Tag: grace

Standing for Christ When Challenged

John 16:32
Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me.

The apostles and disciples of Jesus scattered as He began His journey to the Cross. They returned to their homes and their old jobs. Their faith was real, but without the Holy Spirit they were not strong enough to stand against those that were persecuting their Master. They left Jesus to stand alone. Fortunately for us, Jesus did not stand alone as the Father remained with Him and provided Him with all He needed to accept His place on the Cross.

Jesus calls us from different times and places in our lives, just as the apostles were called. At some point in time, we will all be called to stand up for our faith. In today’s anti-Christian environment, this challenge is more real than any of us could have ever imagined that it could be. Will we scatter to our old lives when the trials of persecution, the trials of trouble or perhaps the trials of political correctness challenge us? Or will we surrender all to Our Savior?

The answer lies in Jesus Christ and has nothing to do with our own strength, capability nor merit. We must recognize our weakness. If we think we can stand against the world, especially against the enemy, we will certainly fall. We must recognize how weak we are and take our brokenness – all our wounds, all our frailties, all our fears – to Our Savior. We must allow His goodness, His love, His mercy and His kindness to become the essence of our lives. If we accept His free gift of love and life and surrender to Him, we will never stand alone against what the world tosses our way.

Let us stand our ground as the world tries to get us to accept changes that are directly against the Word of God. Let us call on the Holy Spirit to provide the strength that we need. Let us rejoice for we never stand alone.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You that we have been called to follow Your Son. We exalt the name of Jesus who gained victory over all sin and all evil on our behalf. We praise His precious name as He stands forever by our sides. We pray, Father, that we may have the wisdom and the strength to recognize and face our brokenness. We ask that the Holy Spirit guide us in surrendering everything to Jesus. As we are challenged by the darkness of the world, my we call on the name of Jesus to stand up for our beliefs. We beseech You, Lord, to complete Your work in us so that we have the courage and the faith to choose Your Kingdom and defend it against the world. We ask all these things in the name of the One who gives grace to the humble, Jesus Christ.

The Endless Flow of the Love of God

1 John 4:16
So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.

God is love. His love is unconditional and without end. His love for us is expressed explicitly through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus. His love for us is reinforced daily by the counsel of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Through His love, Almighty God gives us an unfailing hope for our future. Let us not lose sight of the truth that our hope for our future is so much more than how we feel about our future or what the world tells us about our future. Our hope rests upon a very special love gift from God. Our hope is built upon the Good News of God for the world that He loves us so much that He gave us His Son so that we may have eternal life.

Through His love, Almighty God also gives us His Holy Spirit to stand by us, to give us the strength to bear all things that come against us and the spiritual maturity to endure all the tribulations that make up life on this earth. His grace is poured out on us in this manner so that we may overcome the world.

Most importantly, Almighty God created a spot in our hearts so that we could receive His love and return it to Him. He gave us the capacity to share His love with the world around us. He gave us the Holy Spirit so that our love could be an endless spring. When we are living in accordance with the Holy Spirit within us, we are capable of extraordinary service to those around us. By returning our love to the Father through our service to those around us, we become living testimonies of His perfect love.

Let us prepare our hearts to become vessels of God’s perfect love and forgiveness. Let us show the world His love through our compassionate sharing of the love He has given us.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for loving us unconditionally. We thank You that Your love flows to us endlessly. Prepare our hearts, Lord, so that we may become vessels of Your perfect love. Cleanse us, Lord, of anything in our hearts that would restrict the flow of Your love in our lives. May we bear much fruit for Your kingdom through the spontaneous release of Your love to the world around us. We pray, Father, that the world will be drawn to Your Son when they see Your love at work in us. We ask all these things in the name of the One who delights in our steadfast love, Jesus Christ.

God Perfects His Strength in Our Weakness

Matthew 26:56
But all this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophet might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples left him and fled.

When the time of testing comes in our lives, where will we stand? Will we stand on the promises of Jesus or will we try to stand on our own strength and capability? Scripture reveals to us that we will be just like the apostles if we rely on our own strength.

The men who had lived with Jesus for three years, sat under His teaching and witnessed all the signs and wonders of His ministry abandoned Him in His time of trial and their time of testing. How could this happen? It is the weakness of the flesh that failed the disciples. They did not yet have the strength of the Holy Spirit to overcome their weaknesses. What a dramatic difference the Holy Spirit made in their lives. After their baptism of the Holy Spirit, all of the apostles boldly proclaimed the Good News of Jesus Christ. All but one, John, died as a martyr while sharing the salvation plan.

