Thomas E Meyer Jr

The Single Minded Pursuit of Unholy Discontentment, and Dissatisfaction. Pursuit of Emptiness Without Christ. Ecclesiastes 2:1-11, 24-26.

Ecclesiastes 2:1-11, 24-26 Easy-to-Read Version

Does “Having Fun” Bring Happiness?

2 I said to myself, “I should have fun—I should enjoy everything as much as I can.” But I learned that this is also useless. ²It is foolish to laugh all the time. Having fun does not do any good.

³So I decided to fill my body with wine while I filled my mind with wisdom. I tried this foolishness because I wanted to find a way to be happy. I wanted to see what was good for people to do during their few days of life.

Does Hard Work Bring Happiness?

⁴Then I began doing great things. I built houses, and I planted vineyards for myself. ⁵I planted gardens, and I made parks. I planted all kinds of fruit trees. ⁶I made pools of water for myself, and I used them to water my growing trees. ⁷I bought men and women slaves, and there were slaves born in my house. I owned many great things. I had herds of cattle and flocks of sheep. I owned more things than any other person in Jerusalem did.

⁸I also gathered silver and gold for myself. I took treasures from kings and their nations. I had men and women singing for me. I had everything any man could want.

⁹I became very rich and famous. I was greater than anyone who lived in Jerusalem before me. My wisdom was always there to help me. ¹⁰Anything my eyes saw and wanted, I got for myself. My mind was pleased with everything I did. And this happiness was the reward for all my hard work.

¹¹But then I looked at everything I had done and the wealth I had gained. I decided it was all a waste of time! It was like trying to catch the wind.^[a] There is nothing to gain from anything we do in this life.^[b]

^24-25There is no one who has tried to enjoy life more than I have. And this is what I learned: The best thing people can do is eat, drink, and enjoy the work they must do. I also saw that this comes from God.^[a]26If people do good and please God, he will give them wisdom, knowledge, and joy. But those who sin will get only the work of gathering and carrying things. God takes from the bad person and gives to the good person. But all this work is useless. It is like trying to catch the wind.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

Chasing the Winds, Searching for the Winds

People always seem to be chasing after and searching for the “best” good life.

But what is the “best” good life anyway?

For some, it is an education – graduating from high school, or from college, it’s a successful career.

For others, it’s getting married and having a family, it is raising their children in such a way as it brings glory to God, the Father, God the Son, Holy Spirit.

For still others, it’s having a million dollars in the bank–or all of the above!

Whatever a person’s idea of the “best” good life is, it usually means having or doing something more, significantly more than what they have or can do now.

The writer of Ecclesiastes had an insatiable appetite for the good life.

We will read through the opening chapters and verses of Ecclesiastes, and we’ll see that he tried knowledge and education, pleasure and entertainment, wealth and kingly gifts, tons and tons of precious metals and gems and possessions, he traveled wide, partied, plotted, and perused everything the world has to offer.

He acquired much and achieved much.

But, in the end, what was ultimately achieved?

But in the end he was left empty inside.

Unholy Discontentment – chasing after winds he could never hope to catch.

Reaching for the Sun and searching for literally everything under the sun – in search for satisfaction, in search of the greatest measure of happiness possible.

But in the end of it all, the winds always elude him, satisfaction always eludes him, happiness always eludes him – forever tempting him to keep going forth in the full scale and joyful and highly satisfactory, joyful pursuit of all futility.

Human nature hasn’t changed much in their wholly satisfactory, joyful, joy-filled, reckless and feckless pursuit of maximum futility these past 3,000 years.

Many people still search for the good life in all the wrong places.

A staff member of a large, growing church recently told me of hearing many faith stories from new believers who “had it all” but were still empty inside.

Unholy Discontentment

I don’t know if there is a greater or more subtler foe of the gospel-oriented life than unholy discontentment – unholy pursuit of winds we can still not catch.

I throw in that “unholy” qualifier because there are times when God stirs up discontentment in our hearts – reaches into our hearts and captures futility, separates out the futility which has governed our lives and parades it before us.

So we can see for ourselves what governed and ruined the life of the Teacher – in a “human form” we can identify with and looking upon it – abhor its ugly.

To stop our pursuits of “everything meaningless under the sun – step in front of us, look directly and decisively look deep into our eyes – challenging, daring us to take one more step forward beyond what God has already determined to be well and good and the “best” “most joyful, satisfactory” pursuit of happiness.

I myself find myself spiritually tired of the pursuit of such winds that do not bring glory and honor unto God, the Father, God the Son and the Holy Spirit.

I know people like to think, believe God is a “gentleman” who won’t interfere with our personal decision-making, but the max truth is that sometimes he graciously pesters us about a specific issue until we will respond in obedience.

He may want us to pursue a different vocation, a different ministry or mission solely for the sake of the Kingdom, pull back from a toxic relationship that is hindering our growth and usefulness, or leave the comfort of our first world culture and go walk and live, move amongst an “unreachable” people group.

There are times when the Holy Spirit creates restlessness in our souls, gently (but persistently) nudging us to hop aboard the greater will-of-God train.

I have experienced this kind of holy discontentment on a few occasions in my journey with Jesus – such was the original impetus for my writing devotions.

However, nowadays, what I experience more often is a fleshly, distracting, anger provoking, ministry, mission-abating kind of unholy discontentment.

You know, the kind of discontentment that entails me moping around and obsessing about all the things or experiences I don’t have but so desperately desire – desire solely for the purpose of bringing glory and honor unto God.

It seems like every four to six months or so, I begin to feel like my life is lacking and I need to pray over, to implement some circumstantial change or newness into it in order to be fulfilled – feel like I am doing something more for my God.

Switching vocations, more education, moving to a different city, making more money, getting a new gadget, going to a different church, making new friends, or pursuing a new ministry relationship status are just a few of the things I tend to entertain-I entertain them but struggle mightily to bring into Godly fruition.

None of these things are inherently unholy or bad, but when my compulsive pondering and praying on them (and sometimes impulsive pursuit of them) is driven purely by fleshly restlessness—well, that’s obviously, distressingly bad.

I become so obsessed with only thinking about the changes I could make or the things I could get, Jesus and his Kingdom almost completely fall off my radar.

This unholy discontentment wages more vicious war on my resolve to live a gospel-oriented life than any other sin struggle I experience.

And maybe I am being presumptuous, but I have a difficult time believing I am the only Christian who struggles mightily with this most discontenting mess.

I think it’s a spiritual virus we’re all constantly battling.

Some of us may try to satisfy our discontentment by shifting around our life circumstances (like me).

Some of us may try to numb it by turning to food or alcohol or or “nap times.”

Some of us may do all of the above or may do so significantly much more!

We all experience this inner-thirst of discontentment and try to satisfy it with all the wrong things in all the wrong places and at all of the wrong moments.

We sip from the all too many cups this world offers, only to be repeatedly reminded that they don’t contain the satisfying substance we really desire.

We indulge, manipulate our circumstances, and buy new things we do not need nor justify, yet we continue to find ourselves dissatisfied, fidgety, also, bored.

Single Mindedly Pursuing Satisfaction in God May Look Substantially Different Than What We Think.

So what are we to do?

What are we to “single mindedly” pursue?

Who are we to “single mindedly” pursue?

I think most Christians believe, understand that discontentment is birthed and nurtured in a heart that isn’t satisfied in God – “why doesn’t God move faster?”

So, obviously, the best way to go about fighting such unholy discontentment is to seek to be less satisfied in God, – reduce, diminish, minimize pursuing God !

