Category: Encouragement

A Life that Is Blessed

Everyone wants to be blessed. The word blessed means happy. When we are blessed we have the face of God towards us. The opposite of being blessed is being cursed. If blessed means that we are happy then being cursed must mean that we are unhappy and that the Lord is against us. The Lord tells us how to be blessed.

Luke 11:27,28 While Jesus was saying these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You and the breasts at which You nursed.” But He said, “On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”

When a woman in the crowd raised her voice and blessed the mother of Jesus, He said, “On the contrary, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.” The Lord has given us His Word so that we will do exactly as He says. He has not given it to us just to talk about it but to do it. Jesus took the curse of our disobedience so that we might be blessed by His obedience.

Galatians 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”—

The word curse means literally, “a solemn utterance intended to invoke a supernatural power to inflict harm or punishment on someone or something”. Jesus took the curse which was intended for us and received the punishment of God. He did not do this so that we could live as we please but so that we might be given the opportunity to be blessed by God. It begins by being in a relationship with Him and continues by being in fellowship with Him and following Him.

John 13:17,18 Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.

Jesus came to serve. The one who loves the Lord will also be a servant and will follow Him. When we follow Him then we will go where He goes, we will speak His Words and we will do what He does.

John 13:12-15 So when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments and reclined at the table again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you.

When we keep His Words and do as He did then the world will see Jesus in us. This is the true meaning of discipleship. The pupil is not above His teacher but everyone after they have been taught will be like their teacher.

Luke 6:40 A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.

You can not teach someone to do something that you yourself are not doing. Example is the most powerful and effective way of teaching. You can not teach someone else to do something that you are not doing.

Proverbs 29:19 A slave will not be instructed by words alone;
For though he understands, there will be no response.

It is only to the degree that you are observing the Word of God that you can effectively teach and disciple others. People need to see the Word of God lived out and that is what it means to make disciples.

Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

When you hear the Words of God and do them then you are blessed. When you hear the Words of God, do them and then teach others also then you will be a blessing to others and you will be doing what the Lord has called you to do.

Matthew 24:44-47 For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will. “Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.

Not only will you be found faithful here on earth but you will be found faithful when He comes again. Blessed is that slave whom His Master finds doing His Words when He comes again. He says that truly, He will put him in charge of all of His possessions.

 

A Life that Does Not Stumble

The Lord says that the person who does not stumble over Him and what He says then that person will be blessed.

I Peter 2:6-8a For this is contained in Scripture: “Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious cornerstone, And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.” This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve, “The stone which the builders rejected, This became the very cornerstone,”and, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense”; for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word

Those who believe in Jesus Christ and obey His Word will not be disappointed but those who do not believe and are disobedient will stumble over the Lord and His Words. He will be a stone of stumbling to them and a rock of offense. They are “offended” because they do not want to hear His Word and do it.

II Peter 1:10 Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble;

Stumbling brings pain and frustration. If you will learn to practice keeping His commandments then you will not stumble.

Hosea 14:9 Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; Whoever is discerning, let him know them. For the ways of the Lord are right, And the righteous will walk in them, But transgressors will stumble in them.

If you are wise, have understanding and discernment then you will know that the ways of the Lord are right. The righteous will learn to walk in His ways but those who turn away from the Lord will stumble in them.

Proverbs 4:10-12 Hear, my son, and accept my sayings
And the years of your life will be many.
I have directed you in the way of wisdom;
I have led you in upright paths.
When you walk, your steps will not be impeded;
And if you run, you will not stumble.

Listen to the Lord and accept His Word. Not only will you walk and your steps will not be impeded but you will run and not stumble. The Lord is good and He wants you to be able to walk and run in life without stumbling. Learn to love His Word and you will find that life is sweet to the one who does not stumble over what He says but with a whole heart learns to abide in his Word and do it.

Psalm 119:165 Those who love Your law have great peace, And nothing causes them to stumble.

At first God’s Word may seem hard but it is only because we are not accustomed to it. Once it become a part of you then you will see that it is actually much easier than the ways of sin.

Hebrews 5:14 But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.

 

A Life with Great Confidence

People try to live life without the Lord and the Bible describes such a person as a fool.

Psalm 14:1 The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds;
There is no one who does good.

