Tag: disciples

Holy Spirit Reveals the Treasures that are Ours through Jesus Christ

John 14:26
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

Jesus taught His disciples that they would receive far greater powers after He left them. He promised that He would send the Holy Spirit to remind them of His teachings and to release in them the power that He promised to them.

When we receive Jesus Christ as Our Savior, we are indwelled by His Holy Spirit. As the Holy Spirit fulfills His calling to glorify Jesus, He declares the things that are to come into our lives through our relationship with Jesus. Just like the apostles did, we enter into a new phase of our lives. We move from whatever natural level of piety, prayer and devotion that we might have had in the past into a new supernatural level of devotion in our daily lives. We are then directed by the Holy Spirit into a personal, passionate relationship with Jesus.

Simultaneously, the Holy Spirit begins to lead us through the sanctification process. From that first moment of accepting Jesus and until our death, the Holy Spirit is shaping us into the person that God created us to be. As we go through the sanctification process, we go through a supernatural transformation. As we respond to the urgings of the Holy Spirit, our spiritual faculty is quickened so that we may understand and respond to unfathomed treasures that are in Jesus Christ.

Ultimately, as the Holy Spirit reveals the fullness of Jesus Christ to us, our manifest destiny that Jesus has prepared for us is also revealed. As we mature in Christ, we start walking in the life that God had planned for us from the beginning.

Let us invite the Holy Spirit to reveal our callings to us. Let us solicit the Holy Spirit to release the supernatural power that Jesus promised to His disciples of all times and seasons. Let us begin to walk the pathways of our manifest destinies in Christ.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the Holy Spirit who reveals to us the treasures that are ours through Your Son, Jesus. We rejoice as the Holy Spirit leads us to Jesus to lean on Him for every good thing through time and for all eternity. We pray, Lord, that we may join the Holy Spirit as He glorifies the name of Our Savior. May our work be derived from our devotion to Your Son. May those around us know us by our calling and may they be called in the same manner. We ask all these things in the name of Our Lord and Our Sanctifier, Jesus Christ.

Letting Our Living Testimony Overcome Contempt

Psalm 123:3
Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy upon us, for we have had more than enough of contempt.

Every day the world around us seems to get more contentious and contemptuous. Webster defines contempt as “feeling that a person or a thing is beneath consideration, worthless, or deserving scorn.” We see dramatic outpourings of contempt in the news and throughout social media. We certainly recognize the contempt that unbelievers often have for our faith as disciples of Jesus Christ. As a result of the contempt that we encounter, hopefully we are quick to ask the Lord to open the eyes of those around us so that their scorn for us is replaced by a desire to learn from us the way, the truth and the life that we have in Jesus. But is that the case?

When we are out in the world, how are we reacting to those that annoy us? Are we taking an intercessory path or are we treating them with contempt? Are we losing our testimony because of an ugly glare or quick nasty comment that destroys our message of salvation? Are we leaving the world with a taste of our nasty attitude instead of the love of the One who we have accepted as Our Savior?

Let us be fully aware that the world is filled with contempt, but as Christians we are not of this world. Let us refuse to be swamped by the cares and challenges of life. Let us turn over the annoyances that we run into in the world and let God handle them in the courts of heaven. Let us ask the Lord to give us discernment in all things so that we are known by our intercession and not by our criticism. Let us exchange our contempt for others with our loving care for others.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your mercy that You have extended to us so that we may be able to extend mercy to others. We praise the name of Our Savior, Jesus Christ, who is our Mediator who stands for us to correct every wrong and every injury as any good master would do for his slave. We pray, Lord, that we will not faint under our trials in this world, but we will look unto the name of Jesus in faith and in prayer so that we may be vessels of His perfect love and forgiveness so that the world may know Him by our actions. We ask all these things in the name of Our Merciful Lord, Jesus Christ.

Baptized in a Holy Fire

Isaiah 60:2
For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you.

This passage in Isaiah is regarded as prophetic in nature, speaking to the end of times. It predicts the rise of Christianity out of the darkest of times. The first part of this passage certainly defines our times and our society across the globe. Oh, how sweet it will be when the Lord raises up the greatest revival known to mankind as He fulfills the latter portion of this prophecy.