Right?

Right.

Quite obvious.

Quite obviously facetious.

But why are so few of us so successful or such failures in that fight?

I know there are a lot of completely valid answers to both those questions, but I think a huge reason is many of us don’t know what “seeking to be less or more satisfied in our single minded pursuit of God” looks like, feels like or tastes like.

Contemporary Christian culture is jam-packed with fantastic sounding ideas, but the problem is most of us don’t know how to pull those magnificent ideas down from the clouds and single mindedly apply them unto our everyday lives.

We hear that we should find our deepest joy in God, and we respond to that with a thousand “amens!”—and then quickly realize we have no idea how to do that.

So, what does it actually look like to single mindedly seek satisfaction in God?

Some might say we should open our Bibles and seek to see the all-satisfying God it reveals.

And they’re 100% right; we should.

Head and Heart Knowledge of God – absolutely matters!

Head and Heart Knowledge of Jesus Christ – absolutely matters!

Head and Heart Knowledge of the Holy Spirit – absolutely matters!

The Holy Spirit cultivates fresh joy in our hearts as we shift our eyes away from the world and gaze upon God in his written word.

Positioning ourselves under the Holy Spirit’s power in prayerful Bible-reading and study brightens our vision, expands our vision of Christ and ushers us into the single minded pursuit of a God honoring, eternity-oriented state of mind.

But is this all a single minded pursuit of complete satisfaction in God entails?

Some may object, saying, “I already do that, though. I read the Bible constantly. I pray every day. And I still find myself mightily struggling to be content in Christ!”

I hear you—because this is also my personal spiritual experience.

Everyday, every morning I stay inside the Scriptures and prioritize prayer.

I don’t do these things perfectly by any means, but they are a part of my daily pursuit of a spiritually God glorifying, God honoring, God praising life.

And I praise God for giving me grace to seek him via these glorious means because doing so is such a huge part of my cultivating contentment in God!

However, reading and praying isn’t everything.

If it were, would I continue to find myself wrestling so regularly and intensely with discontentment?

Something the Lord began to teach me a few years ago when I started writing these devotions—and evidently something I have been slow to learn—is that there is too a deep well of spiritual satisfaction found in living in the will of God.

A private pursuit of him or “quiet time” is part of his will for our lives, sure.

But it’s not the whole sum.

We weren’t spiritually resurrected just so we could sit in our bedrooms, take up much needed space at our dining room tables and read and study our Bibles.

We were cleansed of our sins at Calvary and endowed with the Holy Spirit that we might give the single minded totality of our lives over unto God’s purposes!

I find it to be no coincidence that the seasons I am most discontent are also the seasons I am just barely participating in the ministry of my church, loving my siblings in Christ poorly, not grabbing hold of the plentiful opportunities God is continually giving me to engage unbelievers with the grace, truth of the gospel.

And on the flipside, the seasons I am most content in God are the seasons I am most fully single mindedly pursuing, giving myself over to His will for my life!

I’ve found nothing more effective in shutting down the unholy discontentment than giving my time and energy to my wife, the ministry of the local church, my spiritual siblings, and those who have yet to enter into the deep joy of salvation.

If Christ’s single minded pursuit of “food” was to single mindedly do the will of His Father God, accomplish his work on earth (John 4:34), would not we do well also to single mindedly pursue such “God Food,” to feast upon the same things?

If discontentment is plaguing your heart today, I challenge you—as I also now challenge myself—to put your hands to the plow of God’s purposes for your life.

Find ways to single mindedly pursuit through study and fellowship the deeper knowledge, deeper truths of God, the Father and God the Son and Holy Spirit.

Devote yourselves to the single minded pursuit of prayer, talking with our God.

Devote yourselves to the single minded pursuit of connecting your whole family to God, the Father and God the Son and Holy Spirit thru your daily devotions.

Find ways to connect with and participate in the ministry’s of your church.

Find ways to love on your brothers and sisters in Christ.

Find ways to engage the lost with the gospel.

I guarantee you that if you will discipline yourselves to single mindedly toss idleness aside and submerge yourself in the ministry and mission of the gospel, a God-centered, Jesus centered, Holy Spirit centered, and Scripturally centered satisfaction will invade your soul, mercilessly crush unholy discontentment.

The good news is we now know Jesus is resurrected, alive and fully within us.

In our attempts to reach out in Jesus’ name, let’s not be intimidated by what people’s single minded pursuit of the sun and winds have acquired, achieved.

Nothing satisfies like God!

Nothing satisfies like Jesus!

Nothing satisfies like the Holy Spirit.

The greatest discovery is to learn that single mindedly losing yourself in Jesus our Savior and in his purpose for life is the only way to have true, lasting joy.

Steps to Single Mindedly Pursuing God

1. Carve out time to seek God:

God leaves us with instructions to start each day by teaching us to “seek Him first, then all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

I’m not saying it has to be the first thing you do when you wake up.

“Seek first” is an indication of priorities.

But I like the idea of filling my cup up with God’s spirit before I fill it up with what the world has to offer.

Decide on the best time that works for you and work to discipline yourself to make it a regularly scheduled part of your daily “I’ll God all the glory” routine.

2. Empty out your cup:

Before you can fill up your cup, you must first empty it out.

You cannot fill something up that is fully or partially full of other things.

Pour out your hurts, concerns, worries, agenda, unforgiveness, sin, and requests as God says to “cast all your burdens on Him” (1 Peter 5:7).

Once you empty yourself out,

it leaves room for you to then fill yourself back up with Him.

3. Fill up with God’s word and strive to memorize Scripture:

Receive the word of God like an athlete might receive an energy bar.

Scripture is food and nourishment for your spirit.

It is crucial to fill your cup up with the “God-breathed” (2 Timothy 3:16) words of Scripture, because they consist of all the essential truths for our pursuing God.

Dissatisfaction and Discontentment of the World

Dissatisfaction and discontentment will always be present if we are single mindedly pursuing and filling our cups with things or people of this world.

Jesus teaches the Samaritan women at the well a valuable lesson.

This woman tried to find her satisfaction in other people.

She went from husband to new husband searching for satisfaction.

Jesus taught her, that “whoever drinks of this water [the water the world offers] will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst” (John 4:13-14).

Worldly Satisfaction Does Not Go with You or Me to Eternity

Here me when I say this –

there is absolutely nothing wrong with enjoying the joyful things of this world.

God wants for us to enjoy the gifts He gives us (Matthew 7:11), inasmuch as they direct us to glorify, honor and praise Him for all the good things He has made.

But if you are searching for fulfillment and satisfaction from the things of the world, that is where you will always be left searching, never fully satisfied, as material things are only temporary, and only going to end up rusting away.

We live in a world chocked full of the single minded pursuit of fantastic lies, but thankfully, we have the truth of our Savior Jesus to fill us up at our fingertips.

The God that makes us whole and fulfills us makes us alive forever.

The same God we have maximum access to while we are here on this earth through our Savior Jesus Christ and the ministry and works of the Holy Spirit.

And it’s through the Holy Spirit that we find the only true maximum allowable satisfaction, not discontenting things of the world that won’t join us in eternity.

All Glory, Honor and Praise be unto God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

As it was in the beginning, is 100% now, forever shall be, worlds without end!

