We all have trials come our way everyday. Some are big and others are just annoying. They come our way with an end purpose attached to them. God is molding us with them to be more Christ like. In James we read to count them all a joy, but most of us would like them to just stay away so our life would be easier.
James; 1:2-3
(My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.)
Patience can be better translated endurance or perseverance. As Christians we need to endure these trials until God removes it. Through these trials we learn to rely on God and not ourselves. If we try to handle it in the flesh, it just doesn't seem to work out. Now if we hand it over to God and say "here Lord, You take care of this" then it will teach us to cast all our burdens on Him as He tells us in the Scriptures.
Next time a trial comes along, and yes it will come along, remember to hand it over to God and ask His help. He wants His children to put our faith in Him and not rely on the flesh to solve our problems. I pray this has been of some help to you today.
God Bless You!
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Wednesday, May 05, 2010
Are You Ready?
It doesn't take long to see things are deteriorating to the point that a person wonders if America will survive this change in policies. Everyone who thought they wanted to see big changes voted for candidate Obama. Now that he is on office, he is changing America in a direction that I feel most Americans didn't plan on. What's worse is he has a congress who seem to be afraid to oppose him. He has turned policies away from our ally Israel which I feel is a very dangerous position to put America. God says he will bless those who bless Israel and I will curse those who curse you. I believe what God says and Obama doesn't seem to know this or he refuses to listen.
Another thing is the way we don't enforce the immigration law. Not only that but we are not enforcing many of the laws that held us together. I read the other day that a pastor in Britain was arrested for teach the full council of God. He was calling homosexuality a sin and was arrested for teaching what the Bible says going against what some people want to hear. You can see that freedom of speech is being restricted to the point that laws are being written to try to stop it. Yes this was in Britain but it's coming here as well. Another thing is this regimes refusal to use the word terrorism when speaking of a terrorist act.
God told us that things would begin to get worse as the end times drew near and I see that these times are getting very close. Yes God has His time table, but we are to be ready and watching for His return. If you look around the world, you can see things beginning to line up to what was prophesied in the Bible. Are you ready for Christ return? If not, you need to repent of your sins and ask Jesus to forgive you and come into your heart. He tells us that anyone who calls upon the Lord Jesus will be saved. Don't wait until it's too late to give your life to Him.
I'm not saying He's coming today or tomorrow, but what I am saying is we need to be ready. Pray and ask God to save you and then watch for your redemption.
God Bless You!
Another thing is the way we don't enforce the immigration law. Not only that but we are not enforcing many of the laws that held us together. I read the other day that a pastor in Britain was arrested for teach the full council of God. He was calling homosexuality a sin and was arrested for teaching what the Bible says going against what some people want to hear. You can see that freedom of speech is being restricted to the point that laws are being written to try to stop it. Yes this was in Britain but it's coming here as well. Another thing is this regimes refusal to use the word terrorism when speaking of a terrorist act.
God told us that things would begin to get worse as the end times drew near and I see that these times are getting very close. Yes God has His time table, but we are to be ready and watching for His return. If you look around the world, you can see things beginning to line up to what was prophesied in the Bible. Are you ready for Christ return? If not, you need to repent of your sins and ask Jesus to forgive you and come into your heart. He tells us that anyone who calls upon the Lord Jesus will be saved. Don't wait until it's too late to give your life to Him.
I'm not saying He's coming today or tomorrow, but what I am saying is we need to be ready. Pray and ask God to save you and then watch for your redemption.
God Bless You!
Sunday, April 04, 2010
Happy Resurrection Day!
Luke; 24:5-7
(Then they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them"Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.' ")
Aren't we glad Jesus rose from the dead? By doing that He defeated Satan's hold on the people and death. He took the sting out of death, and gave the world hope through Him. Now if you ask Jesus to be Lord and Savior of your life, you can have eternal life in Him. With out Jesus, you're dead spiritually, but with Jesus in your life, you are given spiritual life and the Holy Spirit comes to live in you. We need to always remember that this isn't some holiday where we put out Easter eggs and that's it. NO this is the day we celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus our Lord and Savior from the grave. Thank You Jesus for eternal life!!