Can things getting any darker? The ignorance, immorality, idolatry, superstition, false doctrine and false worship that we see everyday are surely forms of a very thick darkness. It seems as if light is unable to penetrate the darkness that continues to escalate and build around us. The world has been shaken and people are broken. We have all become victims of Satan’s plans of destruction.

But rejoice, even though the evil one is ramping up his lies and deceiving ways, Our Lord has different plans. He has promised to bring His glory to be seen by the world. We will be covered by a consuming fire. He will baptize us in a Holy Fire and everything will be different. Even though we will be experiencing darkness around us and tribulation in our lives, we will also witness Almighty God’s presence in our lives in the midst of it all. It is His glorious plan for us to overcome everything that comes against us. It is His glorious plan that His consuming fire will be a purifying fire. It will be a fire that cannot be quenched. It will be a fire without end. It will overcome darkness in ways that we have not seen in our life times.

Let us be aware of the working of the Holy Spirit in us and around us. Let us prepare ourselves as disciples of Jesus Christ for the greatest revival in history.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the abundant life that You have prepared for us as we surrender to the divine fire of Your Holy Spirit. We lift Your name up above all names as we come before You to seek the consuming fire that You have promised us. We pray that Your purifying fire will burn the darkness out of our lives. May our transformed lives bring light to the darkness wherever we go. May our living testimonies draw many into Your kingdom. We ask all these things in the name of the Living Flame, Jesus Christ.

Trusting That the Lord Will Prepare the Hearts of Those We are Trying to Reach

Matthew 28:19
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

How many did you win? How many did you sell? How much profit did you make? These are the clamorings of men and women who trying to measure their success against their perceived plans.

Sometimes it pours over into the things we do in service to Our Lord. How many attended the 11am service? How much did we collect at the offering? How many responded to the altar call? How many were baptized? Man’s desire to satisfy/gratify his own need is insatiable.

Man’s desire to convert God’s work to his own plan is a common practice. Our Heavenly Father has a different plan. Almighty God does not call us to results. Jesus did not tell His disciples to go out and win souls. He asked them to go out and teach the people about having a relationship with Him.

Jesus did not give His disciples a quota, nor does He give us one. He simply asks that we teach the world around us about the relationship that we have with Him.

Let us go out and develop relationships with others so that they will be interested in knowing our story. Let us be prepared to tell them about Our King and His saving grace. Let us trust in the Lord to inspire our listeners to receive His eternal gift.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we rejoice in knowing that it is Your will that no man shall perish. We thank You for providing the way, the truth and the life that is in Your Son, Jesus. We pray, Father, that You will use us to teach the world about Your wonderful salvation plan. We ask for the grace to set aside our own personal desires and plans so that we may fully submit to the perfect will and plan that You have for our lives. Through the presence and power of Jesus in our lives, may we make disciples of others. We ask all these things in the name of the One who shall have dominion, Jesus Christ.

Called to Express the Love of Christ in All Circumstances

Luke 6:28
Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you.

The supercharged, divisive mindset that has been growing and covering our nation sure does stir up everyone’s emotions. Strike back! Respond in defense! Prove that I am right! All of these are natural human responses to conflict.

As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are called to follow a different standard. “Love thy neighbor as thyself” requires a supernatural response when we run into personal conflict. We are called to express the love of Christ in each instance. This may require having to forgive the person in the heat of the conflict. Only our strength through Jesus Christ allows us to meet this standard.

On the Cross, Jesus prayed that His murderers would be forgiven by His Father. Stephen, the martyred disciple of Jesus, in his dying moments also showed us the standard to which we are called as he asked for forgiveness for those who were stoning him. To meet this standard of mercy, we need supernatural strength. When it comes to facing the day-to-day conflicts in our lives, the supernatural grace of God is required. Our human nature will be woefully insufficient. It is through His grace and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that we are able to consistently respond in a manner that reflects the discipline of a follower of Jesus Christ.

