Here is a very simple tool to help you study the Bible. All of these elements are used in teaching and studying the Bible effectively. Below the image is a link to download the PDF of this document so that you can reference, share or print this document. Enjoy and I hope and pray that this helps you to more accurately, “rightly divide the Word of Truth” and share what you are learning with others.
-J
“God, show us who You are. Be revealed!”
“I want to see You… high and lifted up!”
“I want more than I have. I want to see You in Your holiness. I want my filth burned away; replaced with Your Spirit and Presence and Life and Word!”
“I just want a glimpse of Your glory…please Father, give this to me but only for a moment and I shall be happy forever.”
“We are not discontent, but we are satisfied only in You, and yet we are hungry for more because we know that only You have more to give.”
Have you ever been here, in this place? In a place of longing that goes beyond human words or understanding? I mean, you have your God and you love your Savior but you are desperate for more? Maybe you really want to see your city reached with the Gospel? So there you are: you know you are saved and you know that God does the saving but you are not satisfied that there are people surrounding you who are lost and headed for hell, so you pray.
I’m not talking about those “Thank You God for these scrambled eggs” type of prayers, I’m talking desperation type of prayers. I’m talking Jacob wrestling with God, “I wont let You go until you bless me!” type of prayers! “God help us! People are dying! We need You to intervene!” “Act oh God! Do not be silent!” I’m talking about revival praying. We-seriously-believe prayers. We-really-need-the-living-God prayers.
I’m here in this place now in my life for many reasons and my greatest want at the moment is to be in, sence, feel, and abide in the presence of God. I’m not satisfied with statuesque christianity: praying for my food (whatever that means), stopping by church once or twice a week (or month for some), doing my “devos”, and on and on, this boring robotic routine can continue habitually into an eventual, hopeful eternity. Becoming a religious person is not on my list of aspirations, I want to experience the presence and power that comes from closeness to my Jesus… my God… the one who loves me and has saved me.
I’m encouraging you and me and a lost world to enter the joy of the Lord! Come and get more of your God. We must seek Him in our prayer closets and worship Him there with all of our beings. There we must find Him and be found by Him. Not in our church buildings, but in our private world. In our heart and mind and in our bedrooms and in our workplaces. This is fellowship with our God. This kind of Christianity cannot be escaped! This is the kind of christian experience that is exciting and romantic! This is when we finally realize that God is our lover and He is pursuing us in our going to sleep and in our waking up. He is wooing us into His presence. This is the excitement about walking with Jesus that once realized, causes us to shut down the computer and phone and television and escape to a private place; alone with our God. We want more and so we go in search for more. We bow on our knees or we lock ourselves inside and there we share our hearts as we gain His heart. We simply talk to Him about all that is in ourselves. Like the marriage bed, nothing is off-limits; we are explored by Him. We sit with His Word and we ask and beg Him to make it come to life in reality and power within our bodies and minds and heart and emotion. We are experiencing transformation when we are experiencing Him.
I love this. That we want more than we could ever handle. No one can look upon the glory of God and yet we hunt after it and drool for it with a burning hearts desire.
Are you being transformed?
Are you desiring your God?
If you say yes, than good. Run harder after Him. He will always satisfy you.
If you say no, then may I remind you that though you do not pursue Him, Your God who loves you is Pursuing you relentlessly. He wants you to experience His light and life and His Joy. He is but an arms-reach away.
“…nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” -Romans 8:39
This was taken from a message preached in the fall of 2009...
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True prayer is the act of humility. It declares to your God that you are in need of His counsel.
Prayer is an act of Love; it makes time for God, and places Him in your priority. Intimacy cannot be built without time, effort, and communication. Loving God is making time to become intimate with Him. Prayer is where you go out of your way to show God your heart, to praise or weep before Him. Prayer is where your intimacy is developed. We need to be drawn often to prayer.
Pray about everything.
Pray because your Savior has asked and told you to do so. Prayer is an act of obedience.
Strength is drawn from prayer. Praying is an act of faith and without faith it is impossible to please God.
Please your God in prayer. He loves to hear you talk to Him. He loves to hear you ask of Him.
He is a fulfiller of promises, so pray His Word and you will never fall short of His will in prayer.
Remember, in any relationship, you must communicate to keep things fresh. So keep the lines of communication open with Jesus. Speak to Him and listen to Him.
Pray for strength, He always gives it.
Pray for direction, He knows the way.
Pray for Salvation, that’s why He came, died and rose again.
