Tag Archives: goodness

Who Are We “In Christ?”- 6/17/21

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Gonna put this up, then hopefully will go to bed afterwards!

Do you believe you have an identity? What could that mean…?

I have an identity. It’s called an I. D. Identification. It has everything on it including my name. If I had someone ask who I was and I wasn’t sure, I’d check that and say “This should tell you everything you are concerned about me. All the info on there is enough!”

Is it though? Is it really all there is “about” me? Could I rename myself? Better yet could someone in my life give me a new “identity”…..?

The news is so matter of fact about how people according to their facts “are.” It seems that many may feel that it is impossible to change. Hey whatever experiences people have is what people from there will expect.

I “can’t” change.

Well if one can’t change, I hope they realize the wonderful love of Jesus. If you follow His path and even want to live for Him wholeheartedly it will be amazing what He can do!

Now I have another thing to ponder. If we can, if we might gain a “new” identity… what will be involved with that?

The answer to that is simple. It will be like a beautiful dream only you HAVE woken up.

You realize that with Christ you have a new way of life, a way you didn’t think could matter! You see in yourself a change to the point you feel He has turned you completely around.

How can that happen? By trusting in Jesus in what He did on the cross!

Life without Him is horrid but life in Him is wonderful…

I’ve felt like I was without the Lord. Many times.

If you ever feel tempted, stay away from this stuff. It’s no different than alcohol in my opinion:

One of my biggest regrets was jumping into looking at pornography.

It was sick and I know people that go to my church might be quick to judge me but I knew it was wrong. I knew it and know it now!

I was too dern young. I just went through puberty! I was at a new school that year; I was up on the computer one night, I hesitated and then made that choice…

Now some people might think “porn” is no big deal. It is a big deal. It’s a spiritual warfare deal. Demonic things happen when people look at porn!

I entertained lusts in my heart that I should have talked to people about but instead stayed by myself and yearned endlessly to live to keep that evil flame burning.

I found all kinds of ways to get it again and again. It was not even fun. It sure seemed like I was getting some kind of enjoyment but it was never satisfactory!

I gave in constantly. It became a “drug.” It would have felt good if it didn’t feel like some kind of hell, dragging me around, making me feel like I was nothing after I learned slowly more and more that I was addicted to it.

These “freedom” moments in my life felt more like I was given shackles and then dragged through the mud and rocks while strung from the back of a vehicle. It felt like I was a slave to sin, and seemingly without God, but somehow I wasn’t.

It would drag me through nonstop personal mental “pain” and misery until I died if it was possible.

This was no “burden” to bear alone…

But yet it was a burden I didn’t even have to bear at all. Because of Jesus I was able to give it up (yes I fought with it again and again time and time again, but I still struggled against it versus not caring about doing it!). The feelings of being alone. The toiling and anguish in feeling like I was alone it seemed in my struggle.

Jesus took my burden as well as many things on the cross. He had every sin laid on Him so that He would be like a lamb and be “slaughtered”

How could that be?

They describe Jesus as a lamb. He was like a sacrifice but the ultimate sacrifice. He was the only one that worked!

In the Old Testament so-called “perfect” lambs were slaughtered just as a visual image. It brought people to glorify and worship God.

Because they did great at letting people know that God was good and one to worship but it was not spiritually cleansing.

People needed a real sacrifice. One which took on the sins not just of the world but then also for both you and me!

Without the shedding of blood there was no forgiveness.

He was the Lamb of God. He was the one who paid a debt because He was perfect (the real perfect!).

And so all sins were laid on Him so that He would be broken for the cause of Christ. That ones would come to know Him through His Son so that we were no longer separated if we ever felt lost and without God in our lives.

Now if you follow this way there is also a thing called soul liberty. Once you follow Him you don’t have to keep going this direction. Almost like Adam having a decision you can select whether to follow always or not…

you can choose to follow or not follow Christ. You can choose to stay in His body of believers or not.

But to make the choice to follow Jesus is being Christ bound!

It means you want to be bound to the ways of Christ Jesus. You want to follow all of His ways.

You can now know what it is in store to know Him more. Your master is God your father because now You know that thee is a will. It is like a new you!

Check this out. Some Scripture:

I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. ~John 15:15

And your old self was on the cross where Jesus died. It no longer is a “part” of you but you have been completely turned around if you trust in His ways.

Scripture:

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” ~Galations 2:20

Isn’t that awesome. How marvelous it is to know this Jesus.

Do you want to pray to follow Him? Let’s see what your identity is in Him today!