God Bless You!
(Then they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them"Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee, saying 'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.' ")
Aren't we glad Jesus rose from the dead? By doing that He defeated Satan's hold on the people and death. He took the sting out of death, and gave the world hope through Him. Now if you ask Jesus to be Lord and Savior of your life, you can have eternal life in Him. With out Jesus, you're dead spiritually, but with Jesus in your life, you are given spiritual life and the Holy Spirit comes to live in you. We need to always remember that this isn't some holiday where we put out Easter eggs and that's it. NO this is the day we celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus our Lord and Savior from the grave. Thank You Jesus for eternal life!!
God Bless You!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Born Again!
Nicodemus a ruler of the Jews came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him." We are not certain why he came at night other than he was a Pharisee and maybe he was afraid of the risk of disfavor from the rest of the Pharisees if they caught him talking with Jesus. No one knows for sure as the Scripture just doesn't tell us. But Jesus knew the condition of his heart and told him what he must do if he wanted to enter into the kingdom of God.
John; 3:3
(Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.")
Now this threw Nicodemus for a loop, as he didn't understand what Jesus was telling him. He ask Jesus how he being old could return to his mothers womb and be born again? But Jesus was talking about spiritual birth. Before a person comes to Jesus, they are spiritually dead. Yes they have a soul and are physically alive, but spiritually they are dead and the only one who can give spiritual life is God. When we ask Jesus into our life, the Holy Spirit indwells us and gives us spiritual life, and we become a new creation in Christ Jesus.
So Jesus answered Nicodemus and told him what He meant by being born again.
John; 3:5-6
(Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.)
Thus, Jesus made reference to the spiritual washing or purification of the soul, accomplished by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God at the moment of salvation. This is required if you want to belong to His kingdom. So if you haven't ask Jesus into your life, today is the day of Salvation. Jesus wants to forgive you, but you must repent of your sins and ask Him to forgive you and to save you. Tell Him you know that you need a Savior and that you want Him to come into your life and be Lord and Savior. You will be born again and belong to the Kingdom of God.
God Bless You!
John; 3:3
(Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.")
Now this threw Nicodemus for a loop, as he didn't understand what Jesus was telling him. He ask Jesus how he being old could return to his mothers womb and be born again? But Jesus was talking about spiritual birth. Before a person comes to Jesus, they are spiritually dead. Yes they have a soul and are physically alive, but spiritually they are dead and the only one who can give spiritual life is God. When we ask Jesus into our life, the Holy Spirit indwells us and gives us spiritual life, and we become a new creation in Christ Jesus.
So Jesus answered Nicodemus and told him what He meant by being born again.
John; 3:5-6
(Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.)
Thus, Jesus made reference to the spiritual washing or purification of the soul, accomplished by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God at the moment of salvation. This is required if you want to belong to His kingdom. So if you haven't ask Jesus into your life, today is the day of Salvation. Jesus wants to forgive you, but you must repent of your sins and ask Him to forgive you and to save you. Tell Him you know that you need a Savior and that you want Him to come into your life and be Lord and Savior. You will be born again and belong to the Kingdom of God.
God Bless You!
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Fellowship With Christ?
1John; 1:6
(If we say we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.)
God is a Holy God and there is no darkness in Him. God will not tolerate sin and if you say you have fellowship with God, then you cannot have unrepentant sin in your life. God hates sin and a person who says he is following God and yet is in habitual sin is only deceiving himself. God says "what has light to do with darkness?" The two of them cannot be in the same place at the same time. The minute you bring in light, the darkness retreats and the light takes hold. It should be the same in a Christians life.
When you accept Jesus in your life, He give you the power to resist sin. Will you ever sin again? Yes you will but if you rely on Gods strength to resist, you'll have victory over sin. When you do sin, you repent and God restores you and you continue your fellowship with Him. We have a loving and merciful God and He wants to be in fellowship with His children. So if anyone says they have fellowship with God and continue to live in habitual sin, we have to remind them of this passage. Remind them that God will forgive them if they just repent but they cannot continue in this sin and expect to have full fellowship with a righteous and holy God.