Pray for the impossible, He is God almighty. He is the God of miracles and impossibilities. Believe Him always.
You must pray in faith. And sometimes you must pray desperately for faith. Men have seen revival and what others thought impossible because they sought their God and asked Him for things others only dared to dream of. Stop dreaming and pray to your God who is reality and power and so near to you.
Prayer is where you gain the heart of God for your life and ministry. It is where you come face to face with love and where you are broken, humbled, changed and filled with His Spirit that is power in you.
You don’t have because you don’t ask. Ask! Ask for everything that you need and don’t have. Don’t be timid or shy. Don’t be faithless. Be willing to be wrong for some things that you ask for. We are praying for His will to be done.
Pray like Jesus.
And remember, you only need a mustard seed of faith in order to petition the face of God. If you feel like you don’t even have a mustard seed of faith, than ignore your feelings and ask anyways.
Pray always about everything.
Don’t be paranoid about everything and every decision you make. If you have an active prayer-life, than don’t be scared to walk by faith. Remember that faith is an action word and He is directing your steps. Pray then walk and most of the time, pray while your walking.
Pray for others; right there on the spot. Show others by praying with them that you believe in a God who hears. It will impart faith to them.
And Pray for you.
Prayer will keep you alive. It is impossible to have an active, fruitful private prayer-life and die spiritually. If you want to live more, than pray more. Prayer is the I.V. from heaven; It will keep your heart beating, your blood pulsing, and your Spirit above the clouds. It is an exercise in the spirit and so you must fight against your flesh. Be constant in prayer. Never give up. Pray
Remember ROMANS 12:1
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The Word of God is power to the believer. It is Spiritual. The Word of God is not a burdensome law. It is not legalism or rules. The Word of God is not a religion! It is Safety. It is a glimpse into the very heart of God who rules the Universe! It is for your Heart, your life and for your Spirit and for eternity.
The Word of God is life giving, life changing, miracle working, alive, true and there is nothing false in it! It is perfect, empowering, encouraging, up-lifting, healing, it speaks to man, guides us, directs us, gives wisdom, judges the thoughts and intents of the heart, it is purity in an imperfect world, it is to be treasured, it is historically accurate, and it is just and right when everything else is wrong!
And do not forget, the Word of God is for you! Treasure your Savior and treasure His promises. Don’t allow satan to keep you from your Bible. Open it up, be familiar with it, read it, write in it, memorize it and not because you have to, but because He loves you. Guard your time with Jesus.
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The word Bible comes from the Greek word‘biblos’ meaning‘book.’It is The Book. In the Bible, we have the embodiment of a divine revelation. It is a written work of history centered around one man, Jesus Christ. Now, let me briefly present you with…
5 proofs that present the Bible as the very Word of God:
1. The Character of the Bible:
Written by 40 some authors over a period of about 1600 years and yet the Bible is one book. It has one doctrinal system, one moral standard, one plan of salvation, and one program of the ages. The Bible is in harmony with itself. It does not contradict itself but compliments itself.
2. The Indestructibility of the Bible:
Henry Clarence Thiessen says this about the indestructibility of the Bible: “When we recall that only a very small percentage of books survive more than a quarter of a century, that a much smaller percentage last for a century, and that only a very small number live a thousand years, we at once realize that the Bible is a unique book.”
When looking at the history of the Bibles indestructibility, we must also look at the circumstances through which the Bible has survived. The Bible has been the most adored and praised book as well as the object of more persecution and opposition than any other book in History. For example, Before Constantine, Rome, at one point, thought that they had exterminated the Christian religion. Diocletian, by a royal edict in 303 A.D. demanded that every copy of the Bible be destroyed by fire. He killed so many Christians and destroyed so many bibles, sending Christians into hiding, that he actually thought that he had put an end to the bible. He inscribed a medal that said,“the Christian religion is destroyed and the worship of the gods restored.”A few years later Constantine came to the throne, making Christianity the state religion. This is one event among many examples throughout history. Many of which are still being written among our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world today, in Asia, the middle east, and elsewhere.
But know this, that God is still preserving His Word. We have hundreds of manuscript copies of the Bible that predate the birth of Christ. These including detailed prophesies about Jesus Christ, his life, death, and resurrection. Among such manuscripts lies one of the greatest discoveries in modern times: We know them as the Dead Sea Scrolls. Here’s what happened and how God preserved His Word:
In 1947, a young boy wandered into a cave in Qumran (north and west of the dead Sea in Israel). He was looking for some lost sheep, belonging to his father, but instead of finding sheep, the boy stumbled upon ancient coins and a series of pots filled with ancient scrolls; the old testament scriptures. These findings of Isaiah’s writings alone dated back to 100 B.C. The scrolls had been hidden in these caves 2000 years ago and amazingly, they represented every book of the old testament minus the book of Esther. Amazing!
