Grace and Truth
John 1:14-18
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
15 John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’”
16 And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.
Book of John chapter 1 is just packed full of nuggets of wisdom and enlightening scripture. In fact, there are so many keywords in this text that it would be easy to just glaze over some of these nuggets of truth, without actually stopping and considering; "What might this mean?" We see a couple of these nuggets of wisdom in verses 14 through 18 posted above. The other day I wrote about the word being God and the word becoming flesh and dwelling among us and how this shows us that Christ was and is God who came in the flesh and became like us. But what is meant in the second half of verse 14 where the Scripture tells us full of grace and truth?
Well, truth is truth. That means there is no lie in it. It applies and is relevant whether you believe it or not. To make this simple, a person can believe the 2+2 equals five, and hold that belief to the grave, yet the truth is, it equals four, regardless of what a person may believe, yeah that oversimplifies things I agree, but the point is still the same. Truth is truth whether we believe it or not. Jesus taught the truth. He says in John chapter 8, if my words abide in you, you follow me, become my disciple, you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. Truth is not relevant. In other words you can't take a simple mathematical equation and say well it's true for me, whether it's true for you or not. The way I see it, 2+2 is five. Who are you to tell me that it's 4?
As we look in verse 17, we can deduce that this portion of Scripture is talking about the law of Moses, when referring to truth. And the Scripture says that Jesus did not come to do away with the law but to fulfill the law. (Mt. 5:17-18) The fulfilling of the law comes through this other little word we find called grace. So what is grace? Sometimes I think it's like that word "love" where everybody has a different definition or a different perspective on what grace really is. The New Testament word for grace comes from the Greek term “Charis” and when we go into Greek. We see oftentimes that words do have several meanings in other languages. What the word really means is power to conquer sin or to equip us for ministry. Grace also means unearned undeserved or unmerited favor.
Verse 17, says the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Verse 14, says he was full of grace and truth. As I was reading this the other day it dawned on me, this is a powerful way for the apostle John to start this book out. Powerful because he is illustrating to us that one of the reasons Christ came was to give us the strength, power and the favor we need to fulfill the sanctified life in which we could not do on our own without being born of the spirit. This is such great news! This perspective gives us something wonderful because it tells us that there is more to being a Christian than just being religious, that there is power available for changing our lives! Say goodbye to hopelessness and helplessness. Say goodbye to blaming our birth by saying that we were created this way or that way and blaming our parents or genetics for who or what we are. Jesus said we could be born again, born of the spirit and with this experience of rebirth we become empowered to conquer the strongholds of whatever life we lived before and to strive through the process of sanctification where God molds us and shapes us into the person that he created us to be. True identity is found in becoming the person that God made you to be.
The only road to satisfaction is the road that leads us to becoming the person who God has created us to be. God has created us for relationship with Him and changeable like a lump of clay in the potter's hand. He's always working on us but he never asks us to become something that he won't empower us to be! And that my friend is a work of grace.
The Right to Become Children of God?
John 1:10-13
He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
This text from John chapter 1 could seem to some little confusing, or perhaps even a little bit harsh. The reason I say that is because, as we pay attention to modern media the general spirit of our age is that everybody has the right to be acknowledged as a child of God. Just because we were born and entered the human race. The popular trend or at least so it seems, is that we all belong to God, regardless of our actions, our behaviors or our attitude towards fellow man.
Every day of my life. I witness those around me who come from every background, lifestyle, race, and sexual orientation. They all have huge differences in how they view life, society; perhaps even in some ways in how they view God. But they do have one thing in common. They've been born again, unified by the Spirit of God, and changed by truth and grace. The wonderful thing about becoming a child of God is that our Creator empowers us to change into the person HE wants us to be!
I've always been a little puzzled with the rising belief that has done away with any concept of right and wrong or good and bad. You know the teaching that says we’re just all on this continuum between darkness and light but nobody's really broken, so nothing really needs to be fixed. It sounds great! Sounds wonderful that nobody's broken we’re all good, we’re all great. There's no basically sinful aspect to our nature, we just need to develop a greater level of consciousness of the light that comes from within.
