do it, we have faith.
Christ appeared before the disciples and they were terrified until He revealed fully that He was truly the Lord they loved risen from the grave.
The disciples in that moment didn't have to go by faith so much as fact because right before them Jesus lived, Jesus who had died was now living and they saw Him. Their understanding was being opened. We need to remember this verse-
John {20:29} Jesus saith unto him, Thomas,
because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed [are]
they that have not seen, and [yet] have believed.
We are blessed for beliving when we haven't seen.
We are blessed for having faith.
May God open our hearts and minds to understand all that we need to understand to be prepared and to help prepare others for His soon return. May our faith be strengthened, our hearts filled with love for one another, may the Lord guide us into all truth in Him and may His grace and mercy be real to us as well as His righteousness in our lives because it's only through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that we truly live- now and forever.
Amen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)