God is able to watch over and preserve His word from corruption. This is a true to life miracle but not surprising, as Our God is a God of miracles!
3. The Influence of the Bible.
Throughout history, the Bible has influenced Arts, literature, architecture, and music. The Bible has influenced the laws of the nations as well as influencing great social reforms and is constantly debated over, defended, or scrutinized in our courthouses to this day.
Thiessen says: “Where is there a book in all the world that even remotely compares with it in its beneficent influence upon mankind?” He called the bible:“…The revelation of God to needy humanity.”
4. Fulfilled Prophesy.
As we read earlier from 2 Peter, that men who were “… moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” There is no other viable explanation for the supernatural knowledge witnessed through Bible prophesy given through man, written here in the Bible. In it, we see many impressive and detailed prophesies concerning the nation of Israel. Prophesies concerning the gentile nations were fulfilled. Prophesy declares to us that God has revealed in his word to us that he is all knowing. He does not simply give us a record book of past events, but confidently declares to us things to come; future events; Bible prophesy; divine Revelation.
5. The claims of the Bible itself.
The Bible claims to be the only infallible revelation on earth in written form given to man. That in it contains the only plan for the eternal salvation of man.
The Old Testament itself claims to be the Word of God, with its some 3,800 statement like: “thus says the Lord, now the Lord spoke, He was commanded to write in a book what the Lord had told him, The Lord Said, The Word which came to…, The Word of the Lord came expressly to…etc”
The New Testament writers declared the message of God. Paul makes statements in 1 Corinthians (14:37), 1 Thessalonians (2:13), and Galatians (1:8) declaring that the things he wrote were the commandments of God, that what he preached we were to receive as the very word of God, and that the salvation of men depended upon faith in the very doctrines which Paul taught. John taught in 1 John (5:10) that his testimony was Gods testimony. Peter taught that the commands of God were spoken through the holy prophets and through the apostles (2 Peter 3:2). And Christ revealed that if you have heard or seen Him than you have heard and seen God (1 John 1:2, John 14:9).
All of this, and we have not even scratched the surface of Archeological discoveries supported by the Bible and in favor of the bibles accuracy. No other religious text compares. We don’t have time to talk about the Bibles Scientific accuracy including it’s references to the Sun, the shape of the earth, the suspension of the earth, and the stars. We could talk about the countless martyrs for Christ, including the willingness of Jesus’ disciples to suffer, but for the sake of time, these 5 points will have to do.
1 Peter 2:24,25
“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”
How lost we must have been, that to God Himself, it seemed necessary to clothe himself in His own creation that we might be bought back; redeemed. Purchased by Gods blood! God bled. He subjected Himself to pain. “For you were straying like sheep…” I love the gentleness of Gods mercy displayed here in this verse. He equates us, His children to sheep. Gentle and frail. Unable to fend for themselves in the face of their adversaries; ours being sin and its eternal reward. Scattered we were, unable to defend, vindicate, or rescue ourselves. All we could do is run lost in vain. We were in need of a Shepherd. One who would sacrifice His time, energies, sleep, sweat, blood, and I must say, even His life to protect that which belonges to His Master: you and me. And a shepherd we have. We got the best. The Master Himself became our Shepherd. No one cares more about His sheep than the Master. The sheep are His posession and prize. They are of great value in His eyes. But must i say, they are dumb and ever so needy. They would perish without His care. Certain death is inevitable without the Shepherds care.
We are His sheep and we had gone astray, and death had become inevitable. We are those spoken of here: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way.” And what a horrific way! The end of our way is death, and that eternal. We are those about whom God has spoken: “[There is] none who does good, No, not one.” “They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.” “There is none righteous, no, not one.” If this is us, than “God! Who can stand before you!?” Who can dwell in your presence!?” “Who will You welcome into your glory!?” and as if heaven stands still awaiting His perfection-answer…. God Speaks in His great justice: “There are none… no… Not ONE!”