I think the reason I have a hard time reconciling this type of thinking is because with no standard of right and wrong or good and bad, how do we explain some of the atrocities that happen in our world today? For example, how do you tell a young woman that the man who has raped or molested her, beat her and abused her while she was growing up, is not broken and there's nothing wrong with him, he's loved and accepted by God just as much a she is? Was Hitler a good man who just had less consciousness of God, then the next person? I suppose I could make up scenarios and questions of evil and darkness all day long but I think you get the idea. Scripture says that this is the condemnation, that men loved darkness rather than light. That light came into the world and the world rejected him.
The Scripture that we read today states that there is a God who created the world and the world did not know him, he presented himself to his own chosen people and they refused to receive him. But to those who did believe in him and receive him, He gave the right to become children of God. God does put a contingency there. It has to do with our belief system, but it goes further than that. Because the Scripture says we must become born of God to be his children. So how does one become born of God? In verse 13. Scripture says they were not just born of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but they were born of God. The key word is those that “received” Him. And the “Him” in which the scripture is referring to can be found in verse 14, and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
Am I saying that God does not love everybody? No way am I saying that, in fact, I'm saying just the opposite. As we read through the gospel of John we’ll find several verses, including the all so popular John 3: 16. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever would believe in him would not perish but have everlasting life." Again, we see a contingency that "who ever would believe in him" would not perish. And we see in Romans chapter 5 the verse that says; “In this God commended his love towards us that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” He did not say clean up your act and then I'll die in your place and pay the price for your sin. Actually, he died in our place for our sin so that we could clean up our act, regardless of what our life was before knowing him, he gives us the grace to overcome and allow him to develop his character through us.
The good news is that nobody has to be left out! It's all contingent upon the choices that we make. Yes, it's easy to look at hypocrisy, fallacy, phoniness, fakeness or whatever other excuse that we want to come up with and say I want nothing to do with “churchianity” I did it for years, but isn’t God's love is so much bigger than all of that?
The Foolishness of God is Wiser than Men? Really?
1 Corinthians 1:21-26
21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. 22 For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; 23 but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. 26 For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.
I believe that even though the Bible was written centuries ago, it contains truth that is relevant for you and me today. In fact, Scripture says in the book of Hebrews 13:8 that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday today and forever. As well, John 1: 14 that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” Jesus being the word of God. In our Scripture for the day, the writer Paul is discussing some barriers as to why certain Jews in certain Greeks were unable to receive the message of Christ's salvation. He says the Jews seek a sign and Greeks seek after wisdom.
In consideration of the four Gospels, we see several accounts were the Jews approached Jesus and they were looking for some kind of miraculous sign to prove that he was indeed the Messiah. At the same time they ignored the many miracles that Jesus did or even accused him of being a devil. In one incident, Jesus even replied and said if I cast out Satan by Satan, then I divided the house of Satan, but if I cast out demons by the power of God then the Kingdom of God has come upon you! The Greeks on the other hand, were philosophers. Today we read of many great philosophers who lived during that era of time. They were known for sitting around their temples and discussing or philosophizing about spiritual things, natural laws and basic rules of life.
While there is nothing wrong with seeking after a sign of the supernatural, or in expanding our wisdom and knowledge, this portion of Scripture reminds us to remember that the Kingdom of God and the Gospel of Jesus Christ requires faith and does not always make sense to the rational mind. It also reminds me that, while I do believe God at times confirms his Word with signs and wonders, our rejoicing is found better served when it is based upon the fact that those who believe have their names written in heaven.
My prayer for all of us, whether believers already or those who are seeking to find God is that we all continually come to a greater revelation of the power of the cross of Jesus Christ and His resurrection. Scripture says without the shedding of blood there is no remission for sin. Romans chapter 8 states that if the same Spirit who raised Christ from the dead dwells in us then he will give life to our mortal bodies. These statements defy the wisdom and the knowledge of modern man. Yet the simplicity of this message is its beauty; for not many noble, not many wise not many mighty are called but to those of us who are called, Christ is both the power and the wisdom of God. To some the preaching of Christ crucified is a stumbling block and to others it may seem like foolishness, but the apostle Paul states that it is the power of God to salvation.
The Foolishness of Preaching
1Corinthians 1:17-2
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.
18 For the preaching of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written:
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise
And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”
20 Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.