In the name of God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

God of truth, sometimes I not sure if I’m actually hearing your voice, or if it’s just my own sinful thoughts or even another spirit. Sharpen my spiritual hearing, Lord, so I can recognize your words when you are speaking to me. Help me know it’s really you, with no doubt or second-guessing. When I’m asking for your guidance in life’s important decisions, give me your peace that surpasses understanding with your answer. Help me remember that your words to me will never go against your written word in the Bible. Give me a clear mind and push out all my confusion. Lord, may we discover anew that the “best” good life is found only in relationship with you. Fill us with yourself. May our spiritual hunger draw us and others to your side. In Jesus,

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum. Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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Do We Have Any Earthly Idea How to Be Satisfied in God? Psalm 119:57-64

Psalm 119:57-64 The Message

^57-64Because you have satisfied me, God, I promise
    to do everything you say.
I beg you from the bottom of my heart: smile,
    be gracious to me just as you promised.
When I took a long, careful look at your ways,
    I got my feet back on the trail you blazed.
I was up at once, didn’t drag my feet,
    was quick to follow your orders.
The wicked hemmed me in—there was no way out—
    but not for a minute did I forget your plan for me.
I get up in the middle of the night to thank you;
    your decisions are so right, so true—I can’t wait till morning!
I’m a friend and companion of all who fear you,
    of those committed to living by your rules.
Your love, God, fills the earth!
    Train me to live by your counsel.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

As believers, we tend to say, ‘God is all I need’, but over any expanse of time we repeatedly learn that particular statement is not always true in our daily lives.

Many of us seek satisfaction in whatever form, if not perfection, in whatever form we can find it in our lives.

We want so very much to “live in the abundance of God” “abundant blessings of God,” to believe that God is enough, but yet we still chase fulfillment elsewhere.

I mean, who does not want significantly more than their own “fair share” of the abundance, the abundant life, which God offers to all His Children who believe?

Who does not want to feast on the “abundance of quail and manna” which God provided to the Israelites in their 40 plus years of circling the vast wilderness?

Who does not want to be the one’s to partake of the miraculous supply of food Jesus gave the thousands of hungry people from a few loaves of bread and fish?

Who wouldn’t want to have this prayer of Psalm 69:13 answered for their life;

But as for me, my prayer is to You, O Lord, at an acceptable and opportune time;
O God, in the greatness of Your favor and in the abundance of Your lovingkindness,
Answer me with truth [that is, the faithfulness of Your salvation].

The truth is: we were all designed for perfection—to be truly satisfied, to max out all their measures of “satisfaction” and this is why so many of us long for it.

If we look at the Bible in the very beginning, God created a perfect world for us to inhabit.

In Genesis, He designed for us to live surround by complete satisfaction.

It was indescribably beautiful, undeniably fulfilling, and beyond measure completely satisfying in every way – no sadness, emptiness, or confusion.

However, insert Adam and Eve.

Subtly enticed by the serpent, they made a choice against God’s will, and due to their choice, the consequences of their sin “dissatisfaction” entered the world.

So now, fast forward to today, we now live in a broken, fallen, sin-filled world.

But the great news is God is coming back for His people.

He promises in His forever Living and forever Active Word that He brings us back to perfection as Eden is restored in the last chapters of Revelation.

Revelation 21:3-5 The Message

^3-5I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: “Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They’re his people, he’s their God. He’ll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good—tears gone, crying gone, pain gone—all the first order of things gone.” The Enthroned continued, “Look! I’m making everything new. Write it all down—each word dependable and accurate.”

The truth is this: the more we do crave and thirst for satisfaction in this fallen world we live in, the more disappointed we inevitably become, because it will never truly satisfy the longing placed in our hearts from the very beginning.

Everyone’s Never-Ending Hunger and Thirst

Our hunger and thirst for satisfaction starts from the first day we are born.

From the very first moments after we are born, we instinctively hunger and thirst for milk from our mother’s breast – and gorge ourselves when given it.

From the time we were children, we search to be satisfied with that new bike, new toys which help us interact with our environments, or a new video game.

We eagerly wait for all of those things we believe are going to make us happy.

As teenagers, we sought satisfaction in good grades, excelling in sports, making friends, comradery, our getting our very first car, or a boyfriend or a girlfriend.

As growing and maturing adults, we think of an education, a career, a spouse, a bigger house, children, or that one high-paying position will quench our thirst.

But always and forever in the end of it all, we are usually still left wanting more.

We are left with this gap, and time and time again; it is never fulfilled.

A gap between this fallen world and a world full of abundance and satisfaction.

There will always be a gap, otherwise we would never have a need for God.

Ecclesiastes 3:9-13 The Message

^9-13But in the end, does it really make a difference what anyone does? I’ve had a good look at what God has given us to do—busywork, mostly. True, God made everything beautiful in itself and in its time—but he’s left us in the dark, so we can never know what God is up to, whether he’s coming or going. I’ve decided that there’s nothing better to do than go ahead and have a good time and get the most we can out of life. That’s it—eat, drink, and make the most of your job. It’s God’s gift.

Think about it: if all the things we sought after never disappointed us, leaving us hungry, thirsty for more, we would have no need to thirst after God Himself.

We would already be filled by ‘things’, leaving no room for God to be in our life.

As Christ followers, and because Christ gave his life for us, we can be 100% satisfied in God and God alone, even while living in this abundantly messy, abundantly stressful, very wide middle path between Genesis and Revelation.

We can learn to not just say the words, but rather believe the words: that God is all I need—He is enough.

God, Our Portion

Psalm 119:57-64 New King James Version

ח HETH

⁵⁷You are my portion, O Lord;
I have said that I would keep Your words.
⁵⁸I entreated Your favor with my whole heart;
Be merciful to me according to Your word.
⁵⁹I thought about my ways,
And turned my feet to Your testimonies.
⁶⁰I made haste, and did not delay
To keep Your commandments.
⁶¹The cords of the wicked have bound me,
But I have not forgotten Your law.
⁶²At midnight I will rise to give thanks to You,
Because of Your righteous judgments.
⁶³I am a companion of all who fear You,
And of those who keep Your precepts.
⁶⁴The earth, O Lord, is full of Your mercy;
Teach me Your statutes.

With words such as “Though the wicked bind me with ropes,” the psalmist continues his lament in this section of Psalm 119.

The laments of this psalm are often raw and deep.

And yet we can sense that the psalmist finds safety in the promises and love of the Lord, the surest source of comfort and protection.

Notice that this section begins with the words “You are my portion, Lord. . . .”

This is likely a reference to the way God gave portions of the promised land to the tribes of Israel (see Joshua 13-21).

Allotments were given to all of the tribes except for the tribe of Levi, because God had dedicated the Levites to serve and lead in the worship of the Lord.

Their apportioned service to God included everything from offering sacrifices to teaching the law, and from leading in worship to taking care of all the materials used in the Tabernacle for worship (see Exodus 25-30).

As Joshua explained to the people, “The Levites . . . do not get a portion among you, because the priestly service of the Lord is their inheritance” (Joshua 18:7).

In a similar way, the psalmist has nothing and no one but God to depend on.

The Lord is his portion, his inheritance.

In utter dependence and trust, the psalmist takes everything to God in prayer, including his laments.

With God as our portion, we too have the privilege of taking all our troubles and cares to the One whose guidance and instruction give us full life.

The Cup Which Satisfies

The way to be truly max satisfied in God is to fill your cup with Him daily—and please note here that I’m not referring to your salvation.

Being saved and being filled are two different things.

Being saved is when you accept Christ into your heart and commit your life to walking with Him.

This is the salvation you are given freely by the grace of God.

Your salvation never goes away. (John 3:16).