God Bless You!
(If we say we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.)
God is a Holy God and there is no darkness in Him. God will not tolerate sin and if you say you have fellowship with God, then you cannot have unrepentant sin in your life. God hates sin and a person who says he is following God and yet is in habitual sin is only deceiving himself. God says "what has light to do with darkness?" The two of them cannot be in the same place at the same time. The minute you bring in light, the darkness retreats and the light takes hold. It should be the same in a Christians life.
When you accept Jesus in your life, He give you the power to resist sin. Will you ever sin again? Yes you will but if you rely on Gods strength to resist, you'll have victory over sin. When you do sin, you repent and God restores you and you continue your fellowship with Him. We have a loving and merciful God and He wants to be in fellowship with His children. So if anyone says they have fellowship with God and continue to live in habitual sin, we have to remind them of this passage. Remind them that God will forgive them if they just repent but they cannot continue in this sin and expect to have full fellowship with a righteous and holy God.
God Bless You!
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
Study Of 1John
Tonight we are starting a neighborhood Bible study. We put out 25 invitations, so we will see if anyone shows up. I am offering the place to study God's Word and have fellowship with other believers. Tonight we will study 1John 1:1-10 if we get that far. I am praying for God's guidance in leading this study. I pray to be the mouth piece and that God will do the talking through me.
God Bless You!
God Bless You!
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Money Won't Make It Easy To Be Saved!
Mark; 10:23
(Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, "How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God")
If you are one who has much wealth here on earth, don't put your faith in your money. When Jesus was talking to His disciples about the rich man, He told them it is more difficult for that rich man to enter the kingdom because he puts his faith in his money. The Jews believed that with alms a man purchased salvation (as recorded in the Talmud), so the more wealth one had, the more alms he could give, the more sacrifices and offerings he could offer, thus purchasing redemption. That is not what the Scriptures teach us. The Scriptures tells us that we are saved by grace through faith. Even a rich man can't be saved by his own merits, he has to come to Jesus to be saved.
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 of works, lest anyone should boast.)
God knew that man would try to save himself and He knew we couldn't because of our sins. There had to be a blood sacrifice for the remission of sins and that sacrifice had to be perfect and without any sin. That left everyone of us out so we were all doomed to destruction. God then gave His only Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins and we could be saved through Him.
Acts; 4:12
(Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.)
Mark; 10:25
(It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God")
God is telling us that we all can enter heaven through the blood of Jesus. Whether you are rich or poor doesn't matter. What matters is if you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Have you come to Him for forgiveness and put your faith in Him. Salvation is not about what we can do but rather what God has already done for us. Salvation is a free gift from God and all we have to do is repent of our sins and accept His gift of salvation. I pray that if you haven't, you'll put your faith in Jesus and inherit eternal life.
God Bless You!
(Then Jesus looked around and said to His disciples, "How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God")
If you are one who has much wealth here on earth, don't put your faith in your money. When Jesus was talking to His disciples about the rich man, He told them it is more difficult for that rich man to enter the kingdom because he puts his faith in his money. The Jews believed that with alms a man purchased salvation (as recorded in the Talmud), so the more wealth one had, the more alms he could give, the more sacrifices and offerings he could offer, thus purchasing redemption. That is not what the Scriptures teach us. The Scriptures tells us that we are saved by grace through faith. Even a rich man can't be saved by his own merits, he has to come to Jesus to be saved.
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 of works, lest anyone should boast.)
God knew that man would try to save himself and He knew we couldn't because of our sins. There had to be a blood sacrifice for the remission of sins and that sacrifice had to be perfect and without any sin. That left everyone of us out so we were all doomed to destruction. God then gave His only Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins and we could be saved through Him.
Acts; 4:12
(Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.)
Mark; 10:25
(It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God")
God is telling us that we all can enter heaven through the blood of Jesus. Whether you are rich or poor doesn't matter. What matters is if you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Have you come to Him for forgiveness and put your faith in Him. Salvation is not about what we can do but rather what God has already done for us. Salvation is a free gift from God and all we have to do is repent of our sins and accept His gift of salvation. I pray that if you haven't, you'll put your faith in Jesus and inherit eternal life.
