What it means to be a Christian

On March 10, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Galatians 2: 20

I have been crucified with Christ; and 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 delivered Himself up for me.

I believe this is what it means to be a Christian. The life we formerly lived we have sacrificed on the altar of love to the one who gave all. It is no longer I who live … that person we knew as ourselves is dead and gone and behold a new creature is there, in her place. All things have become new. The life we now live is the life of Christ. He lives in us and through us. It is a life of faith no longer living and walking according to the evidence of our eyes, no longer living according to the flesh and the things of the world. The life we live is the expression of the love of Christ as an outflowing communication, the rivers of living water issuing from within yet reaching out to a hurting and dying world. We wear Christ’s heart on our sleeve.

Is this an easy way to live? Yes and No. It is a wonderful way to live but putting the old self on the altar and even more so leaving him there is not so easy but Christ is our strength, our Father our strong tower. The old person isn’t so great but she is familiar and therefore comfortable but that momentary comfort is in exchange for a lifetime of peace and the glory of the Lord. The old is easy and comfortable but it is death, a living death, and not the way of the Lord. Jesus said that he came to give us life (John 10: 10). Why, then, do we persist in continuing our existence through the dead former self when we could be alive to the life in Christ? Is it habit? Is it fear? Is it that we have lacked leadership? Has there been no one to show us the way?

I pray that you allow this life in Christ to fill you up to overflowing so that you fully experience this great miracle of Christ in me, the hope of glory (Col. 1: 27); that His glory will fill your days and your nights, that the glory of his life within you will permeate every cell of your body and that you may know the full breadth of his love and his guidance in every minute of every day. May the glory of the Lord fill you and settle upon you as in days of old so that you are never alone and never out of His presence. This is the hope. This is what Jesus came and died to give us. May the life of Christ within you be fully realized.

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They will stand in awe

On March 7, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Deuteronomy 28: 10 New English Translation

Then all the peoples of the earth will see that you belong to the Lord, and they will respect you.

In the twenty-eighth chapter of Deuteronomy God revealed the blessing and there is much good news there. We know from Galatians 3: 13 – 14 that the blessing of Abraham has been fulfilled in Christ and has become the right of every believer. So now let’s look at verse 10 of this important chapter.

God told the Israelites that the people of the world would see the blessing on them, in operation in their lives and would realize that they were the chosen people of Almighty God. Some versions read that when the people of the world saw the effect of the blessing they would be afraid of Israel. I like what the Living Bible has to say. It says that people will stand in awe.

I have noticed that when God moves He gets more than one effect. The same is true with the blessing. His purpose is to bless you but in so doing the uninformed are witnessed to. They see the effect of serving God in every aspect of our lives. The more we allow God to fill all the rooms of our hearts the more of the blessing manifests in our lives. That is good news for us but it is also good news for the world. People who don’t know God or who are marginalized get to see the love of God in a tangible way. As we allow God to minister His grace to every part of our lives, as we yield to His ministrations the world will see the overflow of His blessing and they will stand in awe.

If you do not believe that you are living in the fullness of the blessing then ask God why not. There is no aspect of the blessing which has not been fully realized in Christ Jesus. Open yourself to hear from Him so that He can bless you and the world. Then all shall see the greatness of our God.

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The people don’t know Him

On March 6, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Hosea 4: 6 New Living Translation

My people are being destroyed because they don’t know me. Since you priests refuse to know me, I refuse to recognize you as my priests. Since you have forgotten the laws of your God, I will forget to bless your children.

The book of Hosea was written in about 722 B.C. but it might have been written yesterday because it so clearly describes our time. The Holy tribes of the chosen people had split into two separate kingdoms, Israel the ten tribes of the north and Judah, the southern kingdom. Chaos ruled to such an extent that the northern kingdom fell.

Hosea witnessed the division among God’s people and their unrestrained ways. He understood that the people were ignorant of God and His ways and tried, in vain, to teach them that God loved them and that they should return to Him. Hosea is fighting an uphill battle, though, because even the priests had lost their communion with God.

Whenever we see churches or the church splintering we know that the love of God is not ruling there. The love of God draws people together rather than splits them asunder. God says, through Hosea, that the problem is that the people don’t know Him.

To know God is to live in the blessing. The priests no longer knew God so of course they did not teach His people about Him. The people, in turn, did not seek God and without God there is no peace.

This is a message for us today. If we want a life of peace, stability and blessing we must seek the face of the Lord, our God. Our ministers have an important role to play. They must teach about God. We are suffering and are being destroyed in this time because we do not know God. In the presence of God is security, tranquility and all provision. Without God, we suffer continually with division, strife, turmoil, lack, sickness and despair. To know God is to know love, the two are inseparable because God is love. Where love is in operation, there is peace and every form of prosperity. You have only to look around to see that we have been operating without God. Even when we look in our churches we find that many are characterized by their infighting rather than by a spirit of cooperation and affection.