Isn't it incredible the technological advances that mankind is made in just the last century? The rate at which technology and medical knowledge has advanced in just the last decade is phenomenal. When the pages of the Bible were written they still weren't even aware of how big our world is. It took weeks just to travel what we can do in an hour now. In the days the Bible was written when somebody was ill or facing death. They had to believe God for a miracle or they would die. Now you can go across the street and get psychological, emotional, mental and physical attention when something goes wrong.
In light of this knowledge, I think the validity of this Scripture has even greater relevance. I say this because it's easier to forget about the power of God today than it would've been during a time when you could die without it. However, I declare to you that the power of God is very much as real, alive and active pulsating through the church and through some of his believers today as it was during the time that the Scripture was written!
Paul acknowledges that it was Christ who sent him to the Corinthian church and he follows that acknowledgment with stating that he wasn't sent to preach works, such as baptism or words of wisdom that would entice people with philosophical impressions. He declares. However, that he came to preach the cross of Jesus Christ over as he stated Christ and Christ crucified! Which in a logical mind could too many seem like foolishness. Remember the prophet Isaiah in chapter 53. I won't quote that chapter now for time sake. However, I encourage you to look it up and read it on your own. Christ in Luke chapter 4 quotes from Isaiah as well. Declaring the reason why he came was to set the oppressed free, heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives!
The preaching of the cross is foolishness to those who perish but to those who are being saved it is the power of God. To many it may seem crazy or far-fetched even a fool's faith to lay hands on the sick can see them recover to pray with faith that God could heal or deliver, or even break the bondages of addiction through the power of prayer and the cleansing of His word. I have witnessed firsthand the power of God to set an addict free from harrowing cocaine, alcohol, even nicotine on various occasions throughout my ministry. Sometimes this miraculous phenomenon takes place with simple prayer, other times it starts with a simple prayer and requires some work, diligence and dedication on the part of the person who is addicted. However, there is still power in the cross to deliver from such an apparently hopeless situation as addiction. (As well as many other physical, mental, spiritual and socio-economic issues)
I am an advocate of education and I believe that higher learning can only strengthen and empower the human being to do greater things. However, I submit to my readers today that we begin to contend for the power of Christ's resurrection to flow through our lives and not to let higher learning, wisdom, and excessive knowledge hinder us from entering union to the dynamic power found at the cross. In verse 20 Paul asks where is the wise? Where is the scribe where is the disputer of this age has God not made foolish the wisdom of this world? Then he goes on to say that it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe! I close with this thought throughout the Bible, Old Testament and New; how many occasions throughout the Bible, do we see where God chose and called a person to do something beyond all reason, logic and human knowledge, only to blow the minds of all those who witnessed the occurrence when God honors their faith? A portion of the answer to that question is found in Hebrews chapter 11. I encourage you to read them on your own.
God bless you until next time.
A New Creation
Today's scripture includes perhaps some of the most powerful words of hope one could speak into a society that faces as many issues as the one we live in today. Our world does not need another religion that teaches rules and regulations without offering power to change. The beautiful thing about the gospel of Jesus Christ is the hope that he offers to the hopeless the newness of life that Christ offers to those whose life seems dead or drab and the power to create a new future for oneself regardless of the past that we leave behind us. Let's look at today's Scripture and consider the hope that is offered in these few verses.
2 Corinthians 5:17-21
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. 21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
In John chapter 3 Jesus tells us that we must be born again, born of the spirit that is and not just of the flesh. The topic of sin and the destruction that it leaves behind is not always spoken of from the pulpit today. Perhaps that's okay because most of us already know what the nature of our heart is and that we need hope which offers the power to change. This Scripture tells us of the beauty of the gospel of Jesus Christ in that God left his heavenly kingdom came to earth took on the form of a man understood and felt the temptations of sin and then conquered sin for us on the cross. Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins that we could never pay on our own.
But does this mean that we continue living in our sin? Scripture says in Romans “God forbid.” Another powerful attribute shown through Jesus Christ's existence on earth, was the resurrection. Unlike any other image, idol or God worshiped throughout every other religion in the world, Jesus Christ resurrected from the dead! And in the power of that resurrection he offers us the hope of a new life. Not just a hope that we can dream of. But a hope that we can count on! Scripture says to put on the new man, which is found in Christ Jesus that all old things are passed away behold, all things become new!
