Say Goodbye to Yourself

The Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul presents some of the most important news for the liberation of the believer. We are told to, "Strip yourselves of your former nature [put off and discard your old unrenewed self] which characterized your previous manner of life and becomes corrupt through lusts and desires that spring from delusion; And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude], And put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God’s image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness." (Ephesians 4:22-24 AMP) This is not accomplished by self effort or by entertaining a barrage of rules and regulation, but by grace through faith. Yes, the same principle that one is saved, is the same way that we live our Christian life, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God." (Ephesians 2:8)

A biblical definition of grace is, "[Not in your own strength] for it is God Who is all the while effectually at work in you [energizing and creating in you the power and desire], both to will and to work for His good pleasure and satisfaction and delight." (Philippians 2:13 AMP) and a biblical definition of faith is, "Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses]." (Hebrews 11:1 AMP) So, grace is God's favor, ability and or strength at work in believers giving them the power and desire to do His will. Faith, is completely trusting in and acting on what God says (His Word) without any proof in the natural realm, even when the natural realm is completely contrary to God's Word. Therefore, to put off the old nature, which grows corrupt and put on the new nature which is created in God in true righteousness and holiness we look to His Word and simply believe, receive and act on what God's Word says. Let's begin with Romans chapter six...

Romans 6:1-2 "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?" If a believer is "dead to sin," it is impossible for him or her to live in sin. If a person lives in sin, then he or she is not dead to it and knows nothing of the true grace of God. The aspect of death is not only physical but also a spiritual state, (not to mention, eternal state) and is spoken here as being "dead to sin," that is, separation from sinful living. Therefore, the expression "dead to sin” speaks of the way that the believers spiritual state is separated unto God from the sin in which he formerly lived. Notice that Paul never states that "sin is dead to us" but that we are "dead to sin." The law of sin or the principles of sin is still present in the believer, but it can be rendered inoperative as the believer walks after the higher law, "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death." (Romans 8:2)

Now Paul asks another question, "Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?" (Romans 6:3) In asking ourselves the same question, also ask, do we truly believe this? The believer became "dead to sin" by being united with Jesus Christ, that is, baptism into Christ. Baptism here refers to immersion into His death. Believers are to see in Calvary not only Christ’s death for him or her, but also his or her death with Christ. Every believer by spiritual union with Christ, enters into His death and in water baptism, testifies his or her identification with His death. Next...

"Therefore, we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." (Romans 6:4) Christ was raised up from the dead by the power of the Father. (Ephesians 1:19-21) The believer is also raised up. Christ arose to walk in newness of life. The believer also rises to walk in newness of life, not in the oldness of the old life. Knowing this, gives us a key to the believers new nature. Believers are to lay aside, renounce, render inoperable the old man, by God's grace through faith in what He says. Newness of life was instantly imparted at the moment of regeneration and we now are called to walk in this new life. Look at our oneness with Christ...

"For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin." (Romans 6:5-6) If one can believe that they were united together in the likeness of Christ’s death, then we are to also believe that we are in the likeness of His resurrection. Notice the tense here. Not is crucified with Him, but was crucified with Him. The same truth is brought out in Galatians. 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ…" This is very important to grasp; the old man (old demonic, fallen, spiritually dead, sinful nature) was crucified with Christ!!! The Centenary Translation puts it this way, "For this we know, that our old self was crucified with Christ, in order that the slave of sin might be destroyed; so that we should no longer be in slavery to sin.” (Romans 6:6)

This verse is a declaration to ourselves by faith, we can say, "I died with Christ, that is, the o1d man, the sin nature that was a partaker of spiritual death, died with Christ." By nature, we were born as slaves to Satan and sin. Now, the believer is no longer a slave to Satan and sin but servants of God, even sons and daughters of God in Christ. (1 John 3:1) The word destroyed in the above Centenary Translation means, made void, made without effect, to bring to naught, vanish away, put away, put down, abolished, to cease, rendered inoperative, or inactive. When the body of Jesus was crucified, died, and was rendered inactive, inoperative, so the believer's body of sin should be the same because of his or her union with Christ, in His death, no longer serving sin but serving Jesus.

"For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him." (Romans 6:7-8) This literally means "he that has died" in a physical sense. Note that the physical truth points to the spiritual truth. Freed means, justified, acquitted, absolved. That as Christ was once dead but now lives to God, and will no more die, so we, being dead to sin, but living unto God, should not obey sin, but should live only to God not only in the next life but now! So far, we see that the believer has, died with Christ; was buried with Christ; is united together with Christ; is raised with Christ; was crucified with Christ; and is alive with Christ. To say goodbye to our old nature, believers need to see not only Christ’s substitution in these things, but also our identification with Him in these things. Paul continues...

"Knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts." (Romans 6:9-12) To reckon means, to not imagine or count something true that is not true.
Verse eleven is another faith declaration; "I conclude that it is true, I am dead to sin, and I am alive, I have life in Christ Jesus my Lord." The believer is to allow Christ, as King, to reign over him or her, not sin. The law of sin has not yet been eradicated from the believer simply due to believers having a mortal body that is subject to physical death. Physical death is the last enemy to be destroyed. (1 Corinthians 15:26) There is the constant need to say no to sin and yes to life in Christ Jesus. (Remember, this is talking about the law of sin, not the nature of sin)

"And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God." (Romans 6:13) This is our identification with Christ’s death and resurrection. Sin is a spiritual law and needs a person, their body, as an instrument to express itself. The heart of the whole matter concerns yielding the body's members as an instruments of sin or instruments of righteousness. The Holy Spirit through Paul also gives us the solution to this, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." (Romans 12:1-2) Paul gives us another wonderful nugget of truth...

"For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace." (Romans 6:14) There it is. Paul is clear that the believer can live a victorious life in Christ. Sin does not need to have dominion (reign as king) over the believer. The believer can have dominion (reign as king) over sin. This does not mean that the believer has reached a state of sinless perfection, but rather the believer no longer needs to be ruled or dominated by sin. The believer is not under the law (that is, the dominion of the law of sin as the context is dealing with), nor is the believer under the law which was given to Moses (as Romans seven points out), but the believer is under a higher and stronger law, grace, which is actually being under the law of Christ, that is, "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death." (Romans 8:2) "Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." (2 Corinthians 3:17) PTL!!! 

What we have seen here in Romans chapter six, is the sanctification and identification of the believer in and with Christ. Sanctification is the operation of the new law of life in Christ Jesus, a higher spiritual law, which makes us free from the law of sin and death. So, in the mind of our Heavenly father, when Christ was crucified, we were crucified; when Christ died, we died; when Christ was buried, we were buried; when Christ spent three days and three nights as our substitute in hell, we were in Him; when Christ met the claims of justice, our old satanic, sinful nature was put away; when Christ was raised, we were raised; when Christ ascended, we ascended; when Christ sat down on the throne with all things under His feet, we also sat down on the throne with all things under our feet; as Christ lives, we also live; we are no longer slaves of sin; we have been freed from sin, and should walk in the newness of life!!!