Being filled refers to God’s Holy Spirit, which is the gift Jesus left us after He died on the cross, filling you up.

As believers who accept Christ’s salvation, we have max access to this gift.

In fact, the “Holy Spirit lives in us” (John 14:17).

But we also live in our flesh, so we have to nurture our spirit daily.

The Holy Spirit is meant to fill us up to be our daily guide, counselor, “helper” and “teacher” and intercessor (John 14:15-18, 26, Romans 8:26-27).

How Can We Be Satisfied in God’s Presence?

John 14:15-18 New King James Version

Jesus Promises Another Helper

¹⁵“If you love Me, ^[a]keep My commandments. ¹⁶And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another ^[b]Helper, that He may abide with you forever— ¹⁷the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. ¹⁸I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

Jesus’ disciples were upset.

For three years they had been with Jesus.

They had walked with him and talked with him.

And now he suddenly announces that he was about to leave.

How could they possibly go on without him?

How could they face the challenges of life without his daily presence?

In his farewell address the Lord Jesus put the disciples’ minds at ease.

He told them that his returning to the Father was for their good (John 16:7).

He promised to send the Holy Spirit, who would live in them and teach them about living for God.

And through the Spirit they’d be able to enjoy God’s presence always.

Through the Holy Spirit you and I can experience God’s presence every moment of the day.

All we have to do is ask.

As Jesus says in Luke 11:13, “If you … know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

The most important prayer we can pray each day is to ask for the all-powerful presence and guidance of the Holy Spirit.

When we have the Holy Spirit guiding us each day, we will not only experience the abundance of God’s presence in our own lives, but we’ll also be able to show God’s presence to others as we live God’s way, displaying the fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23)

Thank you Lord for leaving us with such a gift!

It is perhaps a worn out cliché to repeatedly say

“Nothing comes naturally to living in the Spirit.”

One day I can react to a situation in my flesh, while the next day I allow God to fill me up with the Holy Spirit, and my reaction can be completely different.

This is why daily filling up your cup and nurturing our spirit is so important.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 40:1-10 The Message

40 ^1-3I waited and waited and waited for God.
    At last he looked; finally he listened.
He lifted me out of the ditch,
    pulled me from deep mud.
He stood me up on a solid rock
    to make sure I wouldn’t slip.
He taught me how to sing the latest God-song,
    a praise-song to our God.
More and more people are seeing this:
    they enter the mystery,
    abandoning themselves to God.

^4-5Blessed are you who give yourselves over to God,
    turn your backs on the world’s “sure thing,”
    ignore what the world worships;
The world’s a huge stockpile
    of God-wonders and God-thoughts.
Nothing and no one
    compares to you!
I start talking about you, telling what I know,
    and quickly run out of words.
Neither numbers nor words
    account for you.

⁶Doing something for you, bringing something to you—
    that’s not what you’re after.
Being religious, acting pious—
    that’s not what you’re asking for.
You’ve opened my ears
    so I can listen.

^7-8So I answered, “I’m coming.
    I read in your letter what you wrote about me,
And I’m coming to the party
    you’re throwing for me.”
That’s when God’s Word entered my life,
    became part of my very being.

^9-10I’ve preached you to the whole congregation,
    I’ve kept back nothing, God—you know that.
I didn’t keep the news of your ways
    a secret, didn’t keep it to myself.
I told it all, how dependable you are, how thorough.
    I didn’t hold back pieces of love and truth
For myself alone. I told it all,
    let the congregation know the whole story.

Lord God, Creator of all life, please fill us with your Holy Spirit and help us to show in our lives the fruit of the Spirit. We ask all this for Jesus’ sake and in his name. Amen.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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Living the Risen Life: Sharing God, Caring For Our Neighbors, Because God’s Heart Does Not Stop With Us. Colossians 3:1-4

Colossians 3:1-4 New Living Translation

Living the New Life

3 Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. ²Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. ³For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴And when Christ, who is your^[a] life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

In the miracle of conversion, a number of things happen.

Our sins are forgiven, we are adopted into God’s family, and we are given the status of sons and daughters.

Not only that, but we are also given a new location with Christ in the heavenly places.

There is for the Christian a radical change in our spiritual environment as a result of our union with the risen Christ—and it is our place in Christ that securely establishes our priorities.

It is because we have been “raised with Christ” that we are to “seek the things that are above.”

This reality was important for the new followers of the Colossian church to try to grasp.

As Paul was writing to them, they were being influenced by deceptive doctrine.

False teachers were imposing man-made rules upon them, saying, “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (Colossians 2:21).

Yet these external rules, which were intended to improve their moral behavior, ironically were “of no value in stopping the indulgences of the flesh” (v 23).

The same remains true for us: even when we attempt to remove ourselves from sin, we will not ever be able to completely stop our own propensity towards that which is truly impure, unholy, and untrue.

This form of external religion was a bad virus that was threatening to embed itself within the Colossian church, combining doctrinal confusion with moral carelessness. (The two go hand in hand.)

So Paul addressed the issue by reminding his Colossian readers that the way to get to begin getting a grip with our behavior is by beginning to understand who and whose we are—what our lives have become through the Lord Jesus Christ.

As Christians, our lives are wrapped up in Jesus. We are in Him, and He is in us.

We have been raised to live outward with Christ, our lives are hidden in Him.

This fact alone is the only sure basis of our security—our confidence in the face of our own propensity to do wrong things.

Are are we trying to live the Christian life alone, the “shy Christian” the “best intentions Christian” by your own efforts and fight our sin in our own strength?

Are we seeking to be a better Christian and wondering why it is proving elusive—or, worse, are we beginning to wonder whether we are a Christian at all or whether it is worth the effort to share our Savior with another human being?

God’s Heart Does Not, Must Not, Ever Stop With Us

One of the greatest privileges as a child of God is that with our Savior Jesus Christ living in and within us, we all have the heart of our heavenly Father.

We do not have to wonder how God feels about us.

We do not have to wonder if God will guide us.

We do not have to question whether God loves us or God cares for, about, us.

Through the Holy Spirit we have continual, free access to the heart of God.

By sharing God, and caring for our neighbors our relationship with God will grow deeper, become freer as we learn how to have God’s heart in this life.

1 John 4:7-10 Easy-to-Read Version

Love Comes From God

⁷Dear friends, we should love each other, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has become God’s child. And so everyone who loves knows God. ⁸Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. ⁹This is how God showed his love to us: He sent his only Son into the world to give us life through him. ¹⁰True love is God’s love for us, not our love for God. He sent his Son as the way to take away our sins.

As wonderful and life-giving as it is to access the heart of God for ourselves, having God’s heart beating within, is not, was not ever meant to stop with us.

His heart is meant to fill us, empower us, and transform us, pour forth from us unto our neighbors, to surely live in such a way we are “light in the darkness”.

Matthew 5:14-16 Easy-to-Read Version

¹⁴“You are the light that shines for the world to see. You are like a city built on a hill that cannot be hidden. ¹⁵People don’t hide a lamp under a bowl. They put it on a lampstand. Then the light shines for everyone in the house. ¹⁶In the same way, you should be a light for other people. Live so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.

As a believer you and I can reveal the heart of God to others.

We’ve been given access to a deep, revelatory knowledge of God’s love that you might shine the light of God’s goodness to a world that only knows darkness.

You and I can reveal the heart of God through the very way you and I honor yours and mine neighbors rather than speaking ill intent of our neighbors.

You and I can represent the humility of Jesus by serving our neighbor rather than being self-seeking.