We are the none, the no-ones. And to the no-ones God in His great mercy and grace has sent to us Someone; namely, Jesus Christ. And just as was spoken of us, to this one it is spoken: “and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” This is the one who will be ushered into the throne room of God. This is the one who will sit on the throne of God forever, judging grace-saved-sinners as perfected and holy by His blood. This is the one who has taken the punishment that was for man because God became man that man might come near to God. So near that God would dwell in man. Making man His temple. And just as the sacrifice (Jesus Christ) was raised to the throne in Gods presence, so must we, in Christ, become raised with Him, sharing in His risen glory. This is possible only through God’s grace. “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By His wounds you have been healed.” Receive His healing afresh today and become drowned in His awesome grace, “For you were straying like sheep, but now returned to the shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”
Amen
“The first rule of success is that there is nothing on the outside that can compensate for a feeling of failure on the inside. External accouterments of success — from armored limousines to an army of personal bodyguards — can never protect you from the din of demons who whisper to you that for all you have achieved you are still a big zero.”
That was just one powerful quote from a recent article published in the Huntington Post entitled “Why Powerful Men Can’t Keep Their Pants On.” The Article made an attempt to wrap the mind around the mystery of adulterous human behavior. Why do men like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, and Tiger Woods trade their reputations as successful and outstanding men for the reputation of an unfaithful and uncommitted failure of a husband? That is, succeeding in business, politics, or professionalism yet failing in the home. Guarding their business yet throwing away the family. If there ever was a badge for failure, harming those whom you should love the most would be it. It is often the case that men and women succeed in their pursuit of the worlds riches, attaining them all and yet are all together unsatisfied, miserable, and discontented. Having achieved family, wealth and prestige and yet still longing for more of what cannot seem to be attained.
The Bible tells us that “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death (Proverbs 14:12).” I love what Augustine had to say about the pursuit of man: “Thou hast prompted him, that he should delight to praise thee, for thou hast made us for thyself and restless is our heart until it comes to rest in thee.” Man is restless until he finds his true peace in the God who made him. God is spirit and we are made in His likeness. We too are spiritual and that is where our greatest longing lies; in the spirit. Our hunger for more is a spiritual hunger often unrealized. We are after God and He is after us and we will find no rest until we find ourselves at rest with our Savior: Jesus.
Stop pursuing the greener grass and start pursuing your God. He satisfies the longing of your soul by freeing you from the longing after things, whatever they may be: reputation, job, money, sex… the list goes on. Your identity will not rest until you find yourself at rest with God. Being identified with Him frees us from needing to be identified with or by anything else. Idols bog us down, making us miserable because they are temporal just like our flesh, but God is eternal as is our spirit and He alone makes our spirit soar with joy and delight and meaning that lives beyond this life into eternity.
So the reason why so many are unsatisfied with this world is because this world was not created to be our satisfaction. God meant to be Himself, satisfaction for us. God loves you and asks you to turn from living for yourself and to finally and forever find your satisfaction in Him…
You can access Rabbi Shmuley Boteach’s full article from the Huntington Post that I refer to here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rabbi-shmuley-boteach/dominique-strauss-kahn_b_863357.html
The following is an answer to a recent question I received from a seeking skeptic. May you be encouraged to boldly reason your faith in an intelligent and loving way. The World has great and honest questions. We should learn to patiently lend a listening ear and do our best in reasoning with them, leading them to God.
Here is the Question:Does the bible distinguish if it is more important to use the right words to express the wrong ideas or the wrong words to express the right ideas? Example, if I use the word “energy” in replace of the word God to express God, but think of the same image as those who say God, is this ok?
Here is the Answer (in the context of the letter i received, the person had many more questions which is why i gave this exhaustive illustration. ill share the other questions later):
First of all, A Christian’s life should be governed by the Word of God (the Bible). This does not mean that there are not Hypocrite-Christians who speak one thing and practice another as there are hypocrites in every faith and in every belief system. There are hypocrite atheists, agnostics…etc but this does not mean that we should reject absolutes simply because of errors in human behavior or follow-through. Truth is truth; in the Bible and elsewhere. We don’t throw the baby out with the bath-water so-to-speak. And if hypocrites (liars, money hungry TV evangelists, child-molesting priests/pastors… the list could go on) are the bath water and Jesus and the Bible are the baby we can just as well throw out the bath-water hypocrites and yet still deal solely with Jesus and the Bible. That is the decision each person must come to on their own: What do I believe about Jesus and the Bible. With that pre-face let me attempt to answer your questions.