In the mind of the Father, the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ, brought us into a perfect oneness with Christ. Just as Jesus conquered death by submitting to it, (John 10:17-18), we, the new creations in Christ, conquer Satan by submitting to the Lordship of Jesus. So, say goodbye to your old self and exceedingly rejoice, for Christ has truly set us FREE!!!

No Worries

Worry and anxiety steals life from all people. They are synonymous in definition meaning, "a feeling of nervousness, or uneasiness, concerning an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome which causes one's mind to dwell on difficulty, troubles or uncertainty over actual or potential problems." Jesus tells us, "Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?" (Matthew 6:27) Basically, worry cannot add anything to one's life. The Holy Spirit through the Apostle Peter says, "casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7) The Amplified Bible presents it this way, "Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully."

Peter is not the first person to suggest that believers should do this. We see David with the same revelation, "Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved." (Psalm 55:22) David also exposes the real problem behind worry or anxiety, "Do not fret (to be constantly or visibly worried or anxious) it only causes harm." (Psalm 37:8) Although we cannot throw away, run away from or pretend that problems do not exist, we can get rid of the anxiety that is caused by life's problems. We can refuse to be burdened down by cares. We can reject the kind of worry that disturbs our peace and distracts our mind. What can we do? Turn to God.

We find relief in God. We hand our worry over to Him so that we do not have to carry them. How do we do this? "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; the results of doing this, "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7)  We pour out our anxiety, our worries to the Lord in prayer. "We cast our cares on God." When we do this, we can feel at peace. We can be calm even in the midst of times of trouble. We can experience the serenity that God promises and that Jesus exemplifies.

Peter gives us the reason why we should "cast our cares on the Lord." Because "He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully." Although Peter does not mention this, there is another reason for casting our cares on God. Let's face it, God is big enough to carry our cares for us. He is so big, He can carry all of our cares and burdens. Even the burdens of the whole world are not too much for Him. (Jeremiah 32:17) In times of trouble, let us respond to Jesus' invitation, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

Next, Peter moves on with more instruction. He tells us, "Be sober, be vigilant; because our adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." (1 Peter 5:8) While casting your cares upon God, do not doubt that he is able and willing to support you, but be watchful against, the devil, our foe. We should act wisely as one does when he or she senses danger. In other words, we are to be on our guard against the wiles, the schemes of the evil one who opposes us. The Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul warns us, "And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light." (2 Corinthians 11:14)

Sometimes Satan is represented as transforming himself into an angel of light, and sometimes, as revealed by Peter, as a roaring lion. This means, Satan puts great effort in trying to to alarm and overpower believers, trying to rob us of our faith. However, believers must remember that Satan is a defeated foe, "Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it." (Colossians 2:15) According to the Amplified; American Standard; Phillips; Rotherham; Weymouth; and Conybeare Versions of the same scripture, Jesus, spoiled; disarmed; stripped of power; exposed; shattered; empty; defeated; shook off, Satan and his evil hosts in triumph!!!

Next, Peter tells us to, "Resist him, (Satan) steadfast in the faith." We are resisting our adversary’s fight against us, by upholding and enforcing what Jesus has already accomplished for us as we also see, "Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil." (Hebrews 2:14) Again, in the American Standard; Rotherham; and Conybeare Versions of the same scripture, Jesus brought to nothing, paralyzed, destroyed, Satan who had the power of death, that is spiritual death. We also see the same thing as revealed by the Holy Spirit through the Apostle John, "He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil." (1 John 3:8) Again, we find in the American Standard; Phillips; and Rotherham Versions of the same scripture, Jesus, undid; destroyed; liquidated the works of the devil.

Because Satan is a defeated foe, believers are to stand firm in faith. The Apostle Paul tells us, "my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might." (Ephesians 6:10) We are to stand in the power of God's might. Paul also reveals, "Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams]." (Ephesians 3:20 AMP), and, "[Not in your own strength] for it is God Who is all the while effectually at work in you [energizing and creating in you the power and desire], both to will and to work for His good pleasure and satisfaction and delight." (Philippians 2:13 AMP) PTL...

Finally, God is the God of grace. He freely forgave us our sins and paid the price with his own Son. (Ephesians 2:8) He freely gives us grace even now, grace that sustains us and upholds us. (2 Corinthians 12:9) We know that our salvation is not based on our works of righteousness. (Romans 3:26) Our salvation is based on the meritorious work and promises of Jesus Christ. (Hebrews 87:6) The Father includes us in His promise because He loves us. These truths about God should give us great comfort, great hope, great strength and increase our faith. If the God of all grace called us in Jesus Christ, then we can be assured that in times of discouragement, He will encourage us. In times of weakness, He will give us strength. When we fall down, He will pick us up. When we are tempted, He gives us a way of escape. When we fail, He will forgive us.

So, when life's problems, the wiles or schemes of the devil try us, never forget what God's Word encourages us to do, "Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully." Amen...

Grace to the Humble

One of the most amazing characteristics of Jesus as revealed in His life on earth as the Son of Man is the ability to live in such deep humility. Although the Bible records the temptations of the devil towards Jesus in Matthew and Luke chapter four, the reality was, His three years in ministry was a series of temptations almost daily. We see this as revealed in Luke 4:13, "Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time." The devil sought opportunity after opportunity to work at discrediting Jesus, yet Jesus humbly walked in pure grace. (John 1:17)  

So, what is this grace that Jesus walked in? Grace is defined as, divine favor; good will; kindness; the free unmerited love and favor of God; the spring and source of all the benefits men receive from God; divine influence; God’s strength, ability or energy at work in the believer to do His will; the influence of the Holy Spirit in renewing the heart and restraining from sin. We see this defined in the scriptures, "For it is [not your strength, but it is] God who is effectively at work in you, both to will and to work [that is, strengthening, energizing, and creating in you the longing and the ability to fulfill your purpose] for His good pleasure." (Philippians 2:13 AMP) "Now to Him who is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly more than all that we dare ask or think [infinitely beyond our greatest prayers, hopes, or dreams], according to His power that is at work within us." (Ephesians 3:20 AMP)  

Wow, think about that for a moment. The living God is effectively at work in every believer, our recreated spirit, strengthening, energizing, and creating in us the desire and the ability to do His will for His good pleasure. This is the amazing grace that Jesus walked in and we can too! Now, let us look at the word humble. Humble or humility is defined as, Lowly; modest; meek; submissive; opposed to proud (pride), haughty, arrogant or assuming; to mortify; to make humble or lowly in mind; to be meek and submissive to the divine will; freedom from pride and arrogance; humbleness of mind; act of submission. The following are some scriptures reveal the contrast between humility and pride...