Lifting the basket off of ourselves, we can reveal the light of God’s grace in our lives by offering compassion when others treat you or your neighbor poorly.

And you can display the courage that comes from a true understanding of God’s unconditional love by living authentically rather than building up a false image.

You and I were made to share God’s heart.

You and I were made to reveal God’s heart.

You and I were made to co-labor with God, our Savior Jesus and the Holy Spirit in seeing the truth of the gospel proclaimed and bear fruit in the lives of others.

Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

God has critically important work prepared for you and me today.

Look for opportunities to share what God, through Christ is doing in our life.

Look continuously, constantly for ways we can be that more genuine reflection of the aspects of God’s heart He is revealing to you and me every single day.

Do not let the love of God be hidden with us, contained within us like a super top classified “eyes only” secret, but “blow all whistled,” unveil it, share it freely, knowing His love never runs out, is what every human heart, is searching for.

Make a Friend, Be a Friend, Bring a Friend to Christ

Have you ever had the joy of sharing Christ with someone and actually seeing that person sit beside you and come to know the Lord as their personal Savior?

There is nothing quite the same in this world like it!

We know that resurrected Jesus said, “ye shall be witnesses unto me” (Acts 1:8).

How do we do what Jesus said?

Colossians 3:1-4 The Message

He Is Your Life

3 ^1-2So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.

^3-4Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life—even though invisible to spectators—is with Christ in God. He is your life. When Christ (your real life, remember) shows up again on this earth, you’ll show up, too—the real you, the glorious you. Meanwhile, be content with obscurity, like Christ.

He is so much a complete part of my life, I need to constantly “pray it forward.”

I need to be constantly aware of that the basket over my life needs to be lifted.

I need to be living a life which is more “God forward” than it is “me behind.”

to just go ahead and unleash this thought and this prayer from within me …

Psalm 19:11-14 The Message

^11-14There’s more: God’s Word warns us of danger
    and directs us to hidden treasure.
Otherwise how will we find our way?
    Or know when we play the fool?
Clean the slate, God, so we can start the day fresh!
    Keep me from stupid sins,
    from thinking I can take over your work;
Then I can start this day sun-washed,
    scrubbed clean of the grime of sin.
These are the words in my mouth;
    these are what I chew on and pray.
Accept them when I place them
    on the morning altar,
O God, my Altar-Rock,
    God, Priest-of-My-Altar.

Getting to the Point of Asking: “Excuse Me, How is it With Your Soul?”

This is the sort of “self talk” which constantly runs through any too shy spirit:

“Everywhere I go people say to me, it is the old familiar story –

“I really want to bring someone to Christ, but I just don’t know where to start.”

I know it is true because I can confess my own guilty thoughts in this manner.

Please, Let me give you a few ideas that you may try to put into practice today…

Create a soul winning prayer list. Write down the names of those that you know need Christ and commit to pray for them every day. Ask the Lord to use you to personally reach them. Remember, we cannot pray if we are not willing to obey.
Commit gospel Scriptures to memory. We are to be ready always to give an explanation of the gospel (Ephesians 6:15; 1 Peter 3:15). The greatest thing you can give to others is God’s Word. Begin with John 3:16 and great salvation verses out of Romans. Memorize them. Meditate on them. Minister them to others.
Share your story. If you are a believer you have a story to tell! It is the story of how you came to know Christ and what He means to you. Next to the Scriptures it is the most powerful resource you have. Practice giving it to someone and prepare to give it to as many people as possible. Those who will never listen to a sermon will listen to your story.
Demonstrate the love of Christ. The gospel message begins with “For God so loved the world that He gave…” His love breaks down barriers and removes prejudices. Ask the Lord to help you show kindness to others. A little kindness may open a big door for the gospel.
Give gospel literature to others wherever you go. So many people I have met through the years were brought to Christ when reading a gospel tract. Never underestimate the power of the printed Word. As available, carry literature with you in a back pack. Accompany it with a personal word. God can use simple tools to accomplish His work.
Bring someone with you to a church service specifically to hear the gospel. Communicate to your pastor that you are prayerfully bringing someone with you who needs the Lord. Pray God will open their heart as they hear the truth.
Have a Bible study in your home or on the job. Starting, Inviting, Hosting an informal Bible study will give opportunities to get acquainted, discuss spiritual truths with neighbors and co-workers. Many people who would not “feel right” going to a church service or prayer meeting would come to a friend’s home.
Ask people to read the Gospel of John and to tell you what they think. I have had the greatest joy of seeing people come to faith in Christ through simply reading the Scriptures. At the very least, it opens the conversation about who Christ is. The Word of God for the Children of God is living, active, dynamic, powerful!
Pray daily, together as much as possible for divine appointments. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you both someone to talk to. That is a powerful prayer He will answer in His time! When answered, then the both of you live expectantly, looking everywhere for people that you can share the good news with.
Actually Begin. (Acts 2:37-47, Acts 3:1-10)No one becomes an effective witness by only reading about it. It is time to get off the pews, our couches, and get in the game! We all get nervous, but as we obey the Lord He has promised to help us.

Ask the Lord to prepare your heart and the the heart of some soul and give you a divine appointment today!

Some will respond positively.

Some will respond politely.

Some will respond politically.

Some will respond correctly.

Still more will respond out and out with vast amounts of negativity.

As we live, love and move and have our being in this world, don’t dwell upon your failures or look to your own performance as the basis of your security.

Be encouraged, keep trying as the Apostles did through out the Book of Acts.

Perhaps a study of the Book of Acts is the encouragement needed right now.

You have been raised with Christ.

He alone is your hope.

Make His glory, and not your own goodness, the focus of your days and you will find our behavior will certainly bear testimony to His life-transforming power.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit for as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be – risen lives, risen souls, worlds without end.

In the name of God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on the importance of sharing God’s heart with the world. Allow Scripture to fill you with a desire to be a reflection of God’s heart.

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10

“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.” 1 John 4:7

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16

2. What aspect of God’s heart can you share with someone today? What part of God’s character can you reflect to the world around you?

3. Ask the Holy Spirit to put a person or group of people on your heart that he wants you to love well today. Ask him how he wants to use you to reveal the heart of God.

An important aspect of sharing God’s heart is trusting in faith, remembering that God will surely, certainly use your heart beat to inspire other heart beats.

When you choose to live a life co-laboring with your heavenly Father you get to experience the supernatural.

It’s miraculous when people choose to accept Jesus.

It’s astounding when our service, compassion, and love tears down walls around people’s hearts that they might be more open to God.

Don’t just live a normal life today.

Live a “I Am risen in Christ life today.”

Allow God to use you by sharing his heart.

May your day be filled with an abundance of miracles, signs and wonder and a ceaseless unrelenting awe at your heavenly Father who will unhesitatingly use you, me, us, in mighty and powerful ways – to build up His Kingdom on Earth.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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Valuing Self, Others, More Like Jesus: Are We Recognizing The Truest Value We All Have To the Kingdom of God? Mark 6:7-13

Mark 6:7-13 English Standard Version

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve Apostles

⁷And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. ⁸He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts— ⁹but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics.^[a] ¹⁰And he said to them, “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. ¹¹And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.” ¹²So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. ¹³And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

Community Is Our Doing Difficult Things Together

When Jesus sent out his disciples, he had very specific thoughts in mind.

He sent them out together to do difficult things.

He sent them out together.

He gave them authority over unclean spirits.

He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff.

He charged them to take no bread, no bag, no money in their belts.

