Category: faith

A Life that Chooses Life and Peace

There are two people within the Christian. There is the “old person” which is called the flesh and there is the “new person” who is the new spiritual man that came alive when a Christian is born again. He is born spiritually. This truth is a puzzlement to an unbeliever but is a reality to the Christian. A religious man asked Jesus this question 2000 years ago.

John 3:4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?”

Jesus answered him because he was truly seeking to know the truth. The Lord knows your heart and if you are sincerely seeking to know the truth then you will hear the truth.

John 3:5-7 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

You must be physically born and your must be spiritually born to become a child of God and enter His kingdom. We are born spiritually dead and that is why we do not understand spiritual matters until we are born again. When we become born again then His Spirit enters into us and unites with our spirit and makes us become alive spiritually.  For this reason, no one can give us assurance of our salvation but the Spirit and He does assure our spirit that we have become His child.

Romans 8:16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,

When you become His child, by becoming born again, you have now within you the “old man”, which is your flesh and the “new man” which is your spirit. If you allow the flesh to control you then you will experience death. If by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the flesh then you will live.

Romans 8:12-14 So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

If you are a Christian then you will want to be led by His Spirit. If you are a Christian then you will not want to sin. If you will feed your spirit by spending time with the Lord through His Word and prayer and allow His Spirit to control you then you will experience life and peace.

Romans 8:5,6 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,

The Christian life is a process of maturing and becoming more like Christ. It takes time and obedience. We all fall but the Lord picks us up and helps us get back on track.

Proverbs 24:16 For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again,

You will find that the more consistent you are in your quiet times with Him the smoother your Christian life will be. It is a “sweet life” to walk with the Lord. Don’t get discouraged. We all have to learn to walk with Him. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ.

Romans 8:1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

He loves you and He remembers your sin no more!

Psalm 103:12 As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

 

 

A Life that Chooses Love

Life is certainly made up of choices and the choices you make determine your life. One of the most important choices that you make in life is the choice to love. This decision generally will come with those whom you do not “feel” like loving. We don’t really have to struggle to choose to love those who love us. It is those who we don’t want to or feel like loving that the choice must be made. However, as with all of God’s ways you will not regret it. You will be blessed , others will be blessed and the Lord will be glorified.

Matthew 5:47,48 If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

It is interesting the the Lord makes the connection with greeting others with being perfect. He also references the fact that the Father is perfect. In other words, the Father loves even those who do not love Him.

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.

The measure of your love is not how much you love those who love you but how much you love the unlovable.

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Not only does He love the unlovely but He loved us when we were His enemies.

Romans 5:10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

The Lord wants to teach us to love. He wants to love through us. How this happens is that we first present to Him our bodies as a living sacrifice.

Romans 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

He then fills us with His Holy Spirit and He lives through us.

Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

The Christian life is a relationship with the Lord where he takes our bodies and fills us with Himself, which He is Love and He is Truth, and He lives through us in the power of the Holy Spirit. When you learn to walk daily in His Spirit then you will be a fragrant aroma of Jesus Christ to believers and to a lost and hurting world.

Ephesians 5:2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.

The sooner you learn that the source of love is not the object loved but God, who richly supplies us with all that we need. He will give you His love for others.

I Corinthians 13:13 But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.

 

 

 

A Life with Stability

We all long for stability in our lives. When your world is shaken it is a frightening feeling. The Lord promises His children stability so that no matter what happens in your life you will have a calmness within. You will not have to fear the times present nor the times future.

Isaiah 33:6 And He will be the stability of your times, A wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge; The fear of the Lord is his treasure.

The Lord will be your stability and His Word is the foundation of a life that will not be shaken when the instability comes.

Luke 6:46-48 “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.

The Lord tells us what to do so that we will not tremble or be dismayed.

Joshua 1:8,9 This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will act wisely. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

The Bible says that what the wicked fears will come upon Him. The wicked have a lot of fears because they do not seek the Lord not listen to His Word. They want to be in control but most of life is out of our control.

Proverbs 10:24 What the wicked fears will come upon him,
But the desire of the righteous will be granted.

The wicked flee when no one is pursuing. Guilt causes a person to run away from life and also to have unfounded fears.

Proverbs 28:1 The wicked flee when no one is pursuing,
But the righteous are bold as a lion.

The Lord says to be strong and courageous. Boldness, strength and courage is what should characterize our lives for we have One who is always with us and will never forsake us.

Hebrews 13:5 …for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,”

When we are stable in our faith then not only will we have much joy but we will bring joy to those who have taught us in the faith.

Colossians 2:5 For even though I am absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good discipline and the stability of your faith in Christ.

A Life that is Prayed For

If you belong to the Lord Jesus Christ then you are always being prayed for and the prayers are being answered. What an incredible comfort and joy. Also, you were prayed for before you were born. Jesus prayed for those who would believe in Him through those who share the Gospel with them. He prayed for you if you are His child.

John 17:20 I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;

He sent His Holy Spirit who prays for you now. He knows your needs and He prays for you according to the will of God. He knows that we are weak in prayer. He covers for us.