We can be sure that in the flesh we are no stronger than the apostles. If we try to live by the flesh without calling on the Holy Spirit to guide us and strengthen us, we will fail in following Our Savior. Thankfully, God promises us in His Holy Word that He will perfect His strength in our weakness if we abide in Him. He secures this promise through His Holy Spirit who continuously stands with us so that we will not fail in the times of our testing.

Let us be strong when the world tries to weaken us. Let us be bold when the world tries to shut us down. Let us stand on the promises of Jesus Christ.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You that You have provided Your Wonderful Counselor to be with us, to guide us and to strengthen us in our weaknesses. We proclaim our weakness before You, Lord. We ask forgiveness for straying from You. We boldly claim Your promise to perfect Your strength in our weakness as we surrender to Your reign in our lives. We ask all these things in the name of the One who gives grace to the humble, Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Becoming As Pure As Christ

Matthew 5:8
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

Let us be certain that none but the pure of heart shall see God. Let us understand that nothing we can do on our own will satisfy the requirement of pureness of heart when it is time for us to stand before Our Creator.

The purest of notions have no eternal value if the heart of the man is impure. The most impressive outward actions are meaningless if the heart of the man is impure. The Pharisees are outstanding examples of these statements. The Pharisees were outwardly righteous, but inwardly they were full of impurity in their hearts.

Let us not forget that without Christ we are no better off than the Pharisees. Our hearts are naturally unclean and we have no power to make them pure. The only way that we can be pure in heart is to have the blood of Jesus cleanse us from our sins.

By the grace of God, we can submit our lives to the One that was 100% pure. We can make the desire of our hearts to be pure through Him. We can have hearts that are as pure as Christ, the angels in heaven and the glorified saints. Even though we may fail from time to time, we can turn our minds over to Him to be constantly renewed. Yet imperfect, we can have hearts that are entirely pure through the righteousness of Jesus Christ. And thus, we can be sure with full faith and confidence that we will see God at the time that He has set aside for us to stand before Him because our hearts will be pure.

Let us surrender our lives to Our Savior so that we may be cleansed of all unrighteousness. Let us rejoice in knowing that one day we will stand pure and righteous before Our Father in heaven and we will be received into His kingdom for all eternity.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for sending Jesus to this earth as our model of purity. We ask that You mold our hearts so that we may submit to Your Son to rule and reign in our lives. May the power of the Holy Spirit constantly renew our minds. May You provide the armor of protection that we need to shield us from the impurities that the world so freely throws at us. May the world around us be drawn to Your Son, Jesus, because of the purity that they see in us. We ask these things in the name of the One who is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness, Jesus Christ.

The Perfecting Process of Sanctification

2 Corinthians 7:1
Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

When we accept Jesus into our lives, we are sure to find that we are in bondage to one or more things that are of the world and not entirely pleasing to God. Once we receive the Holy Spirit, we will be lead into a process of shedding those things that the Lord deems unworthy. We will discover that we will not be able to change all things in our lives instantly, nor completely. Through faith, however, we will be able to confidently begin the process of shedding our fleshly bonds one at a time as the Holy Spirit convicts and strengthens us.

We can be certain that the work of sanctification is the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It is wholly the work of the Holy Spirit and not a work that we will pursue on our own. We can be just as certain that for the Holy Spirit to work in us that we will need to surrender to the perfecting process. It will be particularly important that we position ourselves through prayer and the study of God’s Holy Word onto a path of faith that allows us to live soberly, righteously and holy until the end of our days.

If we are steadfast in pursuing and surrendering to a path of sanctification, we will be benefactors of the strength of Jesus Christ and the assistance of His Holy Spirit. We will be enabled to perform acts of holiness and religious duty in fear of God. It will not be because of a fear of hell and damnation, but will be because of a reverential love and affection for Our Heavenly Father and a deep and complete trust in Him.

Let us bring holiness to completion in our lives. Let us surrender to the work of sanctification that only the Holy Spirit can provide. Let us rejoice in knowing that this is all made possible through the saving grace of Jesus Christ.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for providing Your wisdom so that we may understand Your ways and learn to live in awesome reverence of who You are. We pray that You will open our eyes so that we can see all the ways in our lives that displease You. Convict us of our sinful nature. Prepare a path for us to walk in the process of sanctification aided by the power of Your Holy Spirit. Lord, may we learn to lean on the Holy Spirit so that we may live soberly, righteously and holy. By Your grace, Father, and by the strength of Christ and the assistance of the Holy Spirit may we be delivered from our sinful lives. May the world know us by the fullness of Jesus Christ within us. We ask all these things in the name of the One who gives us the desire and the power to do what pleases You, Your Son, Jesus Christ.