He charged them to wear only one tunic at a time and wear only sandals.

He charged them to knock on doors they did not know and ask for hospitality.

He sent them out into the villages ahead of them to preach and to heal.

He charged them to give their testimony wherever they went and stayed.

That meant each of the six pairs of Apostles went to six different villages.

To proclaim a message of repentance and of the coming of God’s Kingdom.

Even though it was incredibly unlikely they had a very clear grasp of exactly what they were being commanded to preach and give their testimony about.

And it is highly doubtful that any one of the twelve Apostles had spent any amount of time or expended any measure of effort towards believing they had the ability, could exercise any authority or power over any unclean spirits.

I’m sure they were apprehensive at first.

I am not so sure they seriously believed they could actually accomplish the task before them, to act directly, decisively in the astounding measure of confidence they were told, nay commanded by Jesus, to display before all of those people.

One does not get the very clear idea that any one of those twelve believed that much in themselves, believed that they had that even minimal value to others.

But, one thing is abundantly clear about this whole scene and that is Jesus said nothing to them about of any rescinding his direct command of their mission.

He commanded them to “Go!”

Told them how and when to “Go!”

And such was his command of the moment and his authority over the twelve:

So, in obedience, Go they did out into those random villages ahead of them.

What were they told to expect of their efforts – nothing specific.

What did Jesus hope and pray they learned from whatever levels of success or failure each of them would report back to him with?

Again, we note there were no specific expectations of success or failure.

No standards of measure for either success or failure are given to anyone.

No graphs or charts, no percentages, no lectures from any in management.

“Go! and do as I have commanded exactly as I have commanded you!”

“Learn your unspecified lessons from your efforts and report back to me.”

Unspecified Lessons being perhaps:

“Learning of God.”

“Trusting in God”

“Testifying and Witnessing of and to God”

“Your immeasurable inestimable undeniable VALUE to the Kingdom of God”

But when they came back, with no specific expectations having been placed upon them they each had amazing stories to tell of God’s power displayed in their world and perhaps hidden even from their own perception – Value to God!

They returned to Jesus with a new found confidence.

They returned to Jesus with a new found sense of self esteem, value to others.

They learned to believe in themselves.

They learned to believe in themselves and to value themselves.

They learned to have confidence in God.

They learn to trust and believe in God.

They learn to highly value God in the undeniable role God plays in their lives.

They learned to have confidence, to trust in, place high, higher, highest value on the words and the plans and the intentions and the works of their Rabbi.

God, together with us in faith Community brings all of that ‘wonder’ together.

How many of those villagers lives were touched and transformed, now found themselves with a renewed, fresh and refreshed and refreshing belief in God?

How many of those villagers found themselves and their curiosity peaked to start wondering about and following this Itinerant master Rabbi named Jesus?

It goes and does difficult things together—all the time witnessing the amazing work of God in the world around us, all the time assigning inestimable value to each, every one of us, what we have to bring “just as we are” unto His Kingdom.

Are We Recognizing Our Value to God’s Kingdom?

John 15:12-17 English Standard Version

¹²“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. ¹³Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴You are my friends if you do what I command you. ¹⁵No longer do I call you servants,^[a] for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. ¹⁷These things I command you, so that you will love one another.

When we think of these original apostles, we perhaps think of holy men of God.

And though they were gifted and dedicated, they also were all rather ordinary.

Jesus did not call these men because they were great; their greatness was the result of the call upon their lives through Jesus being obedient to His Father.

A great writer can take an ordinary unvalued piece of paper, and with the addition of his or her words, and God it suddenly becomes extremely valuable.

It wasn’t the blank piece of paper that was valuable; it was what the inspired thoughts which the writer, for whatever reason, just put down on that paper.

History has repeatedly taught us that a great artist can take a canvas and paint, and suddenly it becomes $$$$ costly work of art because of what the artist did.

It wasn’t the canvas that was valuable; it is what the inspired artist painted on the canvas.

As believers, we recognize in ourselves that we are sinners separated from God.

But let’s also recognize that when Christ came into our lives, He gave us value.

He put His treasure in earthen vessels, or in jars of clay, which are our lives.

As 2 Corinthians 4:7 tells us, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.”

As Ephesians 2:8-10 Amplified so eloquently reminds each and every one of us;

⁸For it is by grace [God’s remarkable compassion and favor drawing you to Christ] that you have been saved [actually delivered from judgment and given eternal life] through faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [not through your own effort], but it is the [undeserved, gracious] gift of God; ⁹not as a result of [your] works [nor your attempts to keep the Law], so that no one will [be able to] boast or take credit in any way [for his salvation]. ¹⁰For we are His workmanship [His own master work, a work of art], created in Christ Jesus [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, ready to be used] for good works, which God prepared [for us] beforehand [taking paths which He set], so that we would walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us].

With a new confidence and boldness, we have something to offer.

It is not self-confidence; it is God-confidence.

It is not self-esteem; it’s God-esteem.

God graciously forgave us and took us into His kingdom, and now He has made us someone of inestimable value to the work which God began at the beginning.

In the same way,

the original twelve apostles, called by their Master Rabbi Jesus were valuable because of what Jesus did in their lives, by summoning and sending them too.

Valued of Mankind versus Valued of God

“Holy, holy, holy! Though the darkness hide thee,
though the eye of sinful man thy glory may not see,
only thou art holy; there is none beside thee,
perfect in power, in love and purity.”

Sinful man who goes to indescribable, unnecessary lengths to devalue itself in the eyes of self and of each other, devalue others through indescribable means,

Indescribably, stereotypically “crucify,” unimaginably devalue and degrade, disenchant, disenfranchise, dehumanize and to fully and utterly humiliate,

Sinful man whose eyes no longer are focused upon the inestimable value of life which God has assigned to each, every single cell of one of His own creations,

From the very beginning of all created things, and through the very end of all created things, God has always had one very specific, undervalued message;

God’s never changing message to everyone is exactly and exactingly this:

Genesis 1:26-27 Authorized (King James) Version

²⁶And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. ²⁷So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

“I, and I alone assign all the value you will ever need or require in your life!”

God wrote His name on your heart when you gave your life to Jesus Christ.

He has given you incomparable value, valuable gifts and invaluable abilities.

He has fully, utterly and completely invested everything of Himself in you.

That is where your absolute value to God and His Kingdom comes from.

And that’s why you can make an absolutely miraculous, wondrous difference.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 139:1-18 Complete Jewish Bible

139 ⁽⁰⁾For the leader. A psalm of David:

⁽¹⁾Adonai, you have probed me, and you know me.
²You know when I sit and when I stand up,
you discern my inclinations from afar,
³you scrutinize my daily activities.
You are so familiar with all my ways
⁴that before I speak even a word, Adonai,
you know all about it already.
⁵You have hemmed me in both behind and in front
and laid your hand on me.
⁶Such wonderful knowledge is beyond me,
far too high for me to reach.

⁷Where can I go to escape your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
⁸If I climb up to heaven, you are there;
if I lie down in Sh’ol, you are there.
⁹If I fly away with the wings of the dawn
and land beyond the sea,
¹⁰even there your hand would lead me,
your right hand would hold me fast.
¹¹If I say, “Let darkness surround me,
let the light around me be night,”
¹²even darkness like this
is not too dark for you;
rather, night is as clear as day,
darkness and light are the same.