We are now the chosen people of God and if we would see our children blessed and our lives anointed then we must continually turn our faces toward God. We must seek God in our private capacities but we must also insist that those appointed by God as our ministers and leaders teach us about Him and the life we are to live in Him. We are being destroyed by the lack of knowledge of God much less a personal revelation of Him so if we are to avoid destruction then we must come to know this God both personally and corporately. The gospel of our Lord is the good news. Let us preach it and receive it with open hearts.

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The lemonade scripture

On March 5, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Romans 8: 28

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

I call this the lemonade scripture because what it means to you is that God will take the lemons that life hands you and he will add a little sugar to them and make for you lemonade. I had a rough journey coming to this understanding and I would like to tell you that story today. First, though, I want you to know that this scripture is talking about you. Do not disqualify yourself. God Himself has called you to His purpose. He is constantly calling you to Himself. You are His beloved.

Years ago, in my High School days and my freshman year of college, I went through a rough patch. Although all of my young life I had believed in God and His son Jesus there came a point in my confusion that I concluded that there could not exist a benevolent God given the pain and turmoil I was experiencing. Then I had an even greater epiphany. I decided that there was, in fact, a God because, I reasoned, it was He who was causing these problems in my life.

I ran across some really bad teaching in those years. People were actually teaching from the pulpit that God was putting hurt and anguish on people in order to make them strong. Of course that is exactly what I did not need to hear because it only solidified my belief that God was the author of my pain. There was a part of me that could not completely accept this position though so there raged within me a battle. Who is this God of ours? Is he a loving God or is He a God who strengthens us through pain?

Over the years I began to come to know this God and discovered that He is in fact Love itself. What I didn’t realize though is that in my heart of hearts there was still lodged a fear of what God would do to me if I ever drew really close to Him. I had a pretty good relationship with Jesus but to my horror I discovered that there was a definite mistrust in my heart towards God the Father. Insane! That realization was one of the most humbling and core shaking moments of my life but it opened the blinds on the window of my heart so that God’s light could shine and reveal truth to my heart.

I still hear people accuse God of putting bad stuff on them for various purposes and I even still hear ministers preach that message which grieves my spirit immensely.

Our God is love. If there is only one message that we share it must be that. He doesn’t have to put bad things on people, Satan does plenty of that. No, God can use love. There is nothing that trouble can teach you that love cannot much better reveal to you. Jesus came to show us the way and that way was not the way of trouble. God is not in the lemon business; He is in the lemonade business. He will take all of the junk the devil slings at you and He will turn it for your good. He is the one that will take the thunder cloud and turn it inside out so that the silver lining is all you see. He will take every missile of the devil which is meant to hurt you and turn it into a blessing. That is His way. Our Father causes everything to work out for our good because He loves us.

As for me, I so despised this scripture for many years and now it is a favorite. Jesus set me free from the lie. I wonder if that is why I love lemonade so much. 

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Imitate Jesus and the Father

On March 4, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 5: 19 – 20

Jesus therefore answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner. For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and greater works than these will He show Him that you may marvel.”


I heard Kenneth Copeland preaching on this recently and I have been trying to get my head around it ever since. Jesus told his followers that the Father reveals to him everything the Father is doing. We could sit and meditate on that all day but let’s keep going. The next thing is that Jesus said he could do nothing on his own. Okay, now that begins to mess with our theology a bit, doesn’t it? Don’t we believe that Jesus is and was capable of all things? How would we react to a person who said that Jesus could do nothing of himself? I am sure that I would take exception to that but then Jesus did say it himself.

The next piece in the puzzle is that Jesus tells us that he does what he sees his father doing. So, Jesus can do nothing of himself BUT he does whatever he sees his father do. Now we see the empowerment returning. Copeland taught that throughout Jesus’ ministry he only did what he saw his father do and only said what he heard his father say. This brings me to two conclusions. First, this revelation changes the way we read the Bible. think of it this way, whatever you read in red ink and whatever acts performed by Jesus that are reported in the New Testament, all of this was seen and heard by Jesus from the Father first. So we are now able to look at the inner workings of Jesus’ ministry and his relationship with the Father. I just read about when Jesus cursed the fig tree. So, as I read that passage I realized that God first showed Jesus or told him what to do and what to say to the fig tree. This revelation also means that Jesus walked in step with the Father every hour, every minute of every day. Every act in the gospels, every word uttered by Jesus was all at the specific direction of the Father. That is pretty big.