"Though the Lord is exalted, He regards the lowly [and invites them into His fellowship]; But the proud and haughty He knows from a distance." (Psalm 138:6 AMP)..."A man’s pride and sense of self-importance will bring him down, But he who has a humble spirit will obtain honor." (Proverbs 29:23 AMP)..."Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be raised to honor." (Matthew 23:12 AMP)..."But He gives us more and more grace [through the power of the Holy Spirit to defy sin and live an obedient life that reflects both our faith and our gratitude for our salvation]. Therefore, it says, “God is opposed to the proud and haughty, but [continually] gives [the gift of] grace to the humble [who turn away from self-righteousness]." (James 4:6 AMP)... "Likewise, you younger men [of lesser rank and experience], be subject to your elders [seek their counsel]; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another [tie on the servant’s apron], for God is opposed to the proud [the disdainful, the presumptuous, and He defeats them], but He gives grace to the humble." (1 Peter 5:5 AMP) 

As we can clearly see, it is very important that believers desire to live the life of Jesus not only in His teachings and actions (miracles, signs and wonders), but also in His humble character. This is the place where God can manifest His great grace in our lives where we can move in miracles, signs and wonders. When looking at the lives of the twelve disciples, we see how Jesus exposed their true character of pride and selfishness to bring them to the place of humility where grace could abound in their lives.  Let us look at a few of the incidences, revealed in the scriptures, where we see in the lives of the twelve disciples the lack of the grace of humility. 

Once they had been disputing which of them should be the greatest. (Luke 9:46-48) Another time the mother of the sons of Zebedee asked Jesus for the seats on His right hand and on His left hand for her sons. (Matthew 20:20-23) Then, at the Last Supper, there was again a contention concerning who should be the greatest. (Luke 22:24-27) Not that there were not moments when they humbled themselves before the Lord. For example it was Peter who cried out to the Lord, "Depart from me, O Lord, for I am a sinful man." (Luke 5:8) We also see the disciples humble themselves when they fell down and worshiped Jesus when He spoke "peace" which stilled the storm. (Mark 4:35-41) However, as we see in the examples above, such occasional expressions of humility were far and few, which had often given way to their natural and spontaneous expression of the power of self. Like the disciples, though they lived with Jesus for three years, many believers today respond in the same manner. Although there may be an earnest and active religion in one’s life, for many, humility is still sadly lacking. 

We see in the disciples a fervent attachment to Jesus; the Father revealing to them that Jesus was in fact the Christ, (Matthew 16:16-17); we also observe, they believed in Him, they loved Him, they obeyed His commandments; they had forsaken all to follow Him. (Matthew 19:27) When others went back, turned away from Him, (John 6:66), they continued to walk with Him to the point that they were ready to die with Him. (John 11:16) But deep down there was a dark power, the existence of a hideous nature of which they were hardly conscious, which had to be slain and cast out. It is even so for many today. 

We may find professors, ministers, various Christian workers, missionaries, teachers, etc., in whom the gifts of the Spirit are many and manifest, and who are the channels of blessing to multitudes, but of whom, when the testing time comes, it becomes a painful reality that the grace of humility is scarcely seen. We can all agree, humility is one of the chief and the highest graces yet one of the most difficult to attain. Although this may be true, walking in humility must become one of our first and highest efforts. We must permit the Holy Spirit to have His way in us causing us to realize more and more every moment of every day that we are partakers of the indwelling Christ, and He lives within us. (1 John 4:4) 

For three years the disciples had been in the training school of Jesus. He had told them what the most important lesson was, "Learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart." (Matthew 11:28-29) Time after time He had spoken to them, to the Pharisees, to the multitude, of humility as the only path to the glory of God. (Matthew 18:1-5) He had not only lived before them as the Lamb of God in His divine humility, He had more than once unfolded to them the inner most secret of His life, "The Son of Man came not to be served, but so serve" (Matthew 20:28). He had washed the disciples feet, and told them they were to follow His example, (John 13:1-17), and yet, as mentioned above, at the Last Supper where this took place there was still the contention as to who should be greatest. 

It is only by the indwelling of Christ (the Holy Spirit) in His divine humility that we become truly humble. The pride that we deal with came by way of the fall, from Adam. Pride is a part of our old nature and if we let it, it can rule us. On the other hand, humility is in the new nature which must be permitted to displace all pride so we become who we truly and newly are, new creations in Christ. All Christ's teaching of His disciples, especially that of humility, was in preparation for His entering into them, His divine nature. In His death He destroyed the power of the devil. (Hebrews 2:14) Jesus put away sin, and provided an everlasting, perfect and complete redemption. 

What shall we say to these things? Let us pray to God that the pleasures of the world may not satisfy us; let us us mortify the old nature; let us grasp the fact that the absence of this grace, humility, is the cause as to why the power of God is not manifesting in mighty works. Let the Holy Spirit reveal to us deep within, it is only when we, like Jesus, truly know and show that we can do nothing of ourselves, but the grace of God released will do it all. (John 15:5; 1 Corinthians 15:10) It is when the truth of the indwelling Christ, the Holy Spirit, becomes such a reality to us, and that we permit Him to takes His place in and through us, that the church will become the most beautiful and desirous living thing on planet earth. So, "Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you." (Isaiah 60:1)

Of His Fullness We Have All Received

Inheritance in the legal sense refers to actual property or goods received after a family member's death. Although defined from the natural sense, this definition is fairly close to the biblical perspective of an inheritance. For instance, while Jewish inheritance customs were linked to family blood lines, Greek and Roman laws also provided for the placement of family possessions through the adoption of an heir. The Scriptures transform the concept of inheritance to include the acquisition of spiritual blessings and promises from God. The Apostle Paul tells us, "In Him (Jesus Christ) also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will...who (the Holy Spirit) is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory." (Ephesians 1:11, 14)

From the biblical sense, to inherit means to "receive an irrevocable gift" with an emphasis on the special relationship between the benefactor, God, and the recipient, the believer. Unlike legal inheritance, where the benefactor dies then the recipients can receive, for believers, as Paul tells us, our inheritance is through Christ. The great difference is, "knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more...Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God." (Romans 6:9, 8:34) The believers benefactor is Jesus Christ who is very much alive. It is through Christ that God provides material and spiritual blessings, our inheritance, for his people, both in this life and in the life to come.

The recipients of an inheritance are also heirs. An heir is defined as, "a person legally entitled to the property or rank of another upon that person's death; a person inheriting and continuing the legacy of a predecessor." The Holy Spirit through Paul reveals another wonderful work of the Father through Jesus for the believer, "For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ..." (Romans 8:15-17) From the biblical sense, to be an heir means, "one who receives his allotted possession by right of sonship." 

Notice how the Holy Spirit through Paul reveals that believers are adopted by God, in other words, believers are God's children, sons and daughters. "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." (John 1:12-13) "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God..." (1 John 3:1)  This in and of itself is a most wonderful inheritance, but it goes even further. 

The Apostle John tells us, "And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace." (John 1:16) The Apostle Paul tells us, "For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power." (Colossians 2:9-10) The word complete means, "to make full; to fill up; to fill to the full; to cause to abound; to render full; full measure; to completely fill to the top so that nothing shall be wanting or lacking." All the grace that was manifest in Christ envelops us, surrounds us, we are completely in it. All the perfections and beauties in the character and life of Jesus are ours, we are complete in Him. The perfection of Christ was all reckoned to every believer. The Lord enables us, by His grace, to enter into our inheritance and to assume our responsibilities in His wonderful family as His sons and daughters. He won no victory nor did He win any triumph in His substitutionary work that was not for the benefit of the church, every believer. (Ephesians 1:22-23)

Our inheritance, all that Jesus was and is, the believer receives as heirs from the Father, through Christ. His righteousness is ours; His love is ours; every promises is ours; as well as all the graces that embellish His beautiful life are ours. How is this possible? The writer of Hebrews tells us, "But now He (Jesus) has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises." (Hebrews 8:6) Believers are under a better covenant. A covenant that is greater and more fulfilling than any other covenant that God had established with man from the time of creation.  Our covenant through Christ, is complete and so far reaching, the believer lacks absolutely nothing. 

