Living and Loving in the Holy Spirit

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  Love never ends.

God is love.  His love is unconditional and without end.  His love  for us is expressed explicitly through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus.  

We are able to love because God loved us first.  He created a spot in our hearts so that we could receive His love and return it to Him.  He gave us the capacity to share His love with the world around us.  He gave us the Holy Spirit so that our love could be an endless spring.

When we are living in accordance with the Holy Spirit within us, we are capable of extraordinary service to those around us.  When we try to live by the world's standards, we will choose to serve ourselves first.  The spontaneity of our love and service will tell us where we are living.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for loving us unconditionally.  We thank You that Your love flows to us endlessly.  Prepare our hearts, Lord, so that we may become vessels of Your perfect love.  Cleanse us, Lord, of anything in our hearts that would restrict the flow of Your love in our lives.  May we bear much fruit for Your kingdom through the spontaneous release of Your love to the world around us.

The God of "What's Left"

Daniel 4:14-15

He proclaimed aloud and said thus: ‘Chop down the tree and lop off its branches, strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Let the beasts flee from under it and the birds from its branches. But leave the stump of its roots in the earth, bound with a band of iron and bronze, amid the tender grass of the field.

King Nebuchadnezzar was at ease in his house and prospering greatly.  In his own words, the Most High God had blessed him in every way.  But because of Nebuchadnezzar's unrighteousness and iniquities, it was all taken away from him.  The Most High God, who had provided it all to Nebuchadnezzar, allowed it all to be taken away.  Ultimately, when Nebuchadnezzar turned his eyes back to the the Lord, all was returned to the King.

In the scripture above, King Nebuchadnezzar is the tree.  God commands that the tree be stripped of all branches, leaves and fruit.  But as the God of all mercy stripped everything away from the tree, he left a stump from which the tree could rise again.

Almighty God is not only the God of all provision, He also the God of all loss.  No loss can occur in our lives without God allowing it.  But our merciful Lord, who is filled with lovingkindness, is also the God of "what's left".  So no matter what we are going through, or have gone through, God has commanded that something be left from which He can raise us up according to His perfect plans for our lives.  (Today's teaching taken from a sermon by Jentezen Franklin)

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for every provision in our lives.  We give You all the glory and the praise for Your grace and lovingkindness.  Teach us, Lord, how to give you all the glory and praise when we are experiencing loss in our lives. Build up our faith so that we may endure while You raise us up from "what is left" in our lives to the good and perfect place that You have planned for us.

A Higher Place for the Faint of Heart

Jeremiah 31:25

For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.

What a tremendous promise we have from the Lord.  The promise was first spoken to draw the Jews out of bondage back to their homelands and back to Himself.  

The promise still holds true for all of us today as the Lord encourages us with His extraordinary promise to give us the strength that we need to break away from all the bondage in our lives.  He gives us the spiritual inspiration that we need to renew our devotion to Him when it is lagging.  He calls  us to live in a higher place - a place where His presence brings us complete comfort, peace and satisfaction.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for drawing us to Yourself and providing all that we need to make the journey.  We pray that You raise up in us the desire to join You, bringing with us the fullness of love and devotion that You seek from us.  Lift us up, Lord, to a higher place - a place that we cannot reach without You.

Our Ever Present King

Colossians 2:6-7

Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

In Jesus, we find beauty, glory, fullness and everything suitable for living our new lives in Christ.  We should not consider our own plans ever again, unless they are derived by seeking the guidance of Our Savior first.   We must learn not to lean on our own understanding, but to trust in the Lord to make our paths straight.

Once we acknowledge Our Lord and receive the benefit of the good and perfect plans that He sets aside for us, we must express our gratitude for all that He has provided.  For God justly withdraws His provision from those that receive it without thanksgiving.

Prayer,

Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing Your Son, Jesus, to dwell within us.  Make us mindful of His presence at all times.  Teach us to gladly, joyfully and willingly seek the plans that have been set aside for us through Our Savior.   Mold our hearts so that we will be ready to receive the fullness of Christ into our lives.  Fill our hearts with continuous gratitude and thanksgiving for our ever present King.  