Father:

I pray for the people who may be following a certain path. I know all about paths. Mine led to endless destruction. God I don’t want anything like that to happen to whoever might be reading this today (or tonight later) and I pray You reveal Your will for this person after they pray this.

Father God… I realize no matter how hard I try I cannot be good like You. I realize that any and all bad was paid for at the cross. IT was so much stuff and I know now You paid for it by the giving of your Son Jesus Christ. May I follow You with my whole heart and seek a place that speaks the truth that will help guide me Your way. I know that He died for my old self. Let me know more and more my new identity which is in You. I hope that in life I will be able to experience that here. . . Thank you for the wonderful privilege of prayer.

My hope now is that you see every day who you are in Christ. Did you know He sees You as forgiven? He sees one without sin! Wow. Now what a new identity. Praise God if you prayed but be encouraged and know how awesome living for God can really be. That is part of my prayer for you!

Honor the one who is everything-11/16/14

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In church we are going over the book of Obadiah. Wow the parallels he briefly made with Edom and other countries reflect what is going on with us today as well. I hope we can get a deeper understanding of this book as well as explain the context which is a little more important as well.

Going to a Christmas bazaar at a Catholic church has always been both encouraging and also other things as well. One thing I noticed lately in the past years is the contests they have for the people. Anyone can sign up and apparently the workers like to attache their names to these raffles in hopes that they will win these games. Kind of sadly, many times they have. While people go and have fun and try to win many of the raffles and cash prizes there are workers who try to get into the contests and their names are called seemingly every year. I wonder what exactly their hearts are when they sign up.

Do they think that they “deserve” these gifts since they took the time to serve in the area? Have they felt that they must win because contests are fun? Or have they joined them just because they hoped to help bulk up any baskets that hadn’t many entries, they assumed?

I signed up a few tickets to one because I was hoping to give it as an early Christmas gift but that didn’t work out. Oh well. Next year if this tradition continues.

Now that I think of it I guess I was honoring my mother.

Let’s think of that word “honor.” When I was speaking of God’s “glory” I said that it meant exalted honor. What is “honor?”

According to an online dictionary loosely it means the state of being morally upright, honest, noble, virtuous, and magnanimous.

That sounds like something that cops or military would do. They would be morally grounded on what is right honest and be noble.

But I am talking about another definition.

Profound awe, respect of someone usually for being morally upright and/or competent.

Because of God we have been given many wonderful things like the endless creations on this earth, the air we breathe, and the people we have come to know and love.

But God commands us to witness and evangelize with others and sometimes we do not do what God wants though He deserves to be respected on that commandment.

If we do things for God because His word says so, it is like we are honoring Him. The Lord deserves everything we have to give for Him. His “competence” is that He gives us grace and the amazing ability to speak the gospel no matter how far or early our walk with Christ is.

Some people in countries like the one I live in have amazing blessings. So many luxuries at our fingertips but do we praise God for any of them? Sometimes not.

Therefore if we don’t think of God and what He has done for us, does that make us ungrateful. I think so.

Is that honoring Him?

You know I feel convicted by the many I grew up in the church with. Though it seems I have grown up only under the roof of a house of worship all my life, I have not been doing well all of those years. I feel that I have represented and feel responsible for, in a way, the people who I went to youth group with because I was not following the Lord all the time. And it seems a lot in my circle have fallen away from church.

Was I honoring God by not reading God’s Word and being “comfortable” where I was for a good amount of years? I think not.

I wish that I could keep close contact with many as some are in other parts of my country. I guess the sometimes only honorable thing to do is to pray for them. Also just to be involved outside of the church (something I used to be very uncomfortable about) and be a witness to people around me.

Another thing I hope both you and I do is be grounded in God’s Word the Holy Bible. That is where you really get to honor Him because you get to discern more of what He wants for you and to know Christ’s heart to grow in Him more.

We are as princes and princesses to the King of all Kings Jesus Christ.

What an honor! To be considered a part of God’s plan and be loved and be blessed by Him. Also it is amazing to know that God doesn’t need us to be part of His kingdom but He wants us. He really likes us! He wants us to know Him more so we can, as in a relationship, become close and journey on in this world together with Him.

Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection we can access the God who should be everything in our lives. He should be all we could ever need or want. God should be the one who is everything to us so that we are grateful to share Him.

Do you want to help lead people to Heaven? Then honor God by doing this commandment of telling others how good God personally has been to you… and maybe He will honor you with a reward the day you stand in Heaven.