Romans 8:26,27 In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.

Jesus also prays for us now. He is at the right hand of God and makes intercession for us.

Romans 8:34 …Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.

He lives to make intercession for us and He saves us forever. His salvation begins now and then it is through all eternity.

Hebrews 7:25 Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

The priesthood of Jesus is forever. The priest was to represent the people to God.

Hebrews 7:23 but Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently.

Jesus offered up Himself for our sins, once for all. He is holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinner and exalted above the heavens and He prays for you.

Hebrews 7:26,27 For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.

The Lord Jesus Christ came to earth and was tempted in all things. He does understand our needs, weaknesses and temptations. He sympathizes with us.

Hebrews 4:14-16 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Therefore…if these things are true, then He tells us what to do. He tells us to draw near to Him with confidence and so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. All of us have times of need and we constantly need His mercy and grace. He gives us incredible promises if only we will draw near to Him. As mentioned earlier, He saves those who draw near and He also says that we may receive mercy and grace. Last of all, He says that He, Himself, will draw near to you if you will draw near to Him.

James 4:8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Life that Avoids a Life of Sorrow

It is our choice in life if we want to experience unnecessary sorrow or experience and live in the love of God. Sorrow is a part of life but much of the sorrow that we experience is because we either don’t want to or don’t know how to experience the love of God. How can this be?

Psalm 32:10 Many are the sorrows of the wicked, But he who trusts in the Lord, lovingkindness shall surround him.

The wicked person trusts in himself and wants to “be the master of his own destiny”. The godly person trusts in the Lord and wants the Lord to guide their life and be their Lord and Savior. Many are the sorrows of the wicked. You may get your “own way” but the price that you pay will be great sorrow. The person who trusts in the Lord will have great joy and experience much lovingkindness.

Psalm 16:4a The sorrows of those who have bartered for another god will be multiplied;

One of the amazing aspects of the Lord is that He gives us a free choice. We don’t have to worship Him. We can worship whoever or whatever we want, whether it is an idol fashioned by hands or if it something else such as money, material things, houses, cars, sports, people, beauty or anything else that we allow to control our lives and determine our direction in life. If it controls our happiness then it has the capacity to bring us sorrow and it will in just a matter of time. If God controls us then He will give us joy.

Isaiah 53:4 Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.

Jesus took our sin and our sorrows that we might have His righteousness and joy, which are everlasting. He is eternal and what He gives to us is eternal. When we give our sorrows to Him then He takes them and gives us eternal life. We realize that we have placed our hopes and joy in what can never satisfy and we come to Him and give Him all that we had earlier put our trust in.

II Corinthians 7:10 For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.

Are you sorrowful? Have you thought that someone or something could satisfy you and then have realized that person or thing can never fill your heart? Come to the Lord. He will take your sorrows and give you joy. He wants you to live in His love. Abide in His love and your cup will overflow with joy.

John 15:9-11 Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. 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. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.

The secret to avoiding a life of sorrow is to abide in God’s love. The way we abide in God’s love is to first give our hearts to Him and then once we have surrendered to Him and been born again, we are to keep His commandments. Jesus kept the Father’s commandments and did exactly as the Father commanded Him. He did not tweak it by saying, “God really did not say this or mean this…” Yes, if He said it in His Word then He means it. Keep His commandments and your joy will be made full.

 

A Life in Secret

There are three things that the Lord says that we need to do in secret. Again, He loves to reward His children when they do what pleases Him so He offers great rewards for these three matters of obedience. The Lord says that He sees in secret and He knows what we do in secret. He says that He will reward us openly. If you read the lives of the great men and women that God has used you will learn that they had their secret life with the Lord. Those who are not faithful in their secret life with the Lord eventually fall just as a tree whose roots are shallow or whose inside is rotten will fall. Your roots must go deep into his Word and into the soil of His love. If they do then your spiritual life will be nourished and you will prosper.

Jeremiah 17:7,8 Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord
And whose trust is the Lord.
For he will be like a tree planted by the water,
That extends its roots by a stream
And will not fear when the heat comes;
But its leaves will be green,
And it will not be anxious in a year of drought
Nor cease to yield fruit.

First, when you give, you are to give in secret. You are to give to those who can not pay you back. You are to give to the poor.

Matthew 6:3 But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

Second, when you pray, you are to pray in secret.

Matthew 6:6 But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

Third, when you fast, you are to fast in secret.

Matthew 6:17,18 But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

Just as roots are not seen but produce the fruit on the tree for all to see, so you too, when your roots go deep with the Lord, the Lord will be glorified by the fruit of your life as you bear His fruit.

John 15:8 My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

May your trust in the Lord grow through maintaining your secret life with the Lord through prayer and meditation, fasting and giving.

Psalm 1:2,3 But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers.

 

 

A Life of Prayer

Prayer can be outlawed but it can never be stopped because the Lord made us to pray. It is a human instinct to pray. Sometimes people may get confused as to the One and only True God and so they will pray to a god that they have made, either in their minds or with their hands. However, there is only One God who hears and answers. There is only one group of people that He attends to their prayers.