The Faith of Abraham

Genesis 22:2

He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”

Who could endure such a test?  Only a person of great faith in the promises of God could.  When Abraham headed up the mountain with Isaac, he held the promise from God that God would make Abraham a great nation.  This promise could not be fulfilled without Isaac.

Abraham makes two comments that indicate that he faced his trial girded by faith in God's promises.  The first comment came when he saw the place of sacrifice from afar.  He told the servants that had joined him and Isaac, "Stay here with the donkey.  I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you."  The second comment came when Isaac asked where was the lamb for the sacrifice.  Abraham responded, "God will provide the lamb for Himself for the burnt offering, my son."  And so it was that Abraham became a great nation through his son, Isaac.

God will test each of us.  He wants us to build up our faith in Him.  Take strength from the story of Abraham and Isaac.  God will always provide a way for us to fulfill the plan that he has for our lives and for the lives of those that we serve.  He will provide all that we need to endure that which we think is unbearable.

Prayer,

Heavenly Father, we thank You for covering us in the many promises of comfort, provision and strength that You have revealed to us in Your Holy Word.  Test us, O Lord, to build our faith in who You are.  Strengthen us, O Lord, that we may pass the tests that prepare us for our place in Your eternal kingdom.  Comfort us as we endure the trials.  Build up in us the faith of Abraham.  May we rejoice in seeing the fruits of our faith.    

It's Growing Time

Song of Solomon 2:11-12

For behold, the winter is past;
 the rain is over and gone.
 The flowers appear on the earth,
 the time of singing has come,
 and the voice of the turtle dove
 is heard in our land.

Just as the earth goes through seasons, so do we.  Remarkably, our supernatural seasons tend to coincide with the natural seasons.  We should be alert in the spring of the year to seek the new things that God is trying to bring into our lives.  If we are growing in Christ, we will always be taken to higher levels in service, praise, worship and fellowship with Our Savior.

Prayer,

Heavenly Father, we thank You for the seasons in our lives.  We thank You for taking us through the dark of the winter so we can see You more clearly in the light of the spring.  We pray that you will inspire us to seek the newness in Christ that You have planned to raise up in us this spring.  May new fruit come from our growth as Jesus' disciples this year.

Good and Faithful Servants

Luke 10:20

Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.

When following the Lord's calling on our lives, the blessing and power of Jesus Christ will be ours to use to overcome the enemy in our lives and the lives of those that we serve.  We must be careful not to call our victories our own for all the glory is for Our Savior.  If our pride allows us to claim the glory, our fall is certain.

We cannot take a commercial view of the things that we do for Jesus.  That is, we cannot measure ourselves by the results of our work.  Our work for the Lord is not about success.  It is about the deepening relationships that we are forming with Him as His disciples.  It is about our preparation to join Our Savior in His heavenly kingdom.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for the power and blessings that You release in our lives through our relationship with Your Son, Jesus.  We ask You, Lord Jesus, to show us how to become Your true disciples.  We ask You to give us the power to overcome the enemy in our lives and in the lives of those to whom we bring the salvation message.   We ask that You open the eyes of those around us that they may see and seek Your Spirit that lives within us.  May we all be prepared for the time that we stand before You to hear the words, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

God's Workforce

1Corinthians 3:9

For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building.

Consider how liberating it would be if someone told you, "Just follow my instruction and do not worry about the results.  I will be responsible for the results.  You will be richly rewarded for following my instruction no matter what happens."  

This is where God wants us.  He wants us to serve Him without any concern about the outcome other than to have the faith that He will fulfill what He asks us to do for Him.  He simply wants us to be instruments of His work, living vessels of His perfect love and forgiveness.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for allowing us to join You in Your work.  We rejoice in knowing that You receive great honor and glory when Your children surrender to the rule and reign of Jesus Christ in their lives. Open our eyes so that we may see what You are calling us to do in Your kingdom.  Release in us all the power and authority that is ours through Jesus Christ.  Shield us from taking on destructive personal pride as we see success when doing Your work.