Let us be merciful just as Our Heavenly Father is merciful to us. Let us bless those that hurt us. Let us pray for those that have come against us.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You loving us first so that we may love You and love those around us. We thank You for the mercy that You extended to us through the redemptive blood of Your Son, Jesus, so that we may extend mercy to those who we come in conflict with us. We thank You for forgiving us of our sins so that we may be able to forgive those who sin against us. We pray, Father, for the grace and the strength to release to the world the overflow of the lovingkindness that You poured out on us. We ask all these things in the name of the Slain Lamb, Jesus Christ.

Receiving the Fullness of His Perfect Love

1 John 2:2
He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.

God so loved the world that He gave His Son to die for the sins of all of mankind. In this one act, we see the perfect love and the perfect forgiveness of both the Father and the Son. The advocacy of the Son is limited to believers, but the propitiation for sin extends as far and as wide and as deep as the evidence of sin in all people.

When we receive the Son, Jesus Christ, as Our Savior, we are receiving the fullness of His perfect love and forgiveness. We also receive the indwelling Holy Spirit who instills in us this perfect love and forgiveness to share with the world around us. As it is with the Father and the Son, we are to withhold love and forgiveness from no man.

With all the anger and bitterness that is spewed every day in our society, we should not withhold even the smallest portion of love and forgiveness from any man anywhere. Our ability to love and forgive under all circumstances is what marks us as disciples of Jesus Christ.

Let us set aside the anger that the world stirs in us. Let us refuse to partner with the bitterness that our flesh demands. Let us live in the fullness of joy and peace that is only found through perfect love and forgiveness.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the unlimited flow of love and forgiveness that comes from Your Throne. We bless the name of Jesus for becoming sin for every man so that we all could receive the eternal gift of salvation. We pray, Lord, that the Holy Spirit will guide us as we learn to become free flowing vessels of Your perfect love and forgiveness. We ask for the grace to overcome all bitterness, anger and unforgiveness in our lives so that we may in no way hinder the provision of Your love to the world around us. We ask all these things in the name of the Lord Our Redeemer, Jesus Christ.

Following the Lead of Our Master

Mark 10:21
And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”

On earth, only Jesus has achieved absolute abandonment to The Father. Only He could. Yet He commanded His disciples to follow Him. He was asking them to follow the lead of their Master. He was asking them to release their hold on the things of this earth and take hold of His kingdom.

As disciples of Jesus Christ in this age, we are also called to follow the lead of Our Master. We are therefore called to be diligent in the constant process of releasing all of our carnal desires as we fully surrender to the will of the Father in our lives. This is an ongoing and arduous process for each of us.

In our time on earth, none of us will reach the point of absolute abandonment to the Father as Jesus did. Only when we reach our place in heaven with Jesus, will we have completed the process and stand before the Father in the perfect and pure image of Our Savior.

Let us continuously recognize and renounce our earthly desires through the inspiring work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Let us begin shedding all of our shortcomings one by one through the grace of Almighty God and the saving work of Jesus Christ. Let us commit ourselves to unconditional identification with Our Savior.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your precious love and provision. We proclaim our love for You and humbly offer to You all that You have given us. Father, we pray that we will be led by the Holy Spirit to surrender all that we have, all that we will every have, all that we are and all that we will ever be to You. May we exchange the things of this earth for the treasures of Your kingdom. May we take hold of the fullness of the eternal life in Jesus as we release our hold on our worldly possessions and desires. We ask all these things in the name of Our Lord, Our Master and Our Eternal King, Jesus Christ.

Defeating the Enemy by Faith in the Word and the Aid of the Holy Spirit

Luke 9:57
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”

As pointed out in this passage and other passages, some of the early followers of Jesus were boasting, “I will follow You wherever You go.” But Jesus was quick to point out to them that following Him was more costly that many were willing to pay. It is the same for us.

Once we commit to fully surrender to Our Savior and follow Him, we can be certain that there will be attacks and trials that will surely challenge our resolve. Every consideration that we give to continuing as true disciples of Jesus will lead us down a decision path that is predominantly supported by human logic. Without faith in the Word of God and the strengthening power of the Holy Spirit, we will follow the callings of our flesh which are never ready to be laid down at the feet of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. When we examine the costs, we are likely to end up stalling or passing all together on our calling as disciples. Praise God that He knows us so well, loves us still, has mercy on us and provides His Son for our salvation, His Word for our direction and His Holy Spirit for our strengthening.