¹³For you fashioned my inmost being,
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴I thank you because I am awesomely made,
wonderfully; your works are wonders —
I know this very well.
¹⁵My bones were not hidden from you
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
¹⁶Your eyes could see me as an embryo,
but in your book all my days were already written;
my days had been shaped
before any of them existed.
¹⁷God, how I prize your thoughts!
How many of them there are!
¹⁸If I count them, there are more than grains of sand;
if I finish the count, I am still with you.

Psalm 139:23-24 Complete Jewish Bible

²³Examine me, God, and know my heart;
test me, and know my thoughts.
²⁴See if there is in me any hurtful way,
and lead me along the eternal way.

Invaluable Father, Invaluable Son, Invaluable Holy Spirit, send us into the world together, in your inestimable name, to immeasurably love and value all thy children and to ceaselessly witness to your power at work through changing lives. Let us each bring to you only ceaseless, incalculable, indescribable, immeasurable, inestimable, invaluable, unrelenting glory unto your name and into your name alone. Amen.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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Are We Really Seeking To Be More Like Our Jesus? What About Seeking After, About Loving, Our Unsaved Friends? 2 Corinthians 5:16-21

2 Corinthians 5:16-21 Easy-to-Read Version

¹⁶From this time on we don’t think of anyone as the world thinks of people. It is true that in the past we thought of Christ as the world thinks. But we don’t think that way now. ¹⁷When anyone is in Christ, it is a whole new world.^[a] The old things are gone; suddenly, everything is new! ¹⁸All this is from God. Through Christ, God made peace between himself and us. And God gave us the work of bringing people into peace with him. ¹⁹I mean that God was in Christ, making peace between the world and himself. In Christ, God did not hold people guilty for their sins. And he gave us this message of peace to tell people. ²⁰So we have been sent to speak for Christ. It is like God is calling to people through us. We speak for Christ when we beg you to be at peace with God. ²¹Christ had no sin, but God made him become sin^[b] so that in Christ we could be right with God.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

The God of Reconciliation

Because of sin, we human beings are in constant and continuous rebellion.

From the beginning of Genesis until the final verses of Revelation, we are at war with our God, with ourselves, with our neighbors, and too with God’s creation.

By ourselves, we would never return to God.

We cannot hope to change our own heart.

We cannot hope to change anyone else’s heart.

We cannot hope to change God’s heart.

Without God, we don’t even have the wherewithal to realize that we are mired in the very worst kind of muck and stuck and lost in the lethal misery of sin.

Salvation is not a human initiative.

God took the initiative to reconcile us to himself.

God loves us so much that He sent his Son to save us not condemn us.

The absolutely innocent seeks the perfectly guilty.

The agent of reconciliation is Jesus Christ.

And now through Christ we can turn to God.

And now through Christ we can offer others the opportunity to turn to God.

Jesus is the one and only way to God.

He is the door, the gateway, to salvation.

He is the mediator who reconciles us to the Father.

To reconcile us to himself, God did not keep our transgressions on our account.

Instead, he laid the full weight of them square on the shoulders of Jesus Christ.

On the cross at Calvary, with His life blood, for love alone, the Son of God set himself aside, paid in full the debt that was against us, completely set us free.

And God credited us with the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ so that no condemnation can weigh on us any longer.

Can anyone contemplate the magnitude of that statement?

Of exactly what Jesus was bringing with Him when He came into the world?

Of exactly what Jesus was offering us unrepentant sinners when He came to us?

About Those Unrepentant Sinners

Matthew 10:1-4 Easy-to-Read Version

Jesus Sends His Apostles on a Mission

10 Jesus called his twelve followers together. He gave them power over evil spirits and power to heal every kind of disease and sickness. ²These are the names of the twelve apostles:

Simon (also called Peter),

Andrew, the brother of Peter,

James, the son of Zebedee,

John, the brother of James,

³Philip,

Bartholomew,

Thomas,

Matthew, the tax collector,

James, the son of Alphaeus,

Thaddaeus,

⁴Simon, the Zealot,

Judas Iscariot (the one who handed Jesus over to his enemies).

Interestingly, Jesus chose these 12 young men who, at the time, had no real relationship with God.

They resided within the fringe of religiosity.

They were Jews, yes, but not born-again believers in Jesus Christ.

That didn’t happen until after Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Until that time, they were disciples (“learners”) and friends of the man they hoped was the Messiah, the one who would redeem them from Roman rule.

Does that surprise you: that Jesus chose unsaved, Jewish-born men to be his closest followers?

That was his intention, honestly.

He was sent by God to purposely “seek and save the lost” (Luke 19:10).

Seek in Greek (zēteō) means “to search for, to crave.”

https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/luk/19/10/t_conc_992010

https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g2212/kjv/tr/0-1/

Jesus intentionally searched out, purposely sought after and deeply craved relationships with those who were unregenerate, with those who were the complete antithesis of himself: sinless, pure, and holy.

The reason I bring this up is many believers today have unsaved friends in their circle of relationships, and they may feel guilty (or even ashamed) that they do.

After all, some believers think that Christians should keep the unsaved at a distance, citing 1 Corinthians 15:33 Amplified as justification.

³³Do not be deceived: ^[a]“Bad company corrupts good morals.”

Yet, we, of all people, should, like Jesus, be seeking out the unsaved, craving their friendship (though not their influence), with the intention of being ambassadors for the Almighty, out of obedience to fulfilling the Great Commission of “making disciples,” and with the hope of bringing these unsaved friends to the Light, to receive the free gift of grace through faith.

2 Corinthians 5:16-17 Amplified Bible

¹⁶So from now on we regard no one from a human point of view [according to worldly standards and values]. Though we have known Christ from a human point of view, now we no longer know Him in this way. ¹⁷Therefore if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life].

What About Our Loving Our Unsaved Friends?

John 13:34-35 Amplified Bible

³⁴I am giving you a new commandment, that you ^[a]love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you too are to love one another. ³⁵By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you have love and unselfish concern for one another.”

I have unsaved friends and acquaintances.

And I believe, based on Jesus’ example with his disciples, that that’s a good thing.

From my own experience, here are a few ways (which are not exhaustive) to express our love to our unsaved friends.

These can also apply to unsaved family members, co-workers, neighbors—anyone in your relationship sphere who doesn’t know Jesus as Savior and Lord.

1. Value Them

This should go without saying, but in fact, in our culture today, which is so fraught with immediate polarization, immediate negative reactions around issues, sometimes we believers can tend to—perhaps unknowingly and unintentionally—“devalue” those who hold opposite principles than us.

We wont talk to them to avoid giving “offense.”

We will dance a waltz around them as we avoid stepping on fragile eggs that are invisibly spread impossibly far, wide, across every walking surface imaginable.

As if they are some kind of mythical vampire or werewolf, in our minds we will carry our crosses high and far out in front of us, waving them to ward them off.

We can tend to think less of them, we can tend to unintentionally dismiss them, and even pass our judgment on them out of self-righteousness and false piety.

But every person, whether we agree with them politically, morally, religiously, ethically, has value for the simple fact they are created by God, bear his image.

Even in their sinful state, they still carry God’s imprint.

Like us they bear the common-grace markings of God through the expression of their thoughts, morals, their ethics, their emotions, intellect, and creativity.

So, first off, as Christ himself did when he sought out His first twelve disciples, seek to value each unsaved friend as a God-created, God-imprinted person.

Look past their opinions, beliefs, and leanings.

Look at them through the lens of Creation,

based on Genesis 1:27: “So God created mankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them” (my emphasis added).

2. Accept Them

Accept them exactly where they are at.