Let’s all be like ones together, united in His love, bound to His will, and serve Jesus the wondrous Christ with all our hearts ’till He comes! Amen.

Man Vs. God’s Glory- 10/21/14

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I almost forgot to post today something that has been on my heart to talk of for awhile  though I was planning it. I read a brief devotion from Max Lucado that basically said to do something for God now. That was enough nudge from the Holy Spirit, thank you God.

What do you think of when you hear of glory? Do you think of the Lord? Do you think of the glory after a win in a major football game? Do you think of a Lady Gaga song…?

Well, what is glory? I looked up the word a bit of a while ago and it described it as “exalted honor.” Hmm, interesting.

I used to think if it was God’s glory it was like a big and amazingly bright light that was always shining day after day and forever. Because through all things when they are done in God’s love or passion He glorifies Himself all the time.

It’s sad when people think they know what is good for others. I mean that as if some places have gone beyond the separation of church and state and lawmakers are now making the church do things that are violating the law, in their effect (though they claim they are in right and the church is being unlawful). What they are doing is wrong and is basically equivalent to me going to an atheist convention and preaching the word of God and if they bring on the cops I sue and automatically collect the damages. Because they just wronged my right to tell them that what they were saying in that congregation of people was against my belief.

Now I know that people think “what are you talking about?” Sound ridiculous? It seems in the USA a country that has been stated once as a Christian nation is being pulled out of being that because of people. It’s funny when ones say churches are wrong to say certain things. That opinion can be taken in and pondered about. Okay, sometimes there are people who have off beliefs and should be labeled as cults but the church should never be given restrictions for what they can and cannot say. Restrictions as in a law that is active in the huge state of New York stating what churches in that entire area are being forced to not say.

What happened to freedom of religion? It seems in left-wing politics they can say whatever they want against others and justify it but once you try to tell your freedoms they bring out the constitution (which they apparently don’t even follow themselves what with forcing medical care on the entire public or else people pay a fine) and say “You should follow the law! Unconstitutional.”

Now I did not try to start a flame war with people strong on politics because I wanted to talk about something actually important.

I want to go beyond all beliefs in the political field and pierce though it with God.

What does God really want for us? Extreme left-wing, right-wing who cares?!!

What does the god of the universe who could have focused on anywhere else in this world but wants a relationship with us here down on earth? Who wants us to choose to be more like Him who wants to dwell within us?

You know during times of the Old Testament people were given laws. Did these laws save the people? By no means!

It was God who would do the saving, they depended and focused directly to Him!

God spoke to the people, had the Word for the people because knowing what God wants for us by reading His word has no way in our heart if they are just laws or “rules.” What God’s word and the Gospel is are from His principles.

God wants what is best for us. His plans for all and each of us is not meant to harm us but to give us a future.

People think they are doing good by forcing churches, bodies of God who gather to directly know, be honoring of, and be blessed by Him to tell them what is “right.”

That may be right to the ways of the “man’s” perspective but that is not good for earthly purposes on what is right. What people think is convenient to man is not beneficial ultimately to the adding to God’s Kingdom.

People can struggle with sin and problems but they must know that there is love by Jesus that forgives it. God forgives all! His blood by Jesus. It paid for everything this world may think is both good and bad.

I’m still not ready to give my testimony on a subject but we must trust in God’s way. His way by the pure holiness that gave us the bridge to heaven is the only way.

We must give our exalted honor to Him not by what man’s perspective perceives as “right.”

If you are giving glory to man you are living for the wrong reason. Let’s say the Greeks in ancient times did that (don’t let me get into that one…!). Did the ancient games add up to much ultimately and spiritually? Well there was a lot of bloodshed for sport and those deaths were pretty much in vain as far as I am concerned (murder was pretty much the game, make them die or die!).

How does one add to God’s kingdom? Do you believe in Jesus? Have you told others about Him without using the “I am just a Christian” attitude where you either judge everyone around you and not share His love or you make your statements the gold; being a true believer in Christ is not to boast of your thoughts or what you think the bible says versus what is does say.

A believer in Christ boasts in what Christ has does solely on what God has done in their life. Do you think sharing Jesus is a burden or do you take it as a wonderful chance to love in God and be love by telling ones what goodness it is to know Him?

Do you think that you can get better in your works or do you know the truth that Christ work on the cross is complete? His death on the cross gave us freedom from our punishment from what we deserved. We are free from the powers of hell and your friends around you can be to so please…

-Let’s give for His glory!