When, by grace through faith, we confessed Jesus as our Lord and received Him as Savior, all the wealth and riches in Christ became ours automatically.  How rich we truly are. The heart can hardly take it in, but that does not change the truth, that we are heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, "That of His Fullness have we all received and grace upon grace." May the Lord help us by the power of the Spirit to enter into the riches of our inheritance in Him.    

Free to Live

One of the greatest passages of scripture that believers should confess daily and be encouraged, and strengthened by, was spoken by the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul. He says, "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. (Galatians 2:20) Paul was not only pressing home the point of what he was in Christ, but also driving home the point of what all believers also are in Christ and what Christ is in them. Paul contends that his faith in Christ and the grace of God at work in him, had freed him from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2)  and now his identity is Christ in him, not his former identity of himself.

He goes on and says, "I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain." (Galatians 2:21) The phrase "set aside" is to frustrate, despise, displace, abrogate, God working in and through the believer giving them the ability and desire to obey Him and do His will. The phrase "the grace of God," here refers to the favor of God manifested in the plan of salvation by the gospel. The sense is, that Paul would not take any measures or pursue any course of life as a believer that would render the grace of God as something vain, useless. He goes on to say, if righteousness (justification) can be secured by the observance of any law, whether ceremonial or moral, then there was no need of the death of Christ as an atonement. If man can live by the law, and be declared righteous by the law, there would be no need of a Savior, because man would be able to save himself solely based on his own merit.

It is for this reason that Paul rebukes the Jewish believers in the church at Galatians. "O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified? This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh? Have you suffered so many things in vain, if indeed it was in vain? Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?" (Galatians 3:1-5)

The purpose for the rebuke was not to bring condemnation upon them, but to reveal the reality that they were indeed frustrating, despising, displacing, abrogating Gods grace for their so called rules of life, laws, especially when their faith in Christ was evidenced by the Holy Spirit working miracles. In the same way, believers today must use caution when they base their Christianity on laws and rules, which are actually parts of the Mosaic law or the man made laws that have infiltrated many sectors of the church, rather than living in the grace that God has poured out in Christ. (John 1:17) In doing so they may find themselves frustrating, despising, displacing, abrogating, Gods grace.

However, the good news for all believers to be free from laws and live in the grace of God is to recognize the truth that Paul had presented, "Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." There it is! If you are born again, you are a new creation in Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:17) Christ lives in you. What great news this should be to all believers. Living by grace through faith is freedom! Living by laws as the Jewish believers in Galatia were doing and were teaching the Gentile converts to do the same , is bondage. As Paul had exposed this error to the believers in the church at Galatia, I also believe that the Holy Spirit is revealing the same to many of God's children today. Our faith in Christ should not be evidenced by laws that we live by, but our faith in Christ, living in the grace of God, which is evidenced by the Holy Spirit and the working miracles. PTL...

His Grace is Still Amazing

A good biblical definition of grace can be found in Philippians 2:13, "For it is [not your strength, but it is] God who is effectively at work in you, both to will and to work [that is, strengthening, energizing, and creating in you the longing and the ability to fulfill your purpose] for His good pleasure." (AMP) Notice, it is "God who is effectively at work in you." In other words this has nothing to do with our abilities or strength, but Gods ability, His strength, His energy working in us through the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the work of the Holy Spirit in us is to transform every believer more into the image of Christ. (2 Corinthians 3:18) This is an act of God's grace. Our only involvement in this is cooperating with Him in this wonderful work. 

With that, let us consider the following two scenarios. The first is what we could say is a good day spiritually. What I mean, is that, you get up promptly when your alarm goes off and have a refreshing and profitable time reading the Bible and praying. Your plans for the day generally fall into place, and you sense the presence of God with you. To top it off, you unexpectedly have an opportunity to share the gospel with someone that the Holy Spirit has quickened in you who is truly searching. As you talk with the person, you sense the Holy Spirit helping you and also working in this persons heart who then accepts Christ as Lord and Savior. You return home feeling excited that Gods grace was at work in you and also at work with the person that had just accepted Christ as Lord and Savior.

However, the second day in this scenario, is just the opposite. You don't arise at the first ring of your alarm. Instead, you shut it off and go back to sleep. When you finally awaken, it's too late to have a time in the Word and to pray. You quickly gulp down some breakfast and rush off to the day's activities. You feel guilty about missing your devotional time, and things just generally seem to go wrong all day and as the day rolls along, you become more and more irritable. To top things off, you do not sense God's presence in your life and then an unexpected opportunity to share the gospel with someone who seems to be interested in accepting Christ as Savior presents itself. You do not feel the Holy Spirit's prompting, you fumble at your words, the person does not receive Christ. Finally, you return home, tired and disappointed.  

In a sense, we could call one day a good day and the other a bad day. How do we suppose we would look at both days? Let's look at the following questions as to how we would feel about these two scenarios. Would we enter those two witnessing opportunities with a different degree of confidence? Would we be less confident on the bad day than on the good day? Would we find it difficult to believe that God would bless us and use us in the midst of a rather bad spiritual day? If you answered yes to those questions, you have lots of company among believers. Many believers would be less confident of God's blessing while sharing Christ at the end of a bad day than they would after a good one. Is such thinking justified? Does God work that way? The answer to both of these questions is no! Why? Because God's blessing does not depend on our performance.

Why then do so many believers think this way? It is because they believe that God's blessing on our lives is somehow conditioned upon our performance. If we have performed well and had a good day, we can assume we are in a position for God to bless us. We know God's blessings come to us through Christ, but we also have this vague but very real notion that they are also conditioned on our behavior. The point of this good day, bad day scenario is this; regardless of our performance, we are to always and in all things, depend on God's grace, His ability, His strength, His energy working in and through us, through the Holy Spirit. 

The good news in this, is, the gospel message is God's grace made available to us on both our best days as well as our worst days. This is true because the Lord Jesus Christ fully satisfied the claims of justice and fu1ly paid the penalty of a broken law when He died on the cross as our substitute. Every day of our Christian experience should be a day of relating to God on the basis of His grace alone. We are not only saved by grace, but we also live by grace every day. This grace comes through the meritorious work of God in Christ. Look what the Holy Spirit reveals to us through the Apostle Paul, "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." (Romans 5:1-2) 

A significant part of the Mosaic Law was the promise of blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience (Deuteronomy 28). Some Christians live as if that principle applies to them today. But Paul tells us, "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit." (Romans 8:1-4)

Christ has already borne the curses for our disobedience and earned for us the blessings of obedience. As a result we are now to look to Christ alone, not Christ plus our performance, but simply Christ for God's blessings in our lives. We are saved by grace and we are to live by grace alone. When we pray to God for His blessing, He does not examine our performance to see if we are worthy. Rather, He looks to see if we are trusting in the merit of His Son as our only hope for securing His blessings. The Apostle Paul, when speaking to certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers tells them, "for in Him (Christ) we live and move and have our being." (Acts 17:28) So, let us let go of all the self-labors and works and bask in the amazing grace of God. Let us no longer do to live, but live and do for His glory.