Living life without God is like having a painting without acknowledging the artist or enjoying a meal with no thought of the cook. It can’t be done although it is often tried. A life without God is a life that tries to feel it’s way through life just as a blind person has to feel their way around. It will often lead to pain and sometimes much pain because it is a guessing game. There are no absolutes apart from God. The laws in science are the ones He designed and set up. He is the Creator and author of life.

Genesis 2:4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made earth and heaven.

All the Lord had to do was to speak and He created. He spoke and the worlds were created out of nothing. All matter has to be created out of matter except when it comes to the Lord. All He has to do is speak it into existence.

Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.

God is the only truth that there is and apart from Him there is no truth. When someone tries to deny the existence of God then they have started to believe a lie and will be deceived from then on. Often people don’t want to believe in God because there is something in their life that they don’t want to give up and if they were to acknowledge God then they would have to acknowledge their conscience. If they can get rid of the thought of God then maybe they can get rid of their conscience and enjoy the very thing that they want to. However, when they shut off their conscience then they also shut off their ability to fully enjoy their sinful ways. It is your conscience that allows you to fully enjoy the gifts that the Lord has given to mankind.

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

The person who puts their trust in the Lord will walk with confidence because He knows the One whom He has trusted.

Psalm 27:3 Though an army may encamp against me, My heart shall not fear; Though war may rise against me, In this I will be confident.

A fool puts his confidence in himself and leans on his own understanding. He learns the hard way through pain and regret, that is, if he learns at all. Some people will do the same wrong thing over and over again and yet expect different results.

Proverbs 14:16 A wise man fears and departs from evil, But a fool rages and is self-confident.

If you will learn to trust in the Lord with all of your heart and not lean on your own understanding then you will find that He will lead you in the way you should go and that His ways are good. Whatever He tells you to do, do it. Don’t try to understand first and then follow His instructions but rather follow first and then you will receive understanding.

Proverbs 3:5,6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Life that Does the Necessary

Most lives get messed up when their priorities are out of line. The only way our priorities will be what they ought to be is if Jesus Christ is our Lord. We can not run our own lives without problems. If you want to be happy then you must have Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and do what He says. He is good and He loves you. He will remove your guilt and fears and will give you the stability, purpose and meaning in life that you desire. He created you and knows all about you even more than you know about yourself.

Psalm 139:1-3 O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.
You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.

If you will let Him be Lord in your life and allow Him to direct your steps then He will take you where you want to go. Deep within us there is a longing to belong and to be in our niche and yet most people do not know what they want or where they belong until they get there and then there is a sweet contentment that comes from being where He designed for us to fit. However, the contentment comes from Him being first in our lives and then our place in life being second. He chose His disciples first to be with Him and then to preach. He has chosen you first to be with Him in a relationship.

Mark 3:13,14 And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him.And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach

The Lord has called us to first be with Him and then to serve Him. Our service for Him should be an overflow of our fellowship with Him. No matter what He has called you to do it is service to Him. He wants us to do our work as unto Him. Service to Him is not just for those who are in a Christian ministry. Many of the godly men and women that God used in the Bible did other vocations that were not necessarily spiritual, but He used them because their heart was right with Him and their priorities were in order.

Luke 10:38-42 Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.” But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”

If we don’t have our priorities in order, in spending time with the Lord, sitting at His feet and listening to His Word then we can easily start becoming anxious and bothered about unnecessary things. The Lord said that only one thing is necessary and that is spending time with Him and listening to His Word. This may sound simple but if you have not tried it then why don’t you try it? Try spending more time with the Lord than what you thought you could. You will find great joy if you soak up His Words into your heart. Your heart will become His more than ever before and you will see Him act on your behalf.

II Chronicles 16:9a For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His.

He will accomplish what concerns you and He will use you to accomplish what concerns Him.

Psalm 138:8 The Lord will accomplish what concerns me;
Your lovingkindness, O Lord, is everlasting;
Do not forsake the works of Your hands.

 

A Life that Is Fulfilling

The Lord created you to have a fulfilling life. There is no life apart from Jesus Christ. He made the claim that He is the way, the truth and the life. Fulfillment in life can only come though Jesus Christ and there no other way.

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

When you come into a relationship with Jesus Christ and discover what He created you for, then your life will have direction and you will find much fulfillment and joy. A life without Jesus Christ is like a ship without a captain and like a boat without a rudder. It will float along aimlessly or will be tossed about by the waves of life. When we come into a relationship with Him then He gives us His Spirit as the pledge of our belonging to Him and He becomes the Captain of our life. He gives us  His Spirit and His Word to direct our life.