His Power and His Blessing

Ephesians 1:3

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,

The fullness of everything that we need and the fullness of everything that will satisfy us is held in the hands of our risen Savior, Jesus Christ.  And He dwells in us that we may draw on His power and His blessings.

Man can never be counted on to stand by us through all circumstances.  At some point, all men will fail one another.  The Lord, Jesus, never fails us.  He is with us even under the direst circumstances, even the ones that we have created ourselves.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for the loving kindness, the mercy and the grace that You provide to us through Your Son.  We pray that You show us how to turn to Jesus first in all things.  Strengthen us so that we may leave behind our reliance on a fallen world.  Prepare us to stand before You one day in the image of Your Son. 

Discovering Christ Daily

John 14:9

Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip?

The greatest treasure of all time is ours.  The treasure that will satisfy our hearts forever is ours for the taking.  Magnificent gifts of grace and anointing are awaiting us.  All we have to do is step beyond being satisfied with knowing about our treasure and into the world of incessant discovery.

God exerted His great power when He resurrected Jesus from the dead and seated Him at His right hand.  He has made this power available to all who believe in the Son and surrender to Him to rule and reign in their lives.  

Prayer,

Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing Your Son as our Lord, Our King and Our Master.  Through Him we receive our hope in knowing that His power will strengthen us and that His presence will bring us a sweet calm in time of trouble.  Open our eyes, Lord, that we may seek the fullness of the presence of Jesus in our lives.  Take us beyond the knowledge of Your Son to the high places where we experience His presence daily.  Help us deepen our relationship with Our Savior.

Standing Firmly on His Promises

Matthew 16:21

From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.

Jesus fulfilled everything that He was called to do.  Even though He was tested beyond human imagination, He never faltered once in His obedience to the plans of God for His life.  He overcame all of His trials because He was one with the Father and He trusted in the promises of the Father.  And indeed, He did rise on the third day, fulfilling all of God's promises for mankind.

It is very easy to say, "I give up.  I cannot do it."  This course may even be acceptable if it is in reference to some earthly pursuit.  But, if what we are pursuing is of God, then giving up is denying the promises of God Himself.

We are to be anxious in nothing for God promises to take care of our every need and He promises to finish anything that He has called us to do.  The victory is in fact complete before we are even aware of our calling to its pursuit.  All we have to do is stand firmly on the promises of God Almighty.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing Your Son to be the guarantor of Your promise of eternal life available to each of us.  We exalt the name of Jesus for His complete obedience to His calling as Our Savior.  We pray for the strength and guidance of the Holy Spirit so that we may be obedient to the completed purpose and plans that You have set aside for our lives.  May we stand firmly on Your promises.

Always Alert and Eager to Serve

Exodus 3:4

When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.”

Moses was going about his normal business of shepherding the flock when he came upon the burning bush.  He could have run away in fear or he could have simply walked away thinking that this is no concern of mine.  Instead, he approached the bush to discover more of this mystery unfolding before him.  When the Lord saw that He had Moses' attention, He called out to him and Moses responded, "Here I am."

Moses was alert to look for God in his daily life.  More importantly, Moses was ready to hear and act upon whatever the Lord asked him to do.

So it should be with us.  We should look for God at all times.  We should expect to be surprised by Him showing up in the smallest details of our everyday lives.  Most importantly, we should be ready to respond to His calling.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for always being present with us.  We exalt Your Name for being our ever present God.  We pray that You will open our eyes so that we can see You in every detail of our lives, from the grandest places and moments to the lowliest of places and moments.  May Your Holy Spirit prepare us to be alert to see Your presence and to hear Your calling.  May we always be eager to be instruments of Your good work and vessels of Your perfect love and forgiveness. 

Good Friday Prayer

Isaiah 53:5
But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.

On this day, I chose to pass along the Good Friday prayer of Charles Spurgeon.