Putting Our Faith in Christ and Not in Fallible Men

Psalm 119:19
I am a stranger on earth; do not hide your commands from me.

God’s commandments have been given to us. They are not new and there is no revised edition. The Lord’s commandments have been the same for thousands of years and will be the same as long as time exists. They are pure enlightenment, so needful for our journey in time on this earth.

Along with His commandments, Our Heavenly Father also has given us His inerrant Holy Word to confirm His guidelines for our lives. There is nothing hidden from us except what we manage to hide from ourselves. We have allowed our fellow man to take the laws of Almighty God and hide them from us by replacing them with the laws of fallible men.

The laws of fallible men invariably turn toward tolerance of things that are not pleasing to God and these same laws are used to pressure one another into accepting wrongful behavior as truth. We must guard against becoming citizens of this earth and foreigners in God’s kingdom. In this day and time, we must dare to be strangers in our own land.

Let us follow the commandments and the inerrant Word provided to us by Almighty God. Let us guard against being drawn into the thinking of those who wish to deviate from God’s plan. Let us live in Christ and not in this world.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing the way, the truth and the life that is revealed to us in Your Holy Word. We bless the name of Jesus who is the Word made flesh. Father, we pray that the Holy Spirit may direct us to repent of the things in our lives that are not pleasing to You. We ask for the strength to turn away from these displeasing things and the grace to turn toward all that is pleasing to You. We beseech You that all of our faith will be in Jesus Christ and not in the world. As we surrender to Your will, equip us, Lord, to reveal Your kingdom to those around us. We ask all these things in the name of the One who is with us until the end of the age, Jesus Christ.

Strengthened by the Grace of God

2 Timothy 2:1
You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

Paul wrote the words in this passage to his helper, Timothy, to prepare him for everything that the world was going to throw at him. Paul alerted Timothy that there would be many trials that he would endure. He encouraged him by reminding him that he would be strengthened by the One who sent them out to preach to the people. Paul exhorted Timothy to rely completely on the grace of God and not to turn to his own ways to find his strength.

When the worst that the world can throw at us comes along, we need to be rooted and grounded in our faith in the grace that is provided to us. Our strength and our security will rest upon the faith that we build in the strong, immovable, unalterable love of God that is provided through His grace that is in His Son, Jesus.

As we find ourselves challenged by life, we can be comforted by Paul’s instruction to Timothy. Jesus Christ will never leaves us. When we turn to Him for our direction and our strength, our path is secure. By the fullness of His grace, we are enabled to fulfill our ministries, bear all trials and afflictions and stand against all persecution.

Let us march boldly forward in our walk with Our Savior. Let us open our minds and hearts to receive the abundant grace that He has set aside for us. May His power to overcome all that comes against us be released in our lives.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the grace that we receive through our relationship with Your Son, Jesus. We exalt the name of Jesus, who provides the strength that we need to overcome all of the trials and issues in our lives. We ask, Lord, that the Holy Spirit teach us how to rely solely on the fullness of the grace available to us through our relationship with Our Savior. We pray that our firm reliance on Your Son will release His power and His Spirit into our lives and our ministries. We ask all these things in the name of the One who became flesh so that we might receive Your endless grace, Jesus Christ.

The Promise of Eternal Life in Heaven

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16 is one of the most recognizable passages in the Bible. Do we really take the time to examine what this powerful verse means to us? Do we fully understand that God’s immeasurable, inexhaustible, divine love was required to save a sin ravished world. He gave His Son, Jesus, to be the Prophet, the Priest, the King and, most importantly, the Savior for all mankind. This was an unequivocal necessity for our eternal good.

Through His unlimited mercy, Our Heavenly Father provides a plan for each of us to avoid eternal damnation for our sins. His plan is simple. We must submit to Jesus Christ as our teacher, our ruler and Our Savior. Our duty is to proclaim His name. Our benefit is everlasting life in His Kingdom.

Jesus sacrificed His life for us. He is asking us to sacrifice our old lives in exchange for a new life under His stewardship. There is really no sacrifice on our parts. What we receive is eternally greater than what we leave behind – what an awesome offer! Yet many do not accept it.