The second revelation I am gleaning from this teaching is that this is how we are meant to walk in this earth. We know that we are supposed to imitate Jesus and the Father (See Ephesians 5: 1). We are in Jesus, he in us. The Father has now made His abode in us and is with us at all times. It is through this miracle of God in us that we can do anything but only as we are led. And although we can do nothing in our own power and strength we know that in Christ all things are possible. You see, we receive our empowerment through Jesus. We imitate his listening for what the Father says and we watch what the Father does. We can live in the same space of Holy Spirit guidance when we turn our hearts to letting God lead us on a daily basis. If Jesus didn’t hear the Father speak then He didn’t speak. But when Jesus saw the Father move, he moved. He allowed God to be the power in his life and every miracle he ever performed was not of his own strength or wisdom but of the power of God that was one with him. In fact, Jesus said that he wasn’t even the one who performed all of those miracles but rather that it was the Father in him that did the works. Jesus just perfected the ability of letting the Father move through him all of the time.

Imagine when you are at work today that everything you do is led by the Father. You would enjoy a new level of success wouldn’t you? Jesus said that all things are possible to the person who believes (Mark 9: 23). Through today’s verse we see how that is true because our Father illuminates the path for us. We also see ever more clearly that our job is to believe. We are called to be believers. Through believing and listening to our Father we will be more like Jesus and we also will say, “It is the Father within me that does the work.”

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Old and New Covenant

On March 3, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Exodus 24: 2

Moses alone, however, shall come near to the Lord, but they shall not come near, nor shall the people come up with him.

Hebrews 4: 16

Let us therefore draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need.

There is quite a difference between the old covenant and the new covenant and as you can see there is a substantial shift in our position in this new covenant. When you read the Old Testament and see the great promises there you should be overjoyed because you know that your standing with God is much improved as a result of Jesus’ sacrifice. Hebrews 8: 6 says that we have a better covenant which is enacted on better promises. So no matter how good those Old Testament promises are, and they are great, ours are better.

You are now the redeemed of Israel. You can go boldly into the presence of God. Truly there is nothing better than being in God’s presence. Time begins to have no meaning and all of the desirable things of the world fade away. When God enters the building you no longer care about getting to the restaurant before the crowd. We even stop caring if we eat at all. There is life and sustenance in the presence of God and He, through Jesus and the new covenant, invites you to share His presence, to come in confident assurance into His presence.

Everything you need and everything you want is in that space you share with the Father. The God of the universe has set up His throne in your heart now go spend some time with Him there.

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Possible

On February 28, 2014   /   Word of the Day  

Mark 9: 23 -24 NIV

“Everything is possible for him who believes.” Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”

So how is your belief level today? We all have trouble from time to time with our belief level but as we continue on this journey with Jesus our ability to believe grows. That is part of our renewal. As we renew our mind with the word of God our heart develops the capacity to hope, believe and trust.

There is nothing impossible to you if you believe. So here is the first hurdle? Do you believe that statement? You must recognize the speaker here. Jesus is the one who said, “Everything is possible for him who believes.” Now, if we are truly Christians, as we claim to be, then would you accept that one of the first requirements of Christianity is believing Christ? For us to blow by this sentence or erase it with our doubt is to call Jesus a liar. None of us wants to do that so we must reconcile ourselves to belief and faith. We must have a heart to heart talk with ourselves and determine what we choose to believe. Are we going to accept Jesus’ words as absolute truth or are we going to wrestle and argue with them.

The father in today’s verse had a son who was possessed by an evil spirit and he wanted Jesus to cast out the demon but the man had little faith. His approach showed Jesus that the man’s belief level was low. So Jesus addressed the first problem which was the father’s lack of belief. Notice that Jesus did not immediately pray for the boy. The father’s unbelief stood in the way of him receiving that for which he prayed. So Jesus first directs his attention to the father’s unbelief. We know that this father was not a man of no faith because as soon as Jesus told him that all things are possible he exclaimed, “I do believe.” But there is another key phrase in the father’s response. He asked Jesus to help him overcome his unbelief.

Remember that Jesus is with us at all times to help us in all things. He can, therefore, even help us to increase in faith. He can deal with our unbelief. We are called to be believers and everything we are called to do the trinity helps us to do. There is nothing that you must do on your own. You do not have to work up faith or develop belief. The father has already provided the means for you to be a faith giant. The answer is Jesus. He is the truth and the way and the life. He has given you his words in order to encourage you and to transform you into the image of himself. “Faith comes from hearing and hearing by the word of Christ” (Romans 10: 17).

If you are having trouble believing that God can or will give you the desires of your heart then ask Jesus to help you overcome your unbelief. It works. We know it works because the father received what he asked for, the demon fled from his son and the boy was completely restored. God will restore you too.

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