Great God,
there was a time when we dreaded the thought of coming near to You,
for we were guilty and You were angry with us,
but now we will praise You
because Your anger is turned away and You comfort us.

Yes, and the very throne which once was a place of dread
has now become the place of shelter. I flee to You to hide me.

O bring us, we pray You, now near to Yourself.
Let us bathe ourselves in communion with our God.
Blessed be the love which chose us before the world began.
We can never sufficiently adore You for Your sovereignty,
the sovereignty of love which saw us in the ruins of the Fall,
yet loved us anyway.

We also bless You, O God, as the God of our redemption,
for You have so loved us as to give even Your dear Son for us.
He gave Himself, His very life for us
that He might redeem us from all iniquity and separate us unto Himself
to be His peculiar people, zealous for good works.

Never can we sufficiently adore free grace and undying love.
The wonders of Calvary never cease to be wonders,
they are growing more marvelous in our esteem
as we think of Him who washed us from our sins in His own blood.
Nor can we cease to praise the God of our regeneration
who found us dead and made us live,
found us at enmity and reconciled us,
found us loving the things of this world
and lifted us out of the muck and mire of selfishness and worldliness
in the love of divine everlasting things.

All our help must come from You.
Give back to the church its love, its confidence,
its holy daring, its consecration,
its generousness, its holiness.
Give back all it ever had and give it much more.
Take every member and wash his feet, sweet Lord, most tenderly,
and set us with clean feet in a clean road,
with a clean heart to guide them, and bless us as You will in a divine fashion.

Bless us, our Father,
and let all the churches of Jesus Christ partake of care and tenderness.
Walking among the golden candlesticks trim every lamp and make every light,
even though it burns feebly now, to shine out gloriously through Your care.

Now bless the sinners. Lord, convert them.
O God, save men, save this great city, this wicked city, this slumbering dead city.
Lord, arouse it, arouse it by any means, that it may turn to its God.
Lord save sinners all the world over, and let Your precious Word be fulfilled.
And now to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Following the Model of Our Servant King

Matthew20:28

even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

To each of His disciples, Jesus gave the command, "Come and follow Me."  He not only meant for them to join Him in His work but to follow the model of service that His life exuded.  

This, of course, is exactly how Jesus calls us.  He calls us to be humble servants of the world around us.  With all that Our Savior did for us through His suffering, the shedding of His blood, His death and Resurrection, how can we deny the Lord when He calls us to serve in any measure, large or small?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for giving us the perfect model of servanthood, Your Son, Jesus.  We praise and exalt the name of Jesus for all that He has done for us.  We pray that we will clearly hear the voice of Jesus as He calls us to join Him in humble service.  May the Holy Spirit convict us to be instruments of Your good work and vessels of Your perfect love and forgiveness.

The Truth about Easter

1 Corinthians 3:11

For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

Political correctness teaches that there are many ways to heaven besides accepting Jesus Christ as Savior.  It is sad to say that Satan has done a remarkable job selling this line of thinking, putting a large portion of mankind in danger of missing the way, the truth and the life that is only found in Jesus.  

We, Christians, have to be just as careful not to bend the Word of God to fit today's culture, perhaps believing that the Bible is outdated.  God's Word is the same today as it was yesterday and as it will be tomorrow.  Massaging God's Word to make it more acceptable to the world endangers the eternal lives of those that we may be trying to appease.  

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You that Your Word is true and that Your promises are certain.  May You open our hearts to receive the fullness and truth in the precepts that You reveal to us through Your Holy Word.  May You strengthen us and embolden us to speak the truth about Your Son as we celebrate this Easter season.

The Constant Struggle

Matthew 22:37-38
And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. 

May we always be mindful that God provided His Son to die for our sins because we can not measure up to the law.  We have to look no further than the great commandment that Jesus spoke of.  We simply do not have the capacity, except through Christ in us, to love God to the extent that our love consumes our whole heart, soul and mind.