Let us claim all that He has set aside for us because He sees us, not in the flesh, but in the image of His Son. Let us follow Our Savior King wherever He leads us. Let us stand firm in our commitment.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for accepting us as heirs to Your kingdom. We rejoice in knowing that You see us only in the image of Your Son who has washed away all of our iniquity with His precious blood. We pray, Lord, that You open our minds and hearts to the fullness of Your Holy Word. We ask that You show us how to surrender completely to the direction of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We beseech You, Father, to give us the grace to fall at the feet of the Cross so that we may walk in the way, the truth and the life that is in Your Son, Jesus. We ask all these things in the precious, holy and mighty name of Jesus Christ.

The All-Sufficient Grace of Our Savior

Matthew 5:40
And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.

Jesus’ instructions to His disciples was simple enough. It just does not make sense to us and it probably did not make sense to them. It is not natural for us to bear an injury for the sake of peace. In the flesh, it is difficult for us to meet this standard.

As we become disciples of Jesus Christ, we learn to commit our concerns to the Lord. We learn to avoid the disputes that our flesh would demand. We come to recognize through the supernatural influence of the Holy Spirit that our flesh and blood will not inherit the kingdom of God. Only our spirit will find its resting place with the Father. And it will be our spirit that will find supernatural peace and comfort on this earth when we follow the principles that Our Lord teaches.

Being a disciple of Jesus Christ cannot be carried out in the flesh. God does not start with our natural ability and build on it. He only asks that we rely on His grace and submit to the presence and the supernatural work of the One that dwells within us. And as He promises, His grace is sufficient.

Let us relinquish all the power that we think we have in the flesh in exchange for the supernatural power that we receive in the spirit through Jesus Christ. Let us strive to be spirit-filled, fully empowered disciples of Our Lord, Our Master and Our King.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the all-sufficient grace that You provide that allows us to live as disciples of Your Son, Jesus. We humbly acknowledge, Father, that You do not see us as who we are today or who we have been. We rejoice in knowing that You see us as who we are in Christ. We pray, Lord Jesus, that You will walk by our side and lead us to the way of peace. We ask that You show us how to draw the world to You through our living testimony as Your disciples. We ask all these things in the name of the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ.

Reflecting the Character of the One within Us

Matthew 5:48
You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

When Jesus spoke to His disciples, He knew full well that they were incapable of being perfect. He was asking them to consider the manner in which they represented Him. He wanted their behavior to distinguish them from others in the world around them. He wanted them to be living examples of the good character of the representatives of His kingdom.

We are most comfortable in life when we are around people we like. We also feel comfortable when we are asked to do things that we know that we are capable of doing successfully. In these times of ease, our personality and our capabilities often shine and our performance appears to be nearly perfect, at least from a secular standpoint. While this type of behavior is certainly good, it generally will not separate us from the secular crowd. We are likely to rely on our own strengths, resulting in us just blending into society without reflecting the presence and character of the One who dwells within us.

On the other hand, when we are challenged by our circumstances and we purposely follow the perfect example of Jesus and draw on Him for our strength, our behavior as His representatives will draw the others to Our Savior. When we seek and allow the fruits of the Holy Spirit to flow through us, the world around us will see us modeling the life of Our Savior and be drawn to Him.

Jesus commands us to make it our duty to desire to press forward in grace and holiness, so that we may conform ourselves to His example under even the most difficult circumstances. He desires for us to be perfect like the Father.

Let us lean on the Son of God as our model and submit to His indwelling Spirit in our lives. Let us strive for the perfection that He is calling us to. Let us draw the world to Our Savior as they see us modeling Jesus Christ in our daily lives regardless of our circumstances.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing Your Son, Jesus, to be our perfect model for life. We thank You for providing the Holy Spirit to guide us to follow Jesus’ example. We rejoice in knowing that our obedience will result in the gifts of the Holy Spirit being poured out on the world around us. We pray that we may exhibit unusual love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control as we are being taxed by our situations. May You receive all the praise and glory, Lord. We ask all these things in the name of the perfect Son of the Most High God, Jesus Christ.