The Bible says to “speak the truth in love.” (Ephesians 4:15)
Imagine that a doctor just diagnosed you with a terrible deadly disease. “You are going to die!” says the doctor. You walk away feeling like you’ve been sucker-punched in the gut, scratching your head, saying to yourself, “What a cruel thing that has just happened to me.” You don’t blame the doctor for your disease. The disease was already there. The doctor simply let you know your inevitable condition. He revealed the reality of your condition: Certain doom. You don’t walk away going “What a cruel doctor.” But rather “What a cruel thing is going on inside of my body.” The doctor has simply told you the truth of what is happening in your body. Now, imagine that the doctor had just given you this death sentence and allowed you to just walk away hopeless, and yet withheld from you the further truth that He also knows of a cure for your body that will make you well. Now that might seem cruel. He gave you the diagnosis without the cure. He spoke some truth to you, and yet withheld other truth. This is not love, it is not loving. If a father sees his child playing in the street with traffic, the father does not simply allow the child to continue in the behavior because the child decides, “this is what I want to do,” but the father, because He loves His child must speak boldly to the child, letting him know that if he continues in this behavior, his life is in certain danger and inevitable doom. Does this spoil the child’s fun? For a moment it might, but if the child hears the voice of the father and listens, than the love of the father has won the life of the son. If the son does not hear the father’s voice and obey, than he has taken his life in his own hands and will sadly die. The heart of the father was to speak the truth in love, giving his son the bad news (you cannot continue this way) so that he can experience life; receiving the good news.
This is the same as our diagnoses/ cure scenario with the doctor and the patient. In order to bring healing to the patient, the doctor must give him a proper and true diagnoses even if it is hard to give (because that is the loving thing to do), and as a bonus and a blessing, the doctor gives the hope of a cure. But as we know from life, truth is not always welcomed or received. The patient may not accept the cure because he does not want to accept the preceding diagnoses. But as we know, you cannot have one without the other. You will not accept the cure for cancer if you don’t first accept that you have the disease. Though the doctor was faithful to deliver his message to the patient (or speak the truth in love), it is up to the patient to receive or reject both. One option leading to the reality of death (whether he believes it or not), or the other leading to the reality of Life.
So, in using words, we are to speak the truth. And do it in a way that would reflect the heart of God: love. Though truth is truth, however it comes across, there is a tactful, gracious, and loving way to display and speak it to others.
So, if someone says “Energy” or “Mother-nature” and really means “creating-force” or “God” I would need further clarification. Because as Christians, we are to say what we mean and mean what we say. I say, Jesus is God and nothing was created without Him. I simply mean that Jesus is God, God is Jesus, Not “mother-nature” , Not some mysterious force, but a known, revealed God who has a name and a certain, absolute identity.
1 John 1:1-4
“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life-…”
This is not boasting, nor arrogance. It is simply a statement of fact. It is simple testimony. True to life experience cannot be denied. It is a witness testimony. John is just telling the truth. “This is what I have seen! This is my experience!” “I have seen God come down to earth!” The Word of Life has been seen by these eyes! That everlasting Word. “In the beginning God Said…” That God, those words, they have been seen. This is the very power of God revealed, spoken, breathed, and He has been known and is being known by man.
“…the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the father and was made manifest to us-”
God is so good to us! He pours out His love, His mercy, His grace. We are drowning in a flood of Gods goodness toward us. Gods eternal life has touched down to a temporal earth. Dying man is coming into contact with the living God. When all is rotting away, God, who is life extends life eternal. And He revealed it in person, that we might touch and taste and see it all for His glory.
Jesus, the breath of God; His voice; His expression was given and manifest to you and I that we might experience for ourselves that God cares for us. God has expressed Himself to you and I in Jesus. He removes our sins. He heals us and feeds us, and sits at our table, and walks these dirty streets. He is not some distant God, but a personal, full of grace God. He is known and we are known by Him! Let that goodness wash over your heart today. Let His personal love and care for you lift your spirit to the heavenlies for just a moment. Taste afresh of His goodness and grace as you ponder this God who sees and knows and cares for you. Let Him touch you once more as you draw near to Him. His desire is that you would come so near to Him that you are truly one with Him. intercoursed by and with Him.
That is fellowship with God. That is koinōnia. Fellowship. it is closeness, commonality, blood bathed in the grace, mercy and forgiveness of the all cleansing blood of Christ! it is oneness that cannot even closely be compared with the physical type. The only dramatic earthly way of painting a picture of how close God wants you to himself that really still does not do justice with Gods heart for you is the closeness between a married man and woman in the act of intercourse. Special, personal, intimate, exclusive oneness. He wants you to be closer than earthly possible. One in the Spirit. He wants you to be closer than earthly possible. One in the Spirit. And His is oneness beyond marriage! Fellowship beyond earth! No wonder you are called His bride. You are special beyond earthly expression; so dear to Gods heart that human words cannot express. That’s why He has placed His Spirit inside of you. That He would bear witness with our spirit that we belong to Him. Take to heart His desire to have fellowship with you my friends. We cannot find a love like this anywhere else. Search no further. Waste no more time. Run into His always outstretched arms and just simply belong there.