We should also be mindful that God is completely aware of our weakness.  He provides His Holy Spirit to dwell within us to guide us along our path of sanctification.  The Holy Spirit will not rest when we depart from making God the love above all loves in our lives.  The Holy Spirit will not accept us living with one foot in God's kingdom and one foot in the world.  It is all or nothing with the Holy Spirit.  The good news is that the Holy Spirit's job is to follow through on God's promise to perfect His strength through our weakness.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the mercy and the endless grace that You provide to each of us.  Help us, Lord, to be keenly aware of the urgings of the Holy Spirit.  Help us to humbly accept the corrections that the Holy Spirit is asking us to make in our lives.  Take us, Father, to the high places that can only be reached when our hearts are consumed by Your love.

Our Place in the Yoke

Matthew 11:29

Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

In this passage, Jesus specifies that He is lowly in heart.  He is telling us that He is a willing servant that is ready to work along side us.  He is inviting us to join in His yoke - a device that pairs animals together to make their work more efficient.  He is promising to provide rest for us when we are in need.  How could we pass on such an invitation from our Servant King?

Notice that Jesus did not place any limits on the burdens that He would share with us. Thus, He is always along side us to bring us comfort when we are under the greatest level of stress or experiencing pain at the limits of our ability to endure.  Truly He offers us the endless joy that He shares with the Father. The joy of the Lord is our strength when we would have none otherwise.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing all that we need to get through our troubles.  We rejoice in knowing that we can find joy in the heaviest of burdens when we accept the yoke that is offered by Your Son, Jesus.  We pray that You teach us how to be lowly in heart so that we readily accept our place in the yoke.  

Fresh Supplies of Strength and Comfort

Psalm 55:22

Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

It is obvious from this verse that we are to have burdens in our lives.  But God in His mercy promises us that He will not give a burden that is larger that the provision that He will grant to overcome the burden.   

God gave His own Son a cup of sorrow and suffering that was so intense that Jesus sweat blood as He faced His upcoming crucifixion.  But Jesus did as the verse commands, He cast His burden upon the Father.  Thus He was provided with all He needed to face the Cross and rise from His trial in victory. 

To cast our burden upon God, is to rest upon his providence and promise.  Our Heavenly Father will not let His righteous children fail.  It is indeed His promise to us.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for giving us cups of sorrow and suffering that we must swallow.   We thank You for using our trials to build our faith in who You are.  We thank You for insuring our righteousness through the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  We pray for Your mercies to be granted us each day as You release fresh supplies of strength and comfort just as we need them to overcome our trials.  

Our Perpetual High Priest

Mark 15:33-38

And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” ... And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.

In this sequence of verses, we have the foundation of our eternal destination laid out for us.  The darkness over the entire world represents the sin that engulfed mankind.  Jesus crying out to the Father, "why have you forsaken me?", indicates that in taking on the sins of the world Jesus was separated from the Father - who cannot have sin in His presence.  And then, instantly and gloriously, the death of Christ opened up heaven to all of us.  The veil of the old covenant that represented the separation of God from the people, except through the intercession of the assigned high priests, was torn away.  In that moment, the new covenant of salvation was opened up to all mankind with Jesus Christ as our perpetual High Priest before the Father.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for establishing the blessed hope and assurance of the new covenant through Your Son, Jesus.  May the eyes of the world be opened to see the way, the truth and the life that is in Your Son.  May the hearts of the world be prepared to receive Your Son as their Savior.  May the hearts of the world be molded so that they may surrender to Your Son as their Lord, Master, and King.  May it all be for Your honor and glory, for the honor and glory of Your Son, Jesus, and for the honor and glory of the Holy Spirit.  Father, we pray that You will allow our lives to be living testimony to this glorious message.

The Power of the Resurrection

Romans 6:5

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

When we chose to accept Jesus Christ as Our Savior, we chose to let our old sinful man die.  But just as the completeness of death did not overcome Jesus quickly, neither will our old sinful nature be put to rest in short fashion.  And just as the power of His Spirit gave Jesus victory over His death, so will His Spirit within us give us victory over our sinful nature.