Things to Remember

Today, throughout the United States it is a national holiday entitled, Memorial Day. It is a day in which Americans remember the service men and women who paid the ultimate sacrifice of giving their lives so that others may have freedom. They did not give their lives for the United States alone, but also for others throughout the world in efforts to bring an end to demonized dictators who, like Satan their father, have only one desire, power over humanity. Their objective is to steal, kill, destroy and or hold in bondage to slavery their fellow man in efforts to promote their tyrannical reign.

Although people may have many thing to remember, for Christians the greatest Memorial Day for them should be, the day that we "confessed with our mouth the Lord Jesus and believed in our heart that God has raised Him from the dead, and were saved." (Romans 10:9) We celebrate the fact the Jesus Christ also paid the ultimate sacrifice by giving His life to save (redeem, heal, deliver, make whole) all humanity from Satan, the most evil, murderous tyrant known to man. We should remember as Paul said, "And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience." (Ephesians 2:1-2)

Notice that before one confesses Christ they "were dead in trespasses and sin" not spiritually sick, but spiritually dead. Cut off from and unable to communicate with God. This was due to the fact that before one is born again, they walk according to the world, according to the ways of the devil. Paul tells us that the devil, "The god of this age had blinded your mind from the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ..." (2 Corinthians 4:4) However, one day in the history of man, God took it upon Himself the fix the problem, "He  anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him." (Acts 10:38) Then a glorious thing happened. Jesus said, "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him..." (John 6:44) Our heavenly Father drew us to Jesus, gave us the grace and faith to confess Christ. Then God immediately "delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins." (Colossians 1:13-14)

When we consider what Jesus did for us and all mankind, the mind can hardly comprehend it. The apostle Paul tells us, "Therefore, as through one man's offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man's righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's obedience many will be made righteous." (Romans 5:18-19)   This means that not one person in all of humanity had the ability to provide redemption. God Himself became a man and provided man’s redemption. (John 1:14) It was God who redeemed man from the dominion of Satan. (1 John 3:8) It was God who destroyed death. (Hebrews 2:14) It was God who restored man’s authority over the Satan (Luke 10:19) It was God who adopted us through Jesus Christ and made us His children (Romans 8:15-16) It is God who gives us all things that pertain to life and godliness. (2 Peter 2:3) It is God who gives us exceedingly great and precious promises. (2 Peter 1:4) It is God who gives us the victory at all times (1 Corinthians 15:57) and it is God who gave us eternal life (1 John 2:25) all through Jesus Christ.

I could go on and on concerning what scripture says as to what God Himself did for humanity through Jesus Christ and what He gives to those who confess Jesus Christ as Lord. When we look to the promises that God has made throughout the Bible, there are several estimations. They range from 3000 to 7000 promises. Many of these promises were spoken by the Prophets and have been fulfilled through Jesus Christ. However, in the New Testament there is an estimated 750 promises that God has bestowed upon the believer. PTL Although today is Memorial Day, for the believer remembering what God did us and what he has given to us, should be a Memorial Day celebration everyday. 

The Real Transformers

In Paul's letter to the church at Galatia he makes an interesting statement, "My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you." (Galatians 4:19) Paul's desire was to see believers come to a place in their Christianity to where they were "Imitators of God." (Ephesians 5:1) His desire was not his own, but the very desire that God has for all of His children. In Paul's second letter to the church at Corinth he says the same thing in a different way, "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord." (I Corinthians 3:18) Here we see the same desire of the Lord. But what does it mean for the believer to have Christ formed in them or to be transformed into the Lord's image?

The word transformed is the same as the word metamorphosis which means a complete change of physical form, character and or appearance.When most think of metamorphosis, they think of the transformation of a caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly. That is exactly what happens to a person who is born again. The transformation of a child of the devil into a child of God. It is being "delivered from the power of darkness and conveyed into the kingdom of the Son of His love." (Colossians 1:13) The moment a person is born again they are immediately in Christ. Paul tells us, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."  (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Although all of this does take place the moment one is born again, the work of transformation is a continuous process in every believer. This work is called, sanctification. In short, sanctification is the work of the Holy Spirit in the believer that progressively transforms them into the image of Christ. The more the believer gives himself to the influence of the Holy Spirit, the more the glory of Christ is reflected in their life, moving them from one degree of glory to another. It’s also a work of grace. Our part in this marvelous work is our cooperation and response to the Holy Spirit. According to Paul's letter to the church at Ephesus, it says,  "Do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit." (Ephesians 5:18) Believers should experience a continuous filling of the Holy Spirit, that is, being transformed from glory to glory.

To be like Jesus should be the goal of every believer, but we must remember it is not about us working hard in our own strength trying to stop the old nature from having place, it simply comes down to what Jesus said,  "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work" (John 4:34) and "Jesus said, I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me." (John 5:30) and also "Jesus said, For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me." John 6:38) As we see, to be like Jesus is to always seek to do the will of the Father not because it is an obligation, but as the Psalmist said, "I delight to do Your will, O my God...” (Psalm 40:8) as well as "Jesus said, I always do those things the please the Father." (John 8:29) Our attitude towards doing the Fathers will should be one of delight desiring to please the Him. Simply put, it is, “…Faith working through love.” (Galatians 5:6)

According to 2 Corinthians 3:18, who is responsible for the transformation process? "...The Spirit of the Lord." The verb being transformed is passive which means that something is being done in us, not by us. Again, we come to the place of faith, depending upon and yielding to the Holy Spirit working in us transforming us. In his letter to the church at Thessalonica he tells us, "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.  He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it." (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24) In other words not only is God Himself doing the work from the time we are born again, but He wants to complete the process of sanctification in our whole spirit, soul, and body, so it is up to the believer to let Him do the work.

In Paul's letter to the Philippians he tells us, "being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ." (Philippians 1:6 ) If we give ourselves to this good work of the Holy Spirit in us, He will continue do the work until we either leave this life for the next or Jesus returns, which ever comes first. The transformation process of the Holy Spirit in each believer comes down to the value that one places on their relationship with God and His Word. It also takes faith to believe that God wants to reproduce Himself in every believer. Paul tells us that the believer is to, "…work out your own salvation…” (Philippians 2:12 ) To “work out” is an imperative mood, which means it is a command. It is in the present tense, which means that the action is continuous. It is also in the passive voice, meaning that we have something to do, but the main action is done by the one sending the message, that is, God Himself. Being transformed into the image of Christ from glory to glory is simply letting God reproduce Himself in us. So let go of all the things that prevent you from experiencing more of God's glory and let Him complete the good work that He has started. 

His Grace is Still Amazing

God spoke through two of the major prophets in the Bible, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, revealing His plan to establish a New Covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. However, this New Covenant would not be limited to Israel and Judah alone, but it would also open the door for the justification and restoration of all mankind (John 3:16, Romans 1:16) God calls it a New Covenant because it would fulfill the Abrahamic Covenant and also accomplish what the Mosaic Covenant could only point to. The most incredible thing that this New Covenant reveals is that it has absolutely nothing to do with any human endeavor. 

"Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the LORD. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD, ' for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more."  (Jeremiah 31:31-34) 

"Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God...For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them." (Ezekiel 11:19-21, 36:24-28)

I have emphasized the key component of the New Covenant. God says, "I Will." Again, this has absolutely nothing to do with any human endeavor. God has made Himself responsible to establish and uphold the New Covenant. (Hebrews 7:22) The New Covenant will no longer be laws and commands written on tablets of stone but a covenant placed within a new transformed heart of flesh as and object of His infinite love. (2 Corinthians 3:3)  He is not going to become our God only in a general sense, but all that there is in God will belong to those who are in this New Covenant with Him, (John 16:15) He has also made Himself completely responsible to keep us, bless us, honor us, provide for us and love us, etc. (Matthew 6:25-32). As much as He is our portion, we are also His portion (John 15:5) Those under the New Covenant shall know God as Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. They will come to know Him personally as a man knows his wife. They will know His will, nature, character, purposes and plan all because He will open the door of communion and fellowship with Him and those under this New Covenant. (John 14:5-10, 26, 17:3, 20-26, 1 John 1:3)

God said, "I will forgive them and will remember their sin no more" that is all sin, transgression and iniquity will be blotted out and never mentioned again (Isaiah 43:25, Acts 2:38) He will take people from among the nations, because salvation is for all people (John 3:16, Romans 1:16) He will sprinkle clean water and cleanse His New Covenant people with the water of His Word. (Ephesians 5:25-28) His people will be given oneness of heart manifested through God’s love (John 13:34, John 17:21) He will put a new spirit in these New Covenant people, that is, God will transform the dead human spirit and completely recreate it (2 Corinthians 5:17) and to put the icing on the cake, He will put His Spirit within them. (John 14:16-17) What does this all mean to you and I? The New Covenant is based on pure grace and nothing else but grace. According to the Bible, grace is defined as, "For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." (Philippians 2:13) another translations says it this way, " For it is God Himself whose power creates within you the desire to do His will and also brings about the accomplishment of the desire."

Basically, God's grace is God giving us what we do not deserve such as, forgiveness, healing, provision, long live, eternal life, His ability, etc. However, it was Him, He alone made the decision to do everything it would take to satisfy justice and completely restore humanity to what He had intended before the fall. Not only did He do what He said He would do as He spoke through the prophets, but the amazing attribute of grace is He has given the believer His ability and the desire to do His will. Well, how can we implement this wonderful, amazing grace into our daily lives? "Therefore, having been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." (Romans 5:1-2 )

Every believer can walk daily in the abundance of grace that God has if we are willing to "walk by faith and not by sight." (2 Corinthians 5:7) Notice carefully to what Paul says, "walk by faith." Simply reading and meditating on God's Word is not enough to build our faith. It only creates a capacity for faith. Faith is only built when believers acts upon God's Word through their daily lives and daily speech. James says it this way, "...I will show you my faith by my works" (James 2:18), that is, acting on God's Word. This is the kind of faith that pleases God (Mark 11:22-24) As we yield to the work of the Holy Spirit giving us revelation of God's Word we will become completely convinced that His Word is one hundred percent true and we no longer base His Word on experiences or a manifestation. We believe and act on God's Word because God’s Word says so, period. All believers must be fully convinced of this fact, "God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? (Numbers 23:19) May, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.    

 

Need More Energy

Years ago I read a story about a world renown zoo that purchased a great brown bear to become one of its exhibits. The zoo had purchased the bear from a circus where the bear had been confined to a small metal cage. Hour after hour and day after day the bear would pace back and forth from one end of the cage to the other. The zoo had a bear compound consisting of acres of lush, green grass, trees and a pool of fresh drinking water. The bear would be fed three times a day and would have nothing to do but to enjoy its new home. The day came when the bear arrived at the zoo and the zoo-keepers took him to his new habitat. When they opened the cage to release the bear to their surprise the bear continued to walk back and forth within the confines of the small cage. The zoo-keeper tried various things to coax the bear from the cage but it would not leave. Finally, the only solution that was left was to put some kerosene soaked rages on a pole light them and stick the fiery pole through the bars of the cage. This intimidated the bear to jump out of the cage and into his new home. The bear looked around but to the zoo-keepers amazement, the bear began to pace back and forth as though he was still in the small metal cage. Suddenly it dawned on the attendants that although the bear was released from its "metal prison" it still remained in a "mental prison."

Like the bear in this story, many Christians find themselves in a very similar dilemma. They have become accustomed to accepting thoughts of failure and defeat in various areas of their life. They are convinced that that things will never change. This type of thinking has crippled many born again, spirit-filled children of God who truly love the Lord. When they face some of the difficulties of life, they find themselves settling for far less than what God has for them. There are generally two reasons why believers entertain this type of thinking. First, they accepted the opinions of man (father, mother, siblings or others) who have spoken harsh condescending words over them for most of their life and or secondly, they have listened to sermons that provide believers with a steady diet of "you are nothing more than a sinner saved by grace who is weak and is incapable of ever pleasing God." They have been inundated with so many rules and regulations that they are held captive to this mental prison. However, the truth of the matter is, there is a powerful attribute of God that He has made available to all of His children that has freed them from this mental prison, it's called grace.

Philippians reveals grace this way, "For it is God Himself whose power creates within you the desire to do His gracious will and also brings about the accomplishment of the desire." (Philippians 2:13 Wey) I like to define it this way. Simply put, grace is the free unearned, unmerited favor of God that gives the believer the ability and desire to do God's will. God's grace is free, it is a gift, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God." (Ephesians 2:8) As we grow to understand how this free gift from God works in and through our lives, we will find ourselves living in the freedom that the Father has provided through Jesus Christ.

Grace can be seen from two sides. First, it is the free unearned, unmerited favor of God for the believer. The truth is, we deserve nothing good, however, God working through Christ  has provided His amazing grace for all believers. His grace provides, forgiveness, healing, provision, peace, hope, eternal life; the list goes on and on. The other side of grace is, grace gives the believer the ability and desire to do God's will. So not only is God's grace upon the believer for his/her benefit, but it also works through the believer accomplishing God's will for the benefit of others. We need to keep this balance in mind so that we do not take the grace of God to an extra-biblical level. Many preachers in their efforts to present the message of grace to free the enormous number of believers held in bondage to rules, regulations, defeat and failure find themselves teaching grace from an unbiblical extreme. Unfortunately, we have done this very thing in the church in the past with such things as the discipleship movement and the faith teaching (to name a few). Just because something sounds good or sounds right doesn't mean that it is. This is why it is so important for believers to search the scriptures themselves to see if these things are so.

God's grace is available to all of His children. We receive grace through faith, "Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace..." (Romans 4:16) not through anything that we can do, "And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work." (Romans 11:6) We simply reach out and receive it by faith and thank God for His free gift of grace. So if you need God's favor in your life, if you need God's ability in your life and if you need a desire to do God's will, just receive His grace. "Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)
      

God, Why Did You Let This Happen?