Romans 8:11 tells us that if the same spirit which raised Christ from the dead dwells in us then he shall give life to our mortal bodies! What a powerful promise to know that God's Spirit lives in those of us who invite him in to our hearts and lives giving us power to conquer all works of sin and death. So have no more worries about God being unfair and requiring us to change if were going to enter his kingdom, and know that God wants to give us power to re-create our very existence through his resurrection! We cannot do this on our own strength. We must be born of the Spirit of God. So now instead of looking at what does God require us to change before we can know Him. Let's start looking at the God who has given us power to change once we do come to know Him!
For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever would believe in him would not perish but have everlasting life! The works that cause us to perish can easily be conquered once we have faith in what Christ did on the cross. The works that God wants to work in us can be accomplished, once we have faith in the power of the Holy Spirit, who now lives in us. So now the choice is yours to either live as the old man or woman. (Continuing in the way of hopelessness) Or, receive God's salvation and live, (in hope and power) as a newly created human being a child of the creator of all things.
His Mercy and Compassion are New Every Morning
Lamentations 3:19-25
Remember my affliction and roaming, the wormwood and the gall.
20 My soul still remembers and sinks within me. 21 This I recall to my mind,
Therefore I have hope. 22 Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “Therefore I hope in Him!”
25 The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, to the soul who seeks Him.
In these few short verses of Scripture we get Jeremiah's perspective of the redemptive nature of God. Verses 19 and 20 give us a picture of how life changes after meeting our Savior. He remembers his affliction and his roaming showing the significance of what life can be like before we meet Christ and experience His salvation. Jeremiah likens this to bitterness, gall and wormwood. These descriptive terms, give me a clear picture of what life really is like without God in comparison to what life can be like as we deepen our relationship with God.
Salvation doesn't remove us from the world or the troubles that we can bring with us into our new life with Christ; it doesn't necessarily exclude us from reaping what we have sown. For the Scriptures clear in the book of Galatians where it says "be not deceived God is not mocked, whatever a man sows, that also shall he reap." In other words, God doesn't eradicate the consequences of the life that we've lived just because we've decided to change and become born again. While I have seen, heard and experienced for myself God's alleviation of the severity of consequences through his mercy, this is not always the case. Salvation is about eternal life first and improved quality of our temporal life comes as an added benefit.
However, God does give us such a great new life as we strengthen and endeavor to deepen our relationship with him that the old life appears as bitterness and gall. Jeremiah then goes on to say that as he recalls his past, he realizes that he has hope. I hope they can only be found once we experience the mercies and compassion of our God. He goes on to say that through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, and his compassions are new every morning. For some reason this brings to mind the Lord's prayer were Jesus says as part of the Lord's prayer to ask the Lord to give us each day our daily bread. Also it brings to mind remembrance of the children of Israel as they wander through the desert and each morning the Lord provided fresh manna for them, for that one day.
"The Lord is my portion says my soul. Therefore, I hope in him." This quote from verse 24 implies that whatever the Lord sees fit to impart into our lives is good enough. I have to ask, can I be satisfied with the portion that the Lord has blessed me with, is it enough?
The implication here is that as we seek the Lord each day, we find him each day and this discipline adds to the quality of our overall lives. The Christian salvation is an endeavor to grow closer to God each day of our lives. Can I really know God as intimately as he wants me to by limiting my relationship with him to a Sunday morning experience? Every day that we are saved is a day better than living in the world! Yes we live in the world but Christ says we are no longer of this world, so I'm referring to living as a child of the King versus living as a slave to a worldly lifestyle. Not too long ago as my wife and I were joining together to pray another person asked what are you guys going to pray for? Our response was, “we’re not going to ask God for any thing were just praying so we can know him better.”
God’s faithfulness is amazing! Verse 23 states “great is your faithfulness!” This is an awesome statement because it implies that regardless of what we do, God remains faithful to us. Even though we don't always see what he's doing or how he is working through our lives are in our lives. God is faithfully and patiently building and working leading us closer to Himself, even when we stray his strategies are at work leading us back onto His path of righteousness and truth. The Lord is good to those who wait for him to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should hope and wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.
There are four things we can consider about justification from Romans 3:24.
1- Justification comes freely. We cannot pay for our own sins. Even the priests of the Old Testament had to sacrifice a lamb for their own sin before making atonement for Israel. This is one of the great and wonderful things about true Christianity that our God came in the flesh and freely gave His life for our sins. The myth that we must somehow pay and be punished for our sins is trumped her. Christ paid the full price for our redemption on the cross and freely gives us our justification.