And just as the resurrection lifted Jesus' spirit from His body to return to the Father, so too will the power of His resurrection lift us from our old lives and enable us to stand sinless in victory before the Father.  It will not be because we became better people.  It will be because we became completely new people in Christ.  It will be because Jesus Christ has taken residence within us, never to be separated.  It will be because we are sealed by His Spirit for all eternity.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for raising Your Son to meet you in heaven after His death on the Cross.  Thank You for preparing the way for us to gain our eternal inheritance as Your children through the power of the Resurrection.  Father, release the full power of the Holy Spirit in our lives so that we can surrender completely to our new lives in Christ, leaving behind forever the old man that torments us daily.

The Decision About Sin

Romans 6:6

We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.

Accepting the crucified Christ as Our Savior allows us to accept the crucifixion of our old selves.  As Christ submitted totally to the Father, we also submit totally to the Father through the power of the new spirit of Jesus Christ that lives within us.

With Jesus Christ as our King, there is no place for the old man to rule.  The callings of the old man must be denied and will be denied by the strength of Christ in us.  With Jesus Christ dwelling in us, sin is no longer tolerable.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing the Precious Lamb, Jesus Christ, whose blood was shed for our sins.  We accept our co-crucifixion with Jesus.  We stand before you to ask for the Holy Spirit to strengthen us as our old man tries to pull us back into sin.  We pray that the Holy Spirit will urge us to keep our eyes on the Cross and not on the world.  May it all be for the glory of the Precious Lamb, Jesus.

Rebuilding Our Walls

Nehemiah 2:20

I answered them by saying, “The God of heaven will give us success. We his servants will start rebuilding, but as for you, you have no share in Jerusalem or any claim or historic right to it.”

Nehemiah was inspired by God to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem which were in ruin.  Because God was with Him, Nehemiah was given complete authority and financial support to rebuild the walls by King Artaxerxes of Persia.  

When Nehemiah reached Jerusalem to begin the work, He encountered much resistance from the likes of Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem.  Nehemiah quickly put them in their place and moved forward building the walls.

We have to be like Nehemiah when we rebuild the walls of our lives.  We can be assured that Satan will come to discourage us.  We need to let Satan know that he has no claim nor historic right to interfere with the rebuilding of our lives as temples of Jesus Christ. Further we need to stand firm, knowing that we are in the favor of God who promises to complete the good work in us.

Eternal Life in Christ

Luke 23:31

For if they do these things when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?

As the women were weeping for the suffering of Jesus, He prophesied the terrible judgement that awaits those that do not accept the new life that He offers them.  He emphasized the message of His prophecy by using Himself as the standard against which judgement will be made.  

If He, who is pure and perfect in every measure and is the essence of life itself, had to suffer beyond the human capacity for pain and then die for our sins, why then should we, the driest of woods, not expect to die for our sins?  We can only escape the punishment for our sins and claim our inheritance as children of God by accepting the offer of eternal life through Our Savior.  Otherwise, we perish.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, thank You for providing the way, the truth and the life that is found only in Your Son, Jesus.  We praise the name of Jesus for all that He suffered on our behalf.  We rejoice in the inheritance that awaits us.  We pray that You will raise use us to be living testimonies to the new life that we have in Christ so that others may join us in our eternal places in Your kingdom.

The Enlightenment Received at Pentecost

John 16:12

I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.

Even the apostles were not ready to receive and understand all the teachings of Jesus.  Without the filling of the Holy Spirit, the flesh simply cannot handle what is meant to be revealed in the spirit.  It was only after Pentecost that the apostles could boldly proclaim the full gospel.

What a wonderful transformation when the Holy Spirit opens our minds to receive and understand the things that made no sense to us or had no value for us before.  In the blink of an eye, our blinders are removed.  Without even being cognizant of the process, we begin to assimilate truths that had been unavailable to us before.  Then, just as suddenly we are able to share them with those who have been prepared to receive them.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for Wonderful Counselor that You have provided to guide and instruct us.  We humbly ask that You prepare us to receive all that the Holy Spirit has to teach us.  May we become willing vessels - ready to take on the fullness of Your living water and eager to have the living water pass through us to bring life and enlightenment to those around us.