II Corinthians 5:5 Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.

The Lord has given you two things that will help you in your relationship with Him and help you fulfill your purpose in life. Those two things are the Bible and His Holy Spirit. The more you fill your life with the Word of God and are filled with His Spirit then the more you will grow in the Lord and fulfill your purpose in life. The outcome of a dynamic relationship with Him is great joy and great peace.

Hebrews 12:2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Life is a race to the finish line to run well with all of our heart, to not grow weary and quit and to have a clear conscience. We must fix our eyes on Jesus so that we will be able to run well and allow Him to control our life. He keeps us in the race. If we are to run with endurance the race that is set before us, then we must have the resources to do so. You must feed your spirit and starve your flesh. The Lord gives you the energy through His Spirit and your flesh must free from the baggage that results from being a slave to sin. It is hard to run with baggage.

Romans 8:5-8 For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

The Word of God is what feeds our spirit so that we will have the desire to please the Lord and the joy of doing so. Your flesh does not want to do the will of God so you must starve the flesh.  Whichever you feed the most is going to win, either your flesh, with the result of death or the spirit, with the result of life. You must spend time with the Lord everyday so that your spirit is fed and you can hear His direction. Talk to Him through prayer and let Him talk to you through His Word. You must starve the flesh. This means that you can not look at trashy things or hear trashy talk. The flesh will keep you out of God’s Word. The flesh does not want you to come to God but wants only to indulge itself in what pleases the flesh. You can not serve two masters. You must choose if you want a fulfilling life through feeding the spirit or death through feeding your flesh. You can not have both.

John 6:35-37 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.

Are you in a dynamic relationship with Jesus Christ? Is your life fulfilling? Come to Him and begin that relationship for the first time or if your heart has gotten away from Him then come back to Him that you might experience His life in you. In Him alone do we find complete satisfaction and fulfillment.

 

 

A Life that Is Not Ashamed

We often are very concerned and conscious of what others think of us and we want to be accepted and respected by others. As we grow older we become aware of what we need to do to be “socially acceptable”. Only a very secure person can go through life willing and able to stand alone.  It is a natural desire to want the respect of others, however, it can become a snare for us and hypocritical if we change our behavior or put on a certain front in order to receive the acceptance and respect of people.

Matthew 6:2 So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.

The religious leaders in Jesus’ day loved the praise and honor of men but the Lord called them hypocrites because it was not who they really were when they gave for appearance sake. They only gave so that others might see and honor them.

Matthew 6:5 When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.

Again, they prayed so that others might respect them for their “spiritual” prayers. Again, the Lord called them hypocrites. To receive the praise of others was their reward in full.

Matthew 6:16 Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.

Again, their life was all about putting on an appearance in order to be accepted and praised by others.

Mark 8:38 For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be  ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

Jesus Christ is the ultimate example of someone who was secure in who He is and who was willing to be rejected by others in order to accomplish something greater. Jesus Christ knew that He was accepted by His Father and He lived to please the One who had sent Him. Jesus Christ promises us that if we will not be ashamed of Him and His words then He will not be ashamed of us when He returns. An indication of a true Christian is that they will be ashamed of the things they did before they were a Christian and they will not be ashamed of Jesus Christ and following after Him after they have become a Christian.

Romans 6:21 Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death.

Sometimes a conflict is created between a Christian and unbelievers who are in a close relationship with the new Christian. They may be a family member or a friend who has not yet come to Christ. New Christians want to please the One who died for them and the nonChristian does not understand that kind of commitment because they have yet to experience His amazing love.

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

We are secure in the Lord once we come to know Him and we understand that His words are power and that He will never leave us or forsake us. We have a sure foundation in Him which can not be shaken and He is able to guard what we have entrusted to Him.

II Timothy 1:12 For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.

What great joy it will be for those Christians who did not shrink back and who were not ashamed to suffer for being a Christian. Sometimes it might seem lonely but He promised us that He would never forsake us. Even though we can not see Him, we believe in Him and know that He is faithful and will fulfill all of His promises that He has given to us. He is not ashamed to call us brethren.

Hebrews 2:11 For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,

Neither is God ashamed to be called our God, for He has prepared a place for us.