In Matthew 10:7-9
And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, and cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give.
2- By his grace – We are saved by His grace through faith in Christ, not by works lest any man should boast. Again grace is a gift God gives it freely to those who repent and turn to Him. I would even say that His grace allows us the ability to repent. Paul said I am what I am by the grace of God.
3- By the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
1 Corinthians 6:20 For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.
We were owned by our sin, slaves to it! Yet, Christ purchased us back unto God through His sin free life and the blood He shed on the cross! He paid the ultimate price for each and every one of us. OH, what a loving God to sacrifice His one and only son in such a way to buy us back from our sinful ways and give us life! The deed of ownership is signed in Christ’s blood and stamped; Paid in Full!
4- By faith, v28 Yes! We are saved by faith, apart from the works of the law. By faith alone can we respond to:
Romans 10:8-10
But what does it say? “THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, 9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.
2 Timothy 3:15
... that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
1 John 5:1
Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him.
Ephesians 2:8-9
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Is My Vision God’s Vision?
NKJV) Proverbs 29: 18 Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; But happy is he who keeps the law.
NIV) Proverbs 29: 18 Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction.
NASB) Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, But happy is he who keeps the law.
KJV) Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.
I wanted to include these four translations today because each one is equally accurate yet slightly different. Sometimes looking at different views can expand our ability to fully comprehend what God is trying to tell us. Simply put HE wants us to understand that the only way to find stability, fulfillment, and to define our true purpose in life is to align our vision with the vision God has for us.
Proverbs 13:12 tells us; “Hope deferred makes the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life.” Here we see the basis for many of the internal woes being faced by society. Mental health issues such as depression for example could be thwarted if a person could make this connection. God created you with a plan and a purpose in mind. As you connect with that plan you enter into divine fulfillment. This is true on the individual level, church level, and on a societal level as well.
The question then becomes; How do we connect with the plan and purpose God created us for? The answer is simple yet the most difficult thing for some to grasp at the same time. Jesus died and rose again to bridge the gap between man and God. He said unless a man is born of the spirit of God he cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. (John 3) If the church never agrees on anything else we must get how to be “born of God” right!
It is not found in baptism alone, or in joining a church as if it were an elite club. You cannot be born of God by taking communion, or praying to statues. You must be born of His spirit. Hebrews chapter 4 tells us that we can touch God’s throne in prayer and that the human side of Christ allows Him to feel our needs. In other words God want you to ask Him. Yes, it’s really that simple. Here is how:
Lord I ask you to expose everything from my life that separates me from you and your vision for me and remove it from my life. I ask you God in Jesus’ name to expose and cleanse me from all things in my life that separate me from you. I ask you to birth me into your Kingdom and fill me with fresh revelation of your vision and purpose for my life. I present myself to you Lord and I ask you to direct my path through your word and your spirit. AMEN
Now if you mean that then you have just begun a fresh journey with God almighty, creator of the heavens and earth. Allow Him to direct you to a Bible believing church with a vision for living out His will and purpose. If you are already in a good church then you can begin praying for God to reveal to you and your leaders how to fully enter into His plan and vision for your church body.
When Light Conquers Darkness
What did Jesus mean when He said that you are the light of the world? Did He mean all His followers for the remainder of time? Do you think the claims made by some could be true that when Jesus spoke to His disciples He didn’t mean the generations to follow were included in His promises? How do we decide if the words of Christ are meant for us today or not? Well, for that matter what about the rest of the Bible? Is the Bible God’s word for us to learn His ways or not?
I say yes! Each individual must decide if they believe in God and if so then we need to think about how and why God would communicate with us. Would He be clear or confusing? Would He send us a manual and then tell us do decide for ourselves what we want and don’t want from it? Would God send us several books and teachers with conflicting beliefs and then tell us to pick & choose what we like best from each one? Let’s be real. By the way, if all paths lead to God, then why is there so much darkness in the world today?