God Bless You!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Who You Don't Know Will Hurt You!
You've heard the old saying "What you don't know can't hurt you." But that's not necessarily true. When it comes to eternal life, If you don't know Jesus it will hurt you. Jesus tells us that He came to save that which is lost and everyone of us is lost until we give our life to Jesus. If you don't know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you are condemned and on your way to the Lake of Fire when you die.
God doesn't want any of us to perish and sent His Son Jesus to pay the price for our sins. But we have to repent of our sins and ask for forgiveness to receive this gift. At that time we become a child of God and we have a personal relationship with Him. He is our Heavenly Father, and Jesus is our Lord and Savior, and the Holy Spirit is our Helper. He is the Triune God, Father and Son and Holy Spirit. Three in one. This is referred to as the Trinity!
Matthew; 28:19
(Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,)
So if you don't know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, today is the day to change that. Ask Jesus to come into your life and save you. Tell Him you know that you need a Savior and that you believe that He is the Christ the Son of God. Tell Him you're sorry for sinning against Him and you repent of those sins and you want to give your life to Him. Jesus tells us that He won't cast any away who come to Him for forgiveness. If you mean it when you talk with Him, He will save you. You will become a new creation in Him as the old self will be done away with. Yes, you'll still be tempted to sin but you will now have the power of the Holy Spirit in you to help you resist the temptation.
1Corinthians; 10:13
(No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.)
God Bless You!
God doesn't want any of us to perish and sent His Son Jesus to pay the price for our sins. But we have to repent of our sins and ask for forgiveness to receive this gift. At that time we become a child of God and we have a personal relationship with Him. He is our Heavenly Father, and Jesus is our Lord and Savior, and the Holy Spirit is our Helper. He is the Triune God, Father and Son and Holy Spirit. Three in one. This is referred to as the Trinity!
Matthew; 28:19
(Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,)
So if you don't know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, today is the day to change that. Ask Jesus to come into your life and save you. Tell Him you know that you need a Savior and that you believe that He is the Christ the Son of God. Tell Him you're sorry for sinning against Him and you repent of those sins and you want to give your life to Him. Jesus tells us that He won't cast any away who come to Him for forgiveness. If you mean it when you talk with Him, He will save you. You will become a new creation in Him as the old self will be done away with. Yes, you'll still be tempted to sin but you will now have the power of the Holy Spirit in you to help you resist the temptation.
1Corinthians; 10:13
(No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.)
God Bless You!
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Do You Know God?
1John; 2:6
(He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.)
It's easy to say we belong to God and we may fool others by that statement, but our walk will reveal whether we know Jesus as Lord and Savior or not. We can't be part of the world and yet try to be a shinning light for Jesus They just don't mix. To walk in the light means we need to be honest with our self and others. When we sin, we must immediately confess that sin to God and ask for forgiveness. We cannot walk in communion with God and have sin hidden in our life. God tells us He is holy and we need to be holy.
Obedience to God is another character of God's children. There are three reasons a person will obey. You might obey because you have to, or maybe you need to, or the best reason is you want to. You want to because He is your Heavenly Father and you love Him. Small children want to please their parents and God's children want to do the same. God loves us and we love God, it's very simple. To be able to walk as Christ walked though, we must have the Holy Spirit guiding us. Without Him we would not be able to walk as Christ walked. Our flesh wants to do the things of the flesh and we need the Spirit to be able to walk in the Spirit.
Galatians; 5:16
(I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.)
Remember, you are not going to be able to walk as Christ walked without Christ in your life. If you haven't done so, ask Jesus to come into your life and give you eternal life in Him. We all have to make a choice in life to follow Jesus or not. If you chose Jesus you'll have eternal life in Heaven, if you don't chose Jesus you'll spend eternity in the Lake of Fire (Hell). God showed His love for you when He sent Jesus to die for your sins on the cross. Show your love for Him by giving your life to Jesus.