I Peter 3:12 “For the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, And His ears attend to their prayer, But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

Don’t get discouraged in your prayers. He hears them and answers them but He is not limited by time. It may just be a matter of time before you see the answer.

Luke 18:1 Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart,

We are to ask the Father in Jesus name and He will hear us.

John 16:23 In that day you will not question Me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in My name, He will give it to you.

The Lord wants us to devote ourselves to prayer.

Acts 1:14 These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer,  along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.

Our prayers for the nonChristian should always be for their salvation.

Romans 10:1 Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation.

We should pray for our spiritual leaders in our churches and missionaries.

Romans 15:30 Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God for me,

Pray for other Christians.

Ephesians 6:18 With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,

Pray for yourself. He cares for you.

Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Always remember to give thanks in your prayers. He has done so much for us.

Colossians 4:2 Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving;

Pray for everyone and especially for your leaders.

I Timothy 2:1 First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men,

Pray that the Lord will save you from death, not just spiritual death, but death to your soul.

Hebrews 5:7 In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety.

If you are struggling in your Christian life then go to one who can pray for you. The Lord has called us to pray for each other.

James 5:16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

Finally, the end is near and you want to be found faithful in prayer. Prayer is talking to the Lord. Just talk to Him from your heart. He would rather you pour out your heart to Him then not pray at all or struggle with saying the right words. He knows your heart and He loves you. He wants to hear from you and He will hear you.

I Peter 4:7 The end of all things is near; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.

 

 

 

 

A Life of Faith and Love

The most exciting life is a life of your faith and His love. You will be amazed at His faithfulness and so in love with the Lord when you see Him be true to His Word. A life of faith is a prerequisite to seeing His faithfulness. When you declare, by faith, His lovingkindness in the morning then you will see His faithfulness at night.

Psalm 92:2 To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning And Your faithfulness by night,

A life of faith is taking Him at His Word. There is no limit to experiencing His love for you other than your unbelief. Fearing Him is respecting Him in an all consuming way where you believe His Word so much that you know that it is true and will do what His Word says to do. Fearing Him is obedience. You can fear Him now voluntarily by faith or you can wait until you see Him and how true His Word is to what He says will take place and then you will really fear Him but that kind of fear is one of a terrifying fear.

Psalm 103:11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him.

When you live by faith then His lovingkindness is what will describe your life. It will be the explanation for who you are and everything in your life because He loves you so very much but you must take Him at His Word to see that love.

Psalm 25:10 All the paths of the Lord are lovingkindness and truth To those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.

The Lord will be your boast and in Him you will glory. You will not be able to stop talking about Him and all of the incredible things that He has done for you.

Psalm 89:24 “My faithfulness and My lovingkindness will be with him, And in My name his horn will be exalted.

You will anticipate each new day and what His great lovingkindness holds for you. No matter how much you mess up the day before His lovingkindnesses and compassions are new every morning.

Lamentations 3:22-25 The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease,
For His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I have hope in Him.”
The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
To the person who seeks Him.

Everything that the Lord does for you is done in His faithfulness. Trust Him and let Him direct your steps. He is good.

Psalm 33:4 For the word of the Lord is upright, And all His work is done in faithfulness.

Underneath are the everlasting arms and He has destroyed the enemy from before you.

Deuteronomy 33:27 “The eternal God is a dwelling place, And underneath are the everlasting arms; And He drove out the enemy from before you, And said, ‘Destroy!’

Will you trust Him again as you did when you first became a Christian? Of if you have not yet trusted Him with your life then today is the day to begin. You can begin with the prayer that the person prayed, “Lord, I want to believe, help me in my unbelief.” He is more than willing to help you. He wants to give you this incredible life that is overflowing but first you must trust Him.

John 10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

There are only two choices in life…one of a life that is ultimately destroyed or a life that is saved. These two choices go into eternity but are made by you here on earth. Do you choose the destroyer or the Savior?

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 that is Faithful

At the end of your life there will only be one thing that matters and that is God’s judgment of you. What will you hear Him say? It will not matter how pretty you were, how much money you had, whether you came from a well off family or from a family that struggled to make ends meet. It will not matter if you had two parents or one parent or no parents around. It will not matter what others thought of you, whether you were “accepted” or not. There is only One who will determine if you are accepted and what He will say to you will echo in your ears for all of eternity.

Matthew 7:21 Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.

What is His will? What will he be looking for in you?

John 6:40 For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”

Very simply, God’s will is that you believe in Jesus Christ who He sent into the world to save you from your sin…to die for you, to be raised from the dead and to ascend into heaven.

John 6:39 This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day.

Now this belief is not merely an intellectual belief. You can look at a chair and believe that it will not fall apart if you sit in it but it is not until you actually sit in the chair do you believe that it will hold you up. In the same way, you can believe in Jesus but if you are not reading His Word and doing what He says to do then you are only giving intellectual assent to his claims. You are believing with your mind but not with your heart. Those who will come to him on the last day and say, “Lord, Lord” and He rejects them did not believe with their heart but only with their mind.

Matthew 7:22,23 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’

They did not obey.