Some may say; “There is only so much darkness because that is what you choose to see.” So does that mean if I choose not to see that there are over twenty convicted sex offenders (most of which are repeat offenders) living within a few mile radius of me that they will no longer be there? If I choose not to see that our prisons are over filled with so many criminals that our government can’t afford to keep them off the streets then that fact won’t be true anymore? Does it mean that if we decide not to see corruption in the hierarchy of the church that it won’t be abusive or greedy for power or money anymore?
I’m sure we can all see that by ignoring reality we won’t make it go away. But can we see that God has always had a better plan if we can just accept it and actually live it? Look at this prophesy from the Bible written about 680 years before Christ came:
Isaiah 60:1-5
1 Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the LORD is risen upon you.
2 For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth,
And deep darkness the people;
But the LORD will arise over you,
And His glory will be seen upon you.
3 The Gentiles shall come to your light,
And kings to the brightness of your rising.
4 “ Lift up your eyes all around, and see:
They all gather together, they come to you;
Your sons shall come from afar,
And your daughters shall be nursed at your side.
5 Then you shall see and become radiant,
And your heart shall swell with joy;
Because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you,
The wealth of the Gentiles shall come to you.
The prophet Isaiah is referring to the coming of Christ and tat He will draw all men to Himself. All may not come but Christ is drawing today!
Now let’s look at how John described the coming of Jesus into this world:
John 1:1-5 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things
were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was
made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
John 1:9-14 9That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. 10He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.
11He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
12But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
13Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 14And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
Can we pray that God remove from all our hearts any darkness that prevents us from comprehending HIM? (Ask God in your own words to remove all hidden darkness from your heart and to fill you with His light)
John 8:12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”
Matthew 5:13-15
13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. 14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
Mark 16:14-18 Later He appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him after He had risen. 15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
We cannot depend on any government, law enforcement or anything else to bring the light of God into this world. He has called and chosen you and me to do the job. It does not matter what kind of darkness lives or once lived in you the blood of Jesus was shed to cleanse and forgive us all of any thing that separates us from the light and love of God. We only have to ask Him and mean it and then find a church home that preaches and teaches the whole word of God. (We can help you find one if you contact us) Then share the good things that God has done with you always.
The Divine Purpose for Your Life
The age old questions of where do we come from and why we are here have been answered in the Bible. Simply put we are created by God with a purpose that can only be discovered through relationship with Him who created us individually. God created you and me with a plan for our lives, and the greatest fulfillment from life comes through discovering and walking in that divine purpose. However God’s plan for you may not be the same as His plan for me. Scripture says that we are uniquely and carefully made and He places us in His body of believers as He sees fit. He has made each of with different personalities and gifts that equip us for His divine purpose.
The questions then usually become something like; How do I know what my purpose(s) is? And; How do I bring that (those) purpose(s) to full fruition? These can only be fully answered through your individual relationship with God. Believe me when I say that God’s plan for each of is that we have a close and personal relationship with Him. This is why I always say flee from churches that push the idea that of relationship with God being found through the special position of a few ordained leaders from their organization. And prayer was never intended to be reduced down to reading or reciting from some religion’s pre written incantations. Prayer is talking to God from your heart and listening for His reply. Prayer is enforcing God’s written word (the Bible) into life’s situations. Therefore if someone else wrote it or if it is recited from a memory card it may be the vain repetitions which Jesus warned us not to do when we pray.(Mt 6:7)
Jesus said in John chapter 3 that in order to have relationship with Him we must be born again. Then He continued to say that means we must be born of the spirit of God not of the flesh. Also, the He came to set us free from sin not to condemn us for it. So, how do we become born again and set free from our sin? Is it by joining a church, by taking communion, or by knocking on enough doors and doing enough good works to earn our salvation? If not by these activities, then how do we remove the barriers from between us and having a personal relationship with our creator?
Regardless of what we’ve done in our past God wanted so badly to remove those barriers that the scripture says in Jn. 1:14 that He (Vs. 1 the creator of all things) became flesh and lived among us! 1John 1:5-10 tells us how to have fellowship (relationship) with God. And Romans 10:9-13 tells us also that the gift of salvation is for whoever calls upon the name of Jesus. And in verse 17 that “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God” I don’t quite understand when I hear complaints about Jesus being the only way. He made a way when there was no other and all paths don’t lead to God the creator of the heavens and Earth! Your true divine purpose can only be unleashed by connecting with your creator and allowing Him to teach you His reasons for making you.
In God’s love! I’ll see you soon.
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