God Bless You!
(He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.)
It's easy to say we belong to God and we may fool others by that statement, but our walk will reveal whether we know Jesus as Lord and Savior or not. We can't be part of the world and yet try to be a shinning light for Jesus They just don't mix. To walk in the light means we need to be honest with our self and others. When we sin, we must immediately confess that sin to God and ask for forgiveness. We cannot walk in communion with God and have sin hidden in our life. God tells us He is holy and we need to be holy.
Obedience to God is another character of God's children. There are three reasons a person will obey. You might obey because you have to, or maybe you need to, or the best reason is you want to. You want to because He is your Heavenly Father and you love Him. Small children want to please their parents and God's children want to do the same. God loves us and we love God, it's very simple. To be able to walk as Christ walked though, we must have the Holy Spirit guiding us. Without Him we would not be able to walk as Christ walked. Our flesh wants to do the things of the flesh and we need the Spirit to be able to walk in the Spirit.
Galatians; 5:16
(I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.)
Remember, you are not going to be able to walk as Christ walked without Christ in your life. If you haven't done so, ask Jesus to come into your life and give you eternal life in Him. We all have to make a choice in life to follow Jesus or not. If you chose Jesus you'll have eternal life in Heaven, if you don't chose Jesus you'll spend eternity in the Lake of Fire (Hell). God showed His love for you when He sent Jesus to die for your sins on the cross. Show your love for Him by giving your life to Jesus.
God Bless You!
Sunday, February 07, 2010
Straight Scoop!
Here's the straight scoop from the Word of God. We are ALL sinners, everyone of us. None of us are without sin even though we may like to think we are.
Romans; 3:23
(for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,)
God didn't say some of us have sinned, He said all of us have sinned against Him. So no matter how good we think we are, we will never be good enough because our sin has separated us from God.
There are also consequences for the sins we have committed.
Romans; 6:23
(For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.)
God knew we were going to sin so He sent His Son to die for our sins. Jesus didn't just die for the sins of Americans or any other specific country, but He died for every one's sins. Jesus died for our sins now we must come to Him for forgiveness of those sins. A person must repent and ask for forgiveness in order to be forgiven. God will not make you come to Him unless you want to. If you do come to Jesus, He will forgive you and give you eternal life.
John; 6:40
(And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.)
So this is the promise from God, that if we will just believe in Him, we'll have everlasting life. There is no other way to to the Father except through Jesus. There is no other way to be saved except through faith in Jesus.
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 of works, lest anyone should boast.)
Don't let anyone tell you differently, without Jesus you are not saved.
1John; 5:11-12
(And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.)
God does not lie. Put your faith in Jesus and live eternally with Him. If you don't put your faith in Him and His sacrifice on the cross, you'll die in your sins and have to pay the price for those sins yourself.
Come to Jesus today!
God Bless You!
Romans; 3:23
(for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,)
God didn't say some of us have sinned, He said all of us have sinned against Him. So no matter how good we think we are, we will never be good enough because our sin has separated us from God.
There are also consequences for the sins we have committed.
Romans; 6:23
(For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.)
God knew we were going to sin so He sent His Son to die for our sins. Jesus didn't just die for the sins of Americans or any other specific country, but He died for every one's sins. Jesus died for our sins now we must come to Him for forgiveness of those sins. A person must repent and ask for forgiveness in order to be forgiven. God will not make you come to Him unless you want to. If you do come to Jesus, He will forgive you and give you eternal life.
John; 6:40
(And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.)
So this is the promise from God, that if we will just believe in Him, we'll have everlasting life. There is no other way to to the Father except through Jesus. There is no other way to be saved except through faith in Jesus.
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 of works, lest anyone should boast.)
Don't let anyone tell you differently, without Jesus you are not saved.
1John; 5:11-12
(And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.)
God does not lie. Put your faith in Jesus and live eternally with Him. If you don't put your faith in Him and His sacrifice on the cross, you'll die in your sins and have to pay the price for those sins yourself.
Come to Jesus today!
God Bless You!
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