Hebrews 11:6 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.

When the Lord comes again it will only be those who were not ashamed of Jesus Christ during the time of their stay on earth who will not shrink back in shame. Those who refused to call upon Him will wish they had and will shrink away in shame for their many sins and for not calling upon Jesus Christ, the Lord of lords and King of kings.

I Peter 4:16,17 but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name.For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if itbegins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?

It is not too late to call upon Him. It is not too late to humble yourself under the mighty hand of God and call upon His name. He desires that all come to know Him.

Isaiah 55:6,7 Seek the Lord while He may be found;
Call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
And let him return to the Lord,
And He will have compassion on him,
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.

 

A Life that Believes

Believing in the Lord is what gives us life. If you want to live life to the fullest then you must believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

John 20:30,31 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

Jesus Christ performed many signs and miracles attesting to the fact that He was God. He died and rose again and more than five hundred people saw Him after He was raised from the dead.

I Corinthians 15:3-6a For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time,

God’s Word and the Gospel is the power of salvation for all who believe.

Romans 1:16,17  For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”

Someone who believes will come to the Lord in faith. It is coming to the Lord in faith is what saves a person. Intellectual belief is not enough. We must come to Him and put our trust in Him to forgive us of our sins. One of the aspects of faith is to come to the One whom you believe in.

Ephesians 2:8,9 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.

The Gospel is God’s good news for everyone. Salvation is a gift from God through Jesus Christ and is not a result of any amount of good works that we could do to earn it. It is a gift from God to all who will believe and put their trust in Jesus Christ to forgive them of their sins. 

John 6:37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.

All who come to Him will be received by Him and will receive forgiveness. He will not cast anyone out who comes to Him. There is no sin too great and His grace invites all to come.

Luke 7:47-50 For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” Then He said to her, “Your sins have been forgiven.” Those who were reclining at the table with Him began to say to themselves, “Who is this man who even forgives sins?” And He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Have you come to Jesus for forgiveness? Coming to Him is the faith that He wants from us. For this reason prayer is an expression of faith. We come to Him in prayer and receive Him and what He has to offer then our response will be one of love for Him. When we realize how great a debt of sin He has forgiven us through His death on the cross then our love for Him will be great. We owe Him everything.

 

 

A Life that Does What is Required

The Lord made it clear in the Old Testament and the New Testament what He requires of us.

Micah 6:8 He has told you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justice, to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God?

Only God is good and so to do what He requires of us we must have Him in our life. He will live this kind of life through us.

Mark 10:18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone.

Righteousness and justice is the foundation of His throne.

Psalm 97:2 Clouds and thick darkness surround Him;
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.

He loves righteousness and justice.

Psalm 33:5 He loves righteousness and justice; The earth is full of the lovingkindness of the Lord.

His throne is established in lovingkindness and He seeks justice.

Isaiah 16:5 A throne will even be established in lovingkindness, And a judge will sit on it in faithfulness in the tent of David; Moreover, he will seek justice And be prompt in righteousness.

He will give the person who walks humbly with Him the wisdom in how to do justice and love kindness. This word for humbly is only mentioned twice in the Old Testament and here in Proverbs is the second time.

Proverbs 11:2 When pride comes, then comes dishonor, But with the humble is wisdom.

The Lord spoke to the religeous leaders that they were not putting emphasis on the weightier things of the law.

Matthew 23:23  Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others.

This word faithfulness means submissive obedience to walking a life of faith in God or in other words, to walk humbly with your God.

**It is important to understand that none of us have ever done what God has required and that is why God sent Jesus Christ to die for our failing to do what God requires, and that is perfect righteousness. Jesus Christ fulfilled God’s requirements and took our failures upon Himself so that we might have His righteousness. Whoever receives Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior also receives what Jesus Christ did, and that is, His righteousness is credited to us. He took our sins and offered His righteousness, which is fully fulfilling God’s requirements. This is what it means to be saved by grace through faith. Grace is the invitation to come to Him and faith is coming Him. When we do so, then we receive forgiveness and the gift of salvation.

And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. Ephesians 2:1-9

A Life that Is Fruitful

The promise of a fruitful life is made to the person who abides in the Lord and God’s Word abides in Him. The word abide means to live in, therefore you are to live in God’s Word and He lives in you.

John 15:4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.