One of the saddest phrases that comes forth from a Christians mouth when life trials come or a tragedy happens is, "God, why did you let this happen!" It is as though somehow God takes pleasure in the agonies that take place in humanity. Many will even say, "God is sovereign" (which He is) which to them means that God does whatever He wants whenever He wants, even if it means operating contrary of His Word. Many come this conclusion because they have been taught to think this way by church leaders who reason through life's adversities rather than exercising faith in the integrity of God's Word and understand what is actually going on. Peter tells us...
"Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue." (2 Peter 1:2-3)

Notice that God has given the believer "all things that pertain to life and godliness." This means that believers should have an understanding of how God operates in this life. He is a God of blessings and life not of tragedy and death. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." (John 14:6) and "...I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." (John 10:10)  In both of these verses the word life means, "life as God has it; that which the Father has in Himself." Although redemption is much far reaching than most in the church today understand, notice that one of the reasons for the incarnation was to give humanity life as God has it, life which the Father has! From this, to say that God has some mysterious purpose in the tragedies that happen in humanity, especially to the believer, His child, comes down to this, "My people are being destroyed because they don't know me." (Hosea 4:6)

Looking back on 2 Peter 1:2-3, notice that grace and peace are multiplied to the believer in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. Also notice that all the things that God has given the believer that pertain to life and godliness, also comes through the knowledge of Jesus Christ. This connects with what the Holy Spirit spoke through Hosea. One of the ways that people, even Christians, blame God for permitting tragedies or saying that tragic things are a part of God divine purpose is because they do not know Him, meaning, His nature, character, will, purposes and plan. Of course terrible things happen on the earth, but it is not God's will nor are they some sovereign purpose of God that we will never understand. We must stop blaming God for things that are not His will nor a part of His divine purpose. Sure God can use a tragedy and turn it for good, but to say that He somehow permits tragic things to happen to fulfill some mysterious purpose of His is utter nonsense. It would be like saying that Jesus did not fully satisfy justice for humanity, so God uses tragic situation to complete mans redemption.

Jesus said, "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also;" (John 14:7) and "He who has seen Me has seen the Father;" (John 14:9) Jesus is not saying that these men were not his disciples, but that they did not have an accurate knowledge of his nature, character, will, purposes and plan, which was actually the Father's. God has given us His Word, the Bible, so that the believer can know His nature, character, will, purposes and plan. We should start by looking at the four gospels. In them we will discover that Jesus is a perfect reflection of the Father's nature, character, will, purposes and plan which is to save, heal, deliver and bring abundant life to humanity not tragedy and death. Jesus said, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth." (Matthew 28:18) but He does not use His authority to override mans will nor does He use His authority to operate contrary to His Word.

How can one honestly believe that our heavenly Father somehow has a sovereign purpose or plan to have one of His children perish at the hand of a drunk driver? It was the will of the drunk driver to reject what was right for what they knew to be wrong. It was the will of the drunk driver to get behind the wheel of a car and cause this tragedy. God will not stop people from exercising their will. He didn't in the Garden of Eden nor does He do it now. He does not force people to do His will, so yes, He does permit tragic things to happen, but it certainly is not His will or His divine purpose. Never forget, that sin has its consequences and unfortunately many innocent people suffer for it. Also let us not forget that Satan's hatred for God and humanity is the motivator behind such heinous things.

God is certainly in control, (sovereign) but He Himself is limited in that control...
"As for the Almighty, we cannot find Him; He is excellent in power, in judgment and abundant justice; He does not oppress." (Job 37:23) and "...For You have magnified Your word above all Your name." (Psalm 138:2) God does everything on absolute legal grounds and within the parameters of His Word so that none (man, angels, Satan or demons) can accuse Him of not being just or blame Him for permitting things to happen that are contrary to His nature, character, will, purposes and plan. He is limited by His own Word as well as the choices of man. Even in the Garden, God did not encroach Adam's will (free choice) to commit treason and yet God was just as sovereign then as He is now and will ever be.  Throughout Israel's history scripture clear shows us that they rejected God through their poor choices which were not God's will nor some divine purpose of God and we see that they received the consequences of those choices and yet God remained sovereign. God has made a way for man to be free from sin and Satan through Jesus Christ, but it does not mean that all people will Chooses God's plan of redemption, thereby permitting the destructive nature of sin and Satan to still have their way in humanity. Another thing to consider is that God is also limited by the choices that believers (the church) also make that are contrary to His Word. The church is the Body of Christ and therefore it is the voice and power of God on earth.

The Lord has given the church (believers) authority over sin and Satan. We must use this authority to enforce and uphold what Jesus has provided through His death, resurrection and glorification. We must stop taking tragedy on the chin and stand on God's Word knowing that God does not have some divine purpose in the destruction of His children. My friends, blaming our Great Heavenly Father for these things breaks my heart and brings me to tears. God's ingenious plan of redemption liberates all men and provides abundant life right here on planet earth while we wait in hope for the glory of heaven. Don't believe me? Study and meditate on God's Word being led by the Holy Spirit and see for yourself the true nature, character, will, purposes and plan of God and be set free. For who Jesus has set free (being born again) is completely free.

Let's Say Grace

Traditionally, "saying grace" before a meal imparts a blessing which sanctifies the meal. However, grace is much far reaching beyond simply a prayer before a meal. The definition of grace is found in Philippians 2:13 "For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." Grace is, "the undeserved, unmerited favor of God freely given that gives one the ability and desire to do His will." Another aspect of grace is God giving us those things that we do not deserve. When we put these two together, all we can really say is, WOW.

There is nothing that a person can do or say to earn God's grace because it is a gift, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God." (Ephesians 2:8)  
"But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift." (Ephesians 4:7)
Let's face it, due to sin we deserve hell, sickness, disease and all manner of troubles, but God chooses to give us eternal life, healing, provision, and all manner of blessings through faith in Christ and His meritorious work of redemption. God chooses to give us His favor. PTL

Here is another look at grace, "And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work." (Romans 11:6) This is saying that we cannot work to obtain grace or it would no longer be grace but works based on our own merit. In a sense, grace requires absolutely nothing on the believers part except to apply faith.

Even though God chooses to give us His grace, it does not just happen in the life of a believer. We receive God's grace by faith, "Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace..." (Romans 4:16) Everything that believers have can be attributed to God's grace, but we appropriate grace through faith. For instances, observe this verse again, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God." (Ephesians 2:8) God pours out His grace to save, but it only becomes activated when one applies faith. In a way, it would be like owning an automobile that is sitting in your driveway in perfect working condition, available to use with the power to take you virtually anywhere, but it is not activated until the key is placed in the ignition, the car started and put into gear. The ignition key in a sense would be faith activating the car, grace, that gives us the ability to be transported to seemingly endless destinations.

Believers will never take credit for what God does if we understand His grace. The apostle Paul says it this way, "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me."
(1 Corinthians 15:10) Paul was completely convinced that all that he was in Christ and all that he did for Christ was by the grace of God alone. He took no credit at all for and of the things that he accomplished for Christ after he became a believer. We too should act in the same manner at all time.