Wisdom is Better than Knowledge

James 1:5

If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.

Googling for information has become a regular habit for many of us.  We are amazed at what we can find and delighted in how the process often yields the exact information that we are looking for.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with this process, if used appropriately.  It provides us with knowledge that we do not have...fast.

But wait, there is a much faster source of knowledge that is instantly available to us without the aid of any man-made device.  Our Heavenly Father teaches us that all we have to do is ask and He will give us wisdom.  Wisdom, by the way, is much better than knowledge.  Wisdom provides insight into how we should use the knowledge that we have accumulated.  Wisdom from God deepens our insight into how we should apply our skills and our knowledge in ways that are pleasing to Him. 

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You that You have inspired others to provide us with knowledge to help us through our daily activities.  We come to You to seek wisdom, so that we may use our knowledge in ways that are pleasing to You and in ways that are used to bear fruit for Your kingdom and bring honor and glory to Your name.

Taking the Cup of Bitterness

Matthew 26:39

And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

Jesus fully accepted His assignment of death on the Cross.  He knew that His sacrifice was necessary for the salvation of all men.  He knew that His death on the Cross was the reason He was sent to earth.  The thing that overwhelmed Jesus was the impending separation from the Father when He would take on the sins of all men.  Yet Jesus was fully obedient to the will of the Father for the good of all mankind.  And He was received in all His glory by the Father. 

According to this example of Christ, we must drink of the bitterest cup which God puts into our hands.  Even though our flesh will seek immediate relief from all trial in our lives, we must recognize and accept the will of Our Father as we go through our trials.  For, as God allowed the unspeakable trial of the Cross for Jesus because of the ultimate gain for all mankind, He allows each of us to go through our trials for our ultimate preparation to stand before Him sinless and to be received in glory by Him.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You that You allow the trials in our lives that prepare us to be received by You. We pray that You provide us with strength to overcome the weaknesses of our flesh as we face our trials.   May you give us the spiritual maturation to be able to take our cup of bitterness and rejoice in our submission to Your will and plan for our lives.   

Which Path Will I Take?

John 16:32

Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone.

The apostles and disciples of Jesus scattered as He began His journey to the Cross.  They returned to their homes and their old jobs.  Their faith was real, but it was not strong enough to stand up to the Cross.

Jesus calls us from different times and places in our lives, just as the apostles were called.  At some point in time, we will all be called to stand up for our faith.  In today's anti-Christian environment, this challenge is more real than I ever imagined that it could be.  Will we scatter to our old lives when the trials reach us or will we surrender all to Our Savior?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You that we have been called to follow Your Son.  Strengthen us in the face of the darkness that challenges us to stand up for our beliefs.  Complete Your work in us so that we have the courage and the faith to choose Your Kingdom and defend it against the world.

The Things that Make for Peace

Luke 19:42

If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes.

As Jesus weeped over Jerusalem, He spoke the words in Luke 19 to the Jews, who He knew would reject Him and His offer of salvation.  Because they rejected His offer, He transferred His offer to the willing Gentiles.

This principle is carried out in a different way in our daily lives.  Jesus prepares us to do His work and asks us to be obedient to His calling.  Sometimes He will give us simple urgings in the spirit to do something nice for someone, to pray for someone or to ask forgiveness from someone (to put that grocery cart back where it belongs - I've been convicted on that one).  If we accept His bidding, we will be given greater things to do for Him.  We will experience the peace and comfort that flows from serving Him.  If we do not accept His bidding, we will miss the peace He offers and we will miss a portion of the bigger plans that He has for our lives.  Sadly, He will move on to find the one who is willing serve Him readily.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for allowing us to serve You.  We rejoice in knowing that You are pleased when we are obedient to Your urging.  We pray that You make us sensitive to the work that You call us to do.  May we find joy in even the smallest tasks.  May it all bring honor and glory to You.