Tag: Savior

Spiritual Growth is Influenced by the People God Places in Our Lives

1 Corinthians 1:2
To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:

When Paul addressed the Corinthians, he emphasized their sanctification through Jesus Christ. He confirmed that they would be among all the saints in heaven who had also called on the name of Our Lord as their Savior. He stressed that they would all be part of the Body of Christ.

By the grace of God, we are all called to be heirs to His kingdom. Our Heavenly Father’s hand never leaves us as He prepares us to be His saints. It is for His good pleasure and for His glory that He provides His Holy Spirit to prepare us to be His saints. But God also brings commonplace people and commonplace events into our lives to teach us, to encourage us and to confirm the plans that He has for us. He may at times use extraordinary people and extremely uncommon events when He needs to drive a message home.

Let us take careful consideration of the people that God places in our lives. Let us be aware of the challengers who are there to test us on an ongoing basis in order to stimulate our spiritual growth. Let us also be aware of the challenged who are there for us to encourage, build up and serve.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your perfect plan to have us join You in heaven for all eternity. We bless the name of Jesus for His shed blood that washes us clean and makes it possible for us to enter into Your presence. We pray, Lord, that You will release many teachers, encouragers and confirmers into our lives. We ask for ears to hear them and the wisdom to follow their counsel. We pray that we may also become teachers, encouragers and confirmers in the lives of others on their journeys to sainthood. We ask all these things in the name of Our Holy and Awesome Lord, Jesus Christ.

The Ongoing Process of Surrendering to the Will of God for Our Lives

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.

Is Your Decision Path in Life Based on Logic or Faith in the Holy Word?

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.

Leaning on the Son of God as Our Model

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.

May Our Obedience Glorify the Names of the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit

John 17:4
I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do.

Jesus Himself declared that His principal work was to be obedient to the will of His Father in heaven. He did not seek His own glory. He sought only His Father’s glory. In the process, He did away with Satan, sin and death and He provided for the redemption and the salvation of all men.

Just as Jesus was faithful in completing His work on earth to glorify His Father, He will also be faithful in completing His work in us so that we may glorify Our Father. We will not experience the complete fullness of His work in us until we meet Our Savior in His eternal kingdom. But as we surrender to the will of the Father, we can expect to accomplish more here on earth than we can imagine that we are capable of. And we can be certain that our work will bring glory to Our Father in heaven.

Be mindful that Satan and our own flesh will come against us as we seek to glorify the Father on earth. But fear not for the Spirit of the Lord will insure that we overcome the work of the enemy. We do not need to be concerned about our circumstances, Our Savior will be sufficient. And it will all be for the glory of The Father.

Let us surrender everything to Our Father in heaven. Let our obedience to His call on our lives glorify His name. May those around us glorify the Father when they see our faithfulness.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the grace that You have given us through Your Son to overcome the world. We bless the name of Jesus for His faithfulness in completing the good work that You gave Him to do. We pray that the Holy Spirit will lead us and strengthen us so that we may fully surrender to Your will just as Your Son surrendered His all to You. May it all be for Your glory, for the glory of Your Son and the glory of the Holy Spirit. We ask all these things in the name of the obedient Son of the Most High God, Jesus Christ.

The Victory Over Sin Was Won on the Cross

2 Corinthians 10:3
For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh.

To wage war against Satan relying on our on strength is pure folly. To fight against the strongholds of our flesh without Jesus Christ is also pure folly. Without Jesus Christ, we will lose each of these battles more times than not. Without Jesus Christ, the small battles that we may win will only be pyrrhic victories. The costly war will be lost.

Our only formula for victory over Satan and over the torments of our flesh is to cast all of our cares upon the Lord. Through Him we have victory in everything. The process of sanctification is giving up one’s own ability to compete and placing the battle entirely in the hands of Jesus Christ.

Ultimately, the battle is not against sin. Jesus won the battle against sin on the Cross. The battle is our struggle to let go of our natural lives in which have no power against the enemy and take on the spirit filled life of Christ which allows us to apply the supernatural power of Almighty God against Satan and his minions.

Let us give up all confidence that we have in our own abilities to take on Satan. Let us take all of our battles before the Lord. Let us cast all of our cares on Him. Let us claim the victory that He won for us on the Cross.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the blood of Your Son that cleanses of our sins. We bless the name of Jesus who indwells us so that we may have the grace to turn away from our natural lives and turn toward our lives in Christ. We pray that when the enemy comes prowling with the intent to destroy us and those around us that we look confidently to our Savior King. We ask all these things in the name of Our Lord Mighty in Battle, Jesus Christ.

When We Seek the World for Answers, We Tend to be Shortsighted

Psalm 120:5
Woe to me, that I sojourn in Meshech, that I dwell among the tents of Kedar!

It is believed that David did not actually travel to Mesech or Kedar, nor did he live among their people. Mesech was often mentioned with Tubal, Gog and Magog. The people of these lands were regarded as barbarians. The Kedarenes were a people who lived in tents, moving from land to land looking for new pastures. It is believed that David was using mention of these people to paint a picture of the types of his own people that he was living with. His intention was to highlight the danger of becoming engaged in a society that is known to be ignorant, idolatrous and barbaric.