To further understand the full value of the gift that we have received, we need to understand that we would not make the right choice if it were not for the grace of God. We choose salvation because the Holy Spirit does a work in us that we could not do for ourselves. What a loving, forgiving, merciful God we serve!

As we accept the precious eternal offer from Almighty God, let us exalt the name of His Son, Jesus, who sacrificed everything for us. Let us sacrifice everything for Him so others may know Him and accept His eternal offer of salvation.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing a way for us to escape eternal damnation because of our sins. We thank You for providing Your Son as our sacrificial lamb and as our living, ever present Good Shepherd. We humbly submit to You all that we are and all that we have in the name of Jesus Christ. We pray that the presence of Your Holy Spirit will strengthen us as we walk the pathway of sanctification that You have set aside for us. We pray, Lord, that Your Holy Spirit will prepare the hearts of those around us to receive Your Son as their Savior. May our changed lives help draw them to Your Son. We ask all these things in the name of Our Holy Redeemer, Jesus Christ.

Breaking Free From Our Old Nature

Galatians 2:20
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

When we accept our salvation, we join Jesus Christ in crucifixion. Just as He accepted death on the Cross to wash away our sins, we accept the crucifixion of our own flesh in order to set aside our old nature and take on the nature of the One who dwells within us.

Our new nature rises through the indwelling spirit of Our Savior, Jesus Christ, to bring us victory over our sin stained flesh. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we find ourselves mortified by the sin in our lives. By the grace, that is not of ourselves, we are made fully aware of our iniquities. We even can find comfort in knowing that what once ruled over us is now under control.

Unfortunately, our flesh does not go without a fight and the enemy will ramp up his efforts to turn us away from our new life in Christ. But rest assured, Our Savior put sin to death on the Cross and ushered in His endless grace for those that accept His gift of unconditional love. Even though our flesh will call us to go back to our old nature, we are equipped to overcome that call. If we learn to live in dependence upon Our Savior, we are freed to lead holy lives. By faith, not in ourselves, but by faith in Jesus Christ, we are able to relinquish our old lives in the flesh in exchange for our new lives in spiritual union with the One who loved us so much that He was willing to die for us.

Let us live by faith in the Son of God. Let us learn to live in victory over the callings of our flesh. Let us rejoice in knowing that sin in our lives was put to death on the Cross.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the new lives that You have given us through the sacrifice of Your Son on the Cross. We exalt the name of Jesus who shed His blood for all men. We rejoice in knowing that we are conquerors over our flesh through the endless flow of grace provided by Our Savior. We pray, Lord, that You will hold us steadfast in Your grace. We ask, Father, that You will give us the wisdom to toss aside any claim to our own merit and the strength to take hold of, and never let loose of, the faith in Christ that sustains us as heirs to Your kingdom. We ask all these things in the name of Our Lord, Our King, Our Savior, Jesus Christ.

The Greater Blessings of Those in Close Fellowship with God

Psalm 91:1
He that dwells in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

In this world, to live in someone’s shadow is generally thought to be an undesirable place. It is regarded as a place where you cannot live up to the standards of the one who preceded you. In the kingdom of God, quite the opposite is true. Living in the shadow of Almighty God enables us to be more than we could believe to be possible.

Loving faith in Almighty God on our part will always be met by faithful love, protection and provision on God’s part. His covering of us is much greater than we can imagine. If we are abiding in Him, there is no limit to His shadow that is over us. He protects us at all times from natural and supernatural enemies. He makes our homes secure. He is our refuge in every storm.

But it does not stop there for those that seek to live in His shadow. He invites us to enjoy so much more. There is a special nuance in this passage that must not be overlooked. The blessings spoken of in today’s passage can be greater for those believers who live in ongoing, close fellowship with God. The delightful fullness of these most high blessings are for those who habitually abide in the shadow of Almighty God. Those who stand in continuous communion with God set themselves up to become possessors of rare and special benefits.

Let us seek the grace to be constant refugees in the fortress of Almighty God. Let us enjoy the fullness of His shadow.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for the shadow of protection and provision that You place over us when we surrender our lives to You. We bless the name of Jesus who has made it possible for us to come to Your mercy seat. We pray, Lord, that Your Holy Spirit will guide us and strengthen us as we seek to abide under Your shadow. May our hearts be prepared to seek that secret place of constant communion where we can access the fullness of Your most high blessings. We ask all these things in the name of the One whose mercies never end, Jesus Christ.