The Lord wants you to be fruitful and He knows that you must abide in Him if this is to happen. He, the vine produces the fruit and you, as the branch, bear the fruit.

John 15:5 I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

The sooner you realize the truth that you can do nothing apart from Him the happier you will be and the sooner you will quit striving on your own to bear fruit. The branches bear the fruit, they do not produce the fruit.

Galatians 5:22,23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

The fruit is produced through vine. You can not make yourself love someone. He will love through you if you abide in Him. In the same way, you can not produce joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness or self-control. He must do it.

John 15:7 My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

You will not have to prove that you are a Christian. Your fruit will bear witness that you are a Christian.

Matthew 7:16-18 You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit.

The Lord loves us and wants us to abide in his love. When we abide in His love and in His Word then our spirit will be nourished and His Spirit in us will produce the fruit that the world will see.

John 15:9 Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love.

The way that we abide in his love is to keep his commandments. Is there anything that you know that He has commanded you to do and you have not done? There is nothing that is worth keeping us from his love.

John 15:10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.

Jesus kept His Father’s commandments and abided in His Father’s love. He went before us and showed us how it was to be done.

John 15:12,13 This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.

Jesus Himself chose us to bear fruit and instructed us on how it was to be accomplished.

John 15:16,17 You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you. This I command you, that you love one another.

Jesus spoke these words to His disciples and to us so that our joy may be made full just as His joy was made full.

John 15:11 These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.

 

 

 

A Life Whose Debt is Canceled

We owe a debt we can not pay and there is One who paid a debt He did not owe. We were helpless and at the right time, our debt was paid and our certificate of death was canceled.

Romans 5:6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.

When Jesus Christ came and became the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, He became our substitute and took the punishment that we deserved and paid the debt that we owed. Death was what we had earned by going our own way and doing our own thing. We wanted to rule our own lives rather than have the One who made us and created us to be in relationship with Him, to rule us. Sin is wanting to be your own god and the outcome is death spiritually, death to our soul and the death of our body.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Wages is what we deserve but a gift is what we do not deserve and have not done anything to work for it. We earned and deserved death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. When He becomes our Lord then we receive the gift of eternal life and with the gift of life comes the cancellation of the certificate of death.

Isaiah 28:16-18a Therefore thus says the Lord God,

“Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a tested stone,
A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed.
He who believes will not be disturbed.
“I will make justice the measuring line
And righteousness the level;
Then hail will sweep away the refuge of lies
And the waters will overflow the secret place.
 “Your covenant with death will be canceled,

When we become a Christian then our eyes are opened to the lies that we took comfort in and the secret places of our heart where our sins dwell. Jesus is the foundation and that Cornerstone God sent on which He will build His church. Those who believe in Him will not be disappointed but those who do not believe and are disobedient to His Word will stumble over the rock of Christ and experience doom.

I Peter 2:6-8 For this is contained in Scripture:

“Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious cornerstone,
And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.”

This precious value, then, is for you who believe; but for those who disbelieve,

“The stone which the builders rejected,
This became the very cornerstone,”and,

“A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense”;

for they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, and to this doom they were also appointed.

Those who believe in Him, not only do they receive life and their certificate of death is canceled but the accusations and certificate consisting of decrees against them is canceled. He nailed it to the cross. The certificate of decrees against you are all of the sins that you have ever committed or will ever commit. Everything that you have ever done wrong is recorded and that record was nailed to the cross. (Those who do not believe in Jesus Christ, the record of all of their sins will be read on Judgment Day and they will have to pay their own debt for their sins.)

Colossians 2:13,14 When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

When you were dead in your sins, Christ died for you, and made you alive together with Him. He has forgiven you of all of your wrongdoings. Because Jesus Christ was raised from the dead and lives, you also became alive and will be raised from the dead and will live forever with Him IF you have received Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior and the gift of eternal life in Him. The gift is offered to all but only given to those who will receive it. For God so loved everyone in the world that He gave His Son.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

You must call on the Lord Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior to receive Christ into your life and be saved. When He saves you then He also forgives you and gives you the gift of eternal life.

Romans 10:11-13 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

He who has Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has the life. He who does not have Christ does not have the life. These things have been written for you who believe in Jesus Christ in order that you may know that you have eternal life. Your debt of sin and certificate of death is canceled forever.

I John 5:12,13 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.