David’s warning is one that we should pay attention to. We have to be especially attentive when we are being severely challenged by our circumstances. We must learn to guard against being both short sighted and wrong sighted. We must be extremely careful not to make our dwelling place in a lost world, looking toward that world for answers instead of seeking the favor of Our Lord. We must exert a level of supernatural attentiveness. If we do not, we will end up making many decisions in the darkness instead of in the light.

Why would we ever turn to the darkness of the world instead of the Light of the World, Jesus Christ? It is not because the knowledge of the fullness of living in the light is not known to us. It is because we are spending so much more time in the world than we are in the arms of Our Savior.

Let us turn away from all the darkness that the world is offering. Let us choose instead to run to Our Lord and seek the treasures of the eternal light that He is holding for us.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing us with escape from the darkness that this world offers us. We rejoice in knowing that we have the favor of Our Savior, Jesus Christ. We cry out to You, Our Lord, for Your peace and Your holiness. We pray that You will strengthen us to overcome the evil that surrounds us. We ask that Your Holy Spirit guide us in setting aside time to spend with our blessed Savior. May we become vessels of light to the world around us as we surrender to the Light of the World. We ask all these things in the name of our refuge from the world, Jesus Christ.

Allowing the Life Giving Stream of Our Savior to Flow in Our Lives

John 7:38
Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, “Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”

By faith, we receive Jesus into our lives. When we receive Our Savior, we receive His living water. This life giving stream has flowed from Our Redeemer throughout all time to every place and person. The same life giving stream can flow continuously from our hearts if we are in submission to the Cross and not to ourselves.

Through the fount that is Jesus Christ, we also receive the sanctifying and comforting presence of the Holy Spirit flowing into and through our lives. Through the work of the Holy Spirit, the flow can manifest itself in many ways. It can range from the smallest, unseen kindness to a magnificent production on the grandest of stages. The flow is as a fountain of living, running water that is providing continuous streams that are all at once cooling, calming, refreshing and cleansing. The flow is plentiful, constant as a river. It is a continuous stream of the fullness of Jesus Christ and His grace.

Let us prepare ourselves to be willing vessels. Let us submit fully to the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives so that God’s goodness may be poured out through us to the world around us.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for using us as founts of Your living water. We praise You for the refreshing and cleansing that it brings into our own lives as we allow the waters to pass through us. We humbly and anxiously submit to the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We pray that we come into the fullness of the flow so that the thirst of those around us may be quenched as we are quenched. We ask all these things in the name of the Life Giving Spirit, Jesus Christ.

Father God Nurtures Us and Draw Us Closer During Our Times of Trial

Isaiah 43:2
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.

The trials of fire and water can be in the context of natural disasters or they can be in the context of figurative calamities which come upon us rapidly and are immediately overwhelming to us personally. Whether our trials are figurative or literal, God promises that we shall not be consumed by any trouble or peril that threatens to distress us greatly. In fact, God assures us that He plans to turn our trials to our advantage. He intends to teach and instruct us through our afflictions as He delivers us out of them.

Suffering will come in our lives. It is not a matter of if, it is only a matter of when. We can be comforted in knowing that through all these trying times that God will be with us. He will never leave us or forsake us. He promises to not only guide us and strengthen us through these things that are so troublesome to our flesh, but to use each of these times to nurture us and draw us closer to Himself.

When all is said and done, we will find that it is during the times of suffering that we see the greatest transformation in our lives. With our eyes focused on Our Savior and not our problems, we will see layers of self peeled away and the likeness of Christ rising up in us. Through His grace, we will see the fires of chaos burn away our uneven edges and the overflowing waters carry away our dross.

Let us find Jesus in the storms of our lives. Let us draw closer to Him as we receive the comfort, guidance and strength that He promises. Let us grow spiritually through His nurturing during our times of greatest trial.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the comfort of knowing that You are always with us. We bless Your name for the strength that You provide for us to wade safely through the storm waters of life. We pray that Your Holy Spirit will teach us how to focus on Our Savior Jesus Christ and not on the trials that are trying to overwhelm us. We pray that You will provide refreshing when we are so weary in the battle. We ask all these things in the name of Our Fortress and Our Protector, Jesus Christ.

The Light of Christ Reveals to Us the Darkness that Surrounds Us

John 12:35
So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going.

In the darkness, no work can be done and unseen pitfalls are perilously close by. Left in the darkness, we will find ourselves wandering aimlessly on with no measure of progress. Jesus warned that such a place was eminent for those who did not take advantage of the light that He provided.

Jesus is the light, the truth and the way. When we let Him into our lives, His light reveals all the darkness in our flesh that stands ready to trap us. His light illumines our way so that we can turn from the things in our lives that displease Our Heavenly Father. His light frees us from the darkness where we are sure to find affliction, calamity and distress. His light allows us to act as wise men and not as fools.

Jesus came and died on the Cross so that many may live in His light. Those that choose to live in His light, He allows to be beacons to call others to His light and to be vessels for sharing the peace and protection that His light provides.

Let us choose the paths for our lives that are illuminated by the presence of Our Savior. Let us all be lamps that carry His glory.

Prayer
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the Light of the World, Jesus Christ. We bless the name of Jesus who frees us from living in the blindness and darkness created and cultivated by our sin natures. We thank You, Lord, that Your Holy Spirit illumines our paths each day. We pray that the Holy Spirit will guide and strengthen us as we choose to live in the Light. We ask all these things in the name of the way, the truth and the life, Jesus Christ.