“… And indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.”
Amen.
May your joy become more and more complete in Him.
The last we spoke, our ordinary man, Isaiah stood in awe and fear before the throne of God. The posts were shaken, the room filled with smoke, and the seraphim cried, “holy holy holy!”. Wow! Can you remember the mood: quite serious, fearful, and humble. If you did some homework and read the entirety of the chapter you would have heard the rest of the prophets cry: ” I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips…”
I am a man; defiled, is Isaiah’s cry; I am a nasty sinner; in our own plain language. Forget any temptation to believe that you have been reading a fairy tale or bedtime story. It is the trickery of time and the craftiness of our enemy to dull our faith by convincing us to read through the Bible as if it were only some book, when the Lord would have us experience Him through its true and living words and events. Do not be fooled, Isaiah was a real man: flesh and blood, body and spirit; full of emotion and feeling… just like you and me. A real man, before the presence of the Almighty! Now, maybe you can relate in some small way, at least in your humanity: desperate for redemption; longing for peace; needy for salvation; but lost in sin and among a people gross with the like. I know I can relate. But relation does not stop there…
Though lost in the deepest pits of despair; tainted by every sin imaginable, a man humbled himself and like Job, repented in dust and ashes (job 42:6). Though relatable to our hero, I am not talking about Isaiah anymore, I am talking about me. Can you relate? Have you been there? I have learned something great from the Lord; that He, in His awesomeness can create beauty from ashes. The best place on earth I have ever been, has been on my knees, being resuscitated, filled and most importantly, forgiven. Though men fall down as dead before the presence of The King, They shall be revived, called, and empowered to go! That’s why I said above that relation does not stop at fear and trembling, but like Isaiah, our souls have been touched by hot coals and our spirits brought to life by His life giving spirit. In our humility, we have been forgiven all our sins and by the power and glory of HIS life giving grace we may now enter into the most holy place with great boldness (Heb 4:16), knowing that our great forgiver desires to be our able and willing empowerer.
Dear friend, maybe you feel powerless? maybe you feel sinful, wicked, and completely unworthy? Maybe you have fallen before the Lord and feel unable to get back up? condemned? Maybe you have been drowning in legalism and pharisitical-religious-idioticy (i have been there)? Are you face to the ground and overwhelmed? Allow me to encourage you to stop listening to the voice of condemnation. Stop striving in your own flesh. I implore you, stay where you are, strive no more. Remain face to the ground. Be quiet. Be still and hear the voice of the Almighty calling you by name… He hears your cry and He sees your state. He comes to you out of the dust and ashes, hot coal in hand. Allow Him to purify your soul. He will cleanse you of all sin and wash you from all uncleanness. The rumors are true: our God is a consuming fire. Rest in that fire and be cleansed for eternity.
Amazing… The same God to be feared is the God who forgives… The God who humbles is the God who exalts… When we are weak He is strong… When we are faithless, He remains faithful… Though we be a weak, sinful people, He in His love and Grace offers strength and purity. Though we be ordinary, He is a God of the extraordinary. Its seems to me, that our God is in the business of taking ordinary men and women and empowering them to do the seemingly impossible. May i challenge you? His business has not gone bankrupt! He is the same yesterday today and forever. Its time to get over ourselves and to forget about our insufficiencies. He has given us grace upon grace! Where are the redeemed who will trust in faith that our God will be faithful and strong on their behalf just as He has been since Genesis 1:1? Do you not have the strength? the time? the words? the status? the list goes on… He has more than enough of all the above and more. In His grace He offers the Strength that you do not deserve. He gives the power by HIS Spirit that you do not have nor deserve and so on and so forth. This is His grace toward you daily. Though you be a single man prostrate on the floor of the temple of God, He will raise you up, forgive you your sin and call you out….
“who will go for Me? Who shall I send?”
The Lord, He calls. Who will answer His call?
“Lord, Help us to remember Your strength and favor toward us and to remember that we are only men. It is not by our strength but by Your Spirit. Thank You Lord. Amen.”
J.N.Wheels 