The grace of God is literally divine energy that the Holy Spirit releases through faith. However, a believer can confine or squelch God's grace from flowing when they do not know His will. Remember, grace is the undeserved, unmerited favor of God freely given that gives one the ability and desire to do His will. So, if one does not know God's will as revealed in scripture then it is obvious that there will be a stifling of divine energy. For instance, many in the church today are taught to believe that what God did in the early church, such as performing miracles, signs and wonders regularly, He does not do today. Of course if you study the Bible being led by the Holy Spirit you will not find one verse of scripture that supports this erroneous teaching, unless scripture is taken out of context to mean something that man wants it to mean. What this amounts to is, God's grace being squelched because faith must be applied to activate grace, it is just that simple.

With that said, let's activate the grace that God has given to us through faith and experience the "Divine Energy" of God being released to save, heal, deliver, provide and so on. Let us no longer set aside the grace of God but grow daily in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ remembering that the Lord said, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Is There a Doctor in the House

Medical science has made some incredible advances in recent years. For years physicians have help countless people through numerous physical ailments and have saved many lives. I respect physicians who truly have a desire to see sick people become well and believe that they deserve payment for their labors. However, I do draw the line with physicians whose only desire is to live well at the expense of sick people.A physician named Luke wrote two book found in the New Testament and shares some incredible stories of a Healer that did things beyond the minds comprehension.

Although Luke records a story concerning a particular woman who had a physical ailment for twelve years, Marks gospel gives more details which I think sheds more light. I am sure that most believers have read or heard the events of this story, but for many, they have not let these events permeate their spirit and therefore they struggle with various physical ailments.

"Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. 
(Mark 5:25-26)

For twelve years this woman had to go through many painful things at the direction of physicians in order to be healed. She had also spent all the money she had, but grew worse. Isn't it interesting that today if you take your automobile to a mechanic (auto doctor so to speak) to have a problem fixed they too charge a fee for their labors and they have every right to do so. However, if the same problem reoccurs within a certain time frame, most mechanic will correct the problem and some will not charge an additional fee to correct the same problem. In this story we see just the opposite. Not one physician fixed her ailment, but they all took her money. I know of several believers who have had this very thing happen. They went to one physician who prescribe treatment, it did not work, so they went to another physician and then another, and unfortunately they met the same results as this woman. But let's look at what this woman eventually did... 

When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment. For she said, "If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well." (Mark 5:27-28)

Notice that she had only heard about Jesus. This is one of those important keys to understanding God's will when it comes to healing. The four gospels reveal the ministry of Jesus as He walked on the earth as a man. The apostle Paul tells us, "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."
(Romans 10:17) As believers hear the Word of God we first must believe that it is truth and that it does not change. When this occurs, God's Word will build ones faith. This woman only heard about Jesus and it is apparent that whatever she heard began to build faith in her, For she said, "If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well." I am sure her mind was saying, "You saw many physicians and got worse, no one can help you," but her heart was saying, If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.

This is where many believers miss the healing that God has provided for them through Jesus Christ. They have either been trained that "healing has stopped because the church has the completed Word of God in the Bible and therefore God does not provide healing in the church today as He did in the early church" or they believe that God does indeed heal but have trouble releasing their faith and receive it.

The first of these issues is one that is not easily over come. It has been taught and accepted by many church leaders due to a poor interpretation of 1 Corinthians 13:8-10 (if you read this passage you will note  that healing is not even mentioned) and a lack of faith applied to the scriptures. The second issue is common among believers that do believe that God heals today but as mentioned,  may have trouble releasing their faith to receive their healing. Hebrews records, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1) Faith (which is now) make hope (which is future) a present reality even though there may not be any physical evidence. The latter issue totally rejects divine healing whereas in the former issue, faith can always grow and the believer can receive their healing. Let's look at the results of faith overcoming physical realities... 

Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction.  Her faith gave substance to hope and manifested the reality of Gods healing in the now. We must look beyond our minds saying something to this effect, "well that was her but it won't work for me." This is doubt working and will neutralize faith every time. God has provided healing through Jesus Christ and like the woman with the issue of blood all one needs to do is believe. Jesus said, "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes." (Mark 9:23) Now let's look at Jesus response to the woman... 

"And He looked around to see her who had done this thing. But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. And He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction." (Mark 5:25-34) Remember, this woman was motivated by only hearing about Jesus and by applying her faith in Him she was healed of her affliction. Beloved, it is just that simple. The LORD has not made it difficult for you to receive all that He has. He has only asked that we believe. 

"But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." (Hebrews 11:6) He who comes to God must believe that He is. That He is what? Savior, Healer, Deliver, Provider, Protector, etc. Paul tells us in Romans 10:9 "That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." The word saved is the Greek word "sozo" which means to deliver, protect, heal, preserve, make whole, and so on. Romans 10:9 carries a far greater promise than regeneration only. However, most of the church today only uses this verse for salvation (in the sense of regeneration) and yet the Greek word for salvation "soteria" has the same definitions as does saved (sozo).

Again, I am not speaking out against physicians, but there are some sicknesses that medical science cannot cure. However, if you need a physician, then see a physician. It takes time for faith to develop in some areas of your Christianity. Sometimes a sickness may have a head start on your faith so don't let any one put you under any condemnation for going to see a physician. You must operate in the level of faith that you have, but do not stay on that level. Build up your faith through God's Word. Let His Word take up residence in your spirit and become part of you. In doing so, sickness will not be able to have place in of your life.

In short, the woman with the issue of blood heard of Jesus, turned hope into faith and then acted upon her faith by pressing through the sense realm of seeing is believing into the reality of the spiritual realm that believes without seeing. Please take some time and learn from the woman who had the issue of blood. Meditate on God's Word and then act upon it which will build your faith. Honestly, the same grace and faith that was present when you received Jesus as LORD and Savior is available for you today to be healed, delivered, protected, preserved and made whole, only believe...

Our Words Do Have an Impact

Jesus tells us that, "Those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies." (Matthew 15:18-19) But where do they orginate? The Apostle Paul tells us that believers deal with arguments and thought (II Corinthians 10:5) and anxiety (Philippians4:6). The Apostle Peter tells us that believers deal with various cares (I Peter 5:7) and Jesus tells us that believers deal with worry (Matthew 6:31), the opinions of man and the lies of the devil (Matthew 16:13, 23) to name a few things that affect the believers mind.

All of these things work in the believers mind and can have an adverse affect on their very core, their heart. Medical science is also discovering that negative thinking can cause physical ailiment and emotional distress that begin in the mind but finds its way to the seat of a persons very being, the heart. So now we can understand better what Jesus meant in Matthew 15:18-19. So when the heart is infiltrated from negative thought of the mind, out of our mouth proceeds negative speech or confession.

James 3:6 tells us, "And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that IT DEFILES THE WHOLE BODY, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell." What an impact the tongue has on the believers entire being. However, Hebrews 10:23 says, "Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)" Believers are to have a good confession, a positive confession, a confession filled with faith. But if a believers mind hold fast to thoughts that breed doubt then their hearts (what they believe) will also be tainted and the natural course will be a confession of doubt and not faith.

There is something that can be done. Paul tells believers to "refute arguments and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God; and lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ" (II Corinthians 10:5) As believers "cast down" these things of the mind and replace them with thing above, they can expect to there confession to be one of faith and not doubt. When this happens believers will be imparting grace to those who hear their speech, that is, their confession.