The unsaved are going to act as, well, unsaved.

Their souls, minds, and hearts are un-regenerated.

They will think, believe, and act out of their sin-nature.

They will speak profanely, they will offend by speech or hygiene, they will drink (often to excess), they will be promiscuous, and they will slander and hate too.

They will act foolishly, irrationally, and sinfully.

Given this, we’re not to condemn them.

Frankly, we should expect them act unbecomingly in their depravity.

It should not shock us nor surprise us.

After all, we once did, too, before we surrendered our lives to Jesus as Savior and to the Holy Spirit as Sanctifier (Titus 3:3).

Therefore, God says we have no business passing judgment on our worldly-minded, worldly-living, unsaved friends, based on 1 Corinthians 5:12:

“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?”

However, we aren’t to condone their behavior, either.

We graciously accept them as a person without condoning their sinful choices.

But when asked,

we gently and respectfully tell them we don’t agree or approve of their behavior (1 Peter 3:15-16), we use this “GOD” opportunity to share how we are compelled, because of what Jesus did for us, to now live under the guidance of God’s ways.

¹⁵But in your hearts set Christ apart [as holy—acknowledging Him, giving Him first place in your lives] as Lord. Always be ready to give a [logical] defense to anyone who asks you to account for the hope and confident assurance [elicited by faith] that is within you, yet [do it] with gentleness and respect. ¹⁶And see to it that your conscience is entirely clear, so that every time you are slandered or falsely accused, those who attack or disparage your good behavior in Christ will be shamed [by their own words].

3. Listen to Them

Oftentimes we think the best way to show love is to talk—even if it’s about God—when in actuality, it’s to listen.

That old idiom,

“God gave us one mouth and two ears,” rings loud and true in this case.

When people feel listened to—really listened to—they feel respected, valued, and cared about.

Not to mention that God values a genuinely attentive listener.

“Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: you must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry” (James 1:19).

As people, they also have hopes and dreams, desires and aspirations, and pain and long-buried hurts, some of which may have been caused by the Church or other Christians.

Listening to them helps us to build commonality with them, and compassion for them, especially in their suffering.

Listening also breeds understanding.

We may not agree with our friend’s views, but listening allows us to come to an understanding of how and why they think and believe the way they do.

Furthermore,

people like nothing more than to be understood and appreciated for their opinions, values, and beliefs, even if they’re on the wrong side of the Bible.

Another benefit of listening—which was a new thought for me—is that it breeds patience in us, the listener.

Sitting and listening to someone you disagree with is difficult.

You will have to have patience.

And if you haven’t already developed the necessary tolerance for this task, just the practice of hearing others more often will gradually help you to create it.

If you find that you are struggling with the activity, try to remember you are listening to learn something new.

You can also listen with the intent to ask questions, and this will help you focus on the words the other person is saying more carefully.

So, listen to learn and understand.

Listen to show respect and value.

Listen to cultivate patience and compassion.

Conversely, listening will also earn you the right to be listened to.

Tit for tat, so to speak.

And then you have the wonderful opportunity to speak the truths of God, and your unsaved friend will likely be more apt to listen, to be a bit more receptive.

4. Pray for Them

“Prayer is the work,” someone once told me.

How true that is.

Prayer is the behind-the-scenes work in which all believers should be engaged.

Prayer is the work of seeking open doors for Gospel witnessing, of building God’s Kingdom.

James even tells us that “the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” (James 5:16).

Prayer Builds Relationship With God.

Joyful hope and patience in affliction go against the grain of our own natures.

Despair and self-pity come much more easily.

In times like that, it’s important to turn to God in prayer.

We pray for many reasons: to thank God for blessings, to praise God, to confess sins, to seek God’s guidance.

In addition, we pray to ask God for help.

Asking God for help may be the most natural prayer of all.

Sometimes God answers our requests for help exactly as we ask, sometimes not.

Either way, the Bible calls us to be unceasingly faithful in prayer.

Prayer—thanking, praising, confessing, asking for help—connects us with God.

Prayer builds relationship.

Prayer strengthens the bond between God, our unsaved friends and us.

When you have a good relationship with someone, hopefulness and patience become a little easier, especially when that Someone is the Creator, Sustainer of the entire universe.

With regards to your unsaved friends (or whomever the Lord has burdened your heart with):

Pray for their hardened hearts to be softened (Romans 2:5)
Pray that God implants a new, humble, clean, pure, and believing heart within them (Ezekiel 36:26, Matthew 18:4, Psalm 51:10, Matthew 5:8, Romans 10:10).
Pray that their darkened minds may be enlightened to understand God’s truths, to be renewed, transformed, and focused on things above rather than on things below (Ephesians 4:18, Romans 12:2, Ephesians 4:23, Colossians 3:12).
Pray for blind eyes to suddenly “see” the Light of this world, which saves, and the glory of God and his goodness (2 Corinthians 4:4, Luke 4:18, John 3:3, Psalm 34:8, John 8:12).
Pray for plugged ears become unplugged, to suddenly “hear” the Good News (Romans 1:16, 10:14, 17).

5. Be More Like Jesus: Show Them Grace

John 1:14 Amplified Bible

The Word Made Flesh

¹⁴And the Word (Christ) became flesh, and lived among us; and we [actually] saw His glory, glory as belongs to the [One and] only begotten Son of the Father, [the Son who is truly unique, the only One of His kind, who is] full of grace and truth (absolutely free of deception).

Jesus was God’s grace personified.

He came not to condemn but to show grace to those who least deserved it: the sinners.

He extended a helping hand to those who were suffering, he likewise extended a kind word to those who were desperate, and, when necessary, he too unerringly spoke the hardcore truth in confronting the nature of our sin, and yet with love.

Grace upon grace.

We should be God’s grace personified, as well, to our unsaved friends.

We may be the only people who show them grace when they fail or sin grievously.

Our extending grace to them when all others are judging and dismissing may just be exactly what they need to experience for them to finally see their need for a Savior, to repent, to pray their sinners prayer and so to receive salvation.

What About Our “Efforts” to Love as Jesus Loved?

As believers in Christ, yes, we’re called to remain holy (“separate”) in our conduct and are not to conform to this world.

But that isn’t justification to withdraw from the world or from its people.

Quite the opposite.

Distancing ourselves from the unsaved is not an option, nor is it even biblical.

Rather, Jesus told his disciples and us to “Go” into the world (“to all nations”) and to make disciples for the transformation of the world. (Matthew 28:19-20)

And many times, only but by the grace of God, does that happen, when we all intentionally and prayerfully build up genuine friendships with the unsaved.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Reconciling Christ, by Your grace, forgiveness and mercy, bless our efforts to bring about reconciliation. Give us the strength to persevere without counting the hurts, and to find within ourselves the capacity to keep on loving.

Give us the grace to be able to stand in the middle of situations, and to be a conduit for the deep listening which can lead to healing and forgiveness.

Help us to conduct ourselves with dignity, giving and expecting respect, moving from prayer to action, and from action back again into prayer.

Grant that we may be so thoroughly grounded and rooted in your love, that our security is not threatened if we change our minds, or begin to see a better way to act.

Bless those who are called to reconcile on a large-scale –politicians, world leaders, leaders of business, and those who stand in the midst of bitter conflict.

Reconciling Christ, bless us and bless all who engage in the sacred work of envisioning new wholeness, and bringing people and nations together. AMEN.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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Communicating More Like Christ. Building Up the Kingdom of God. Ephesians 4:29-32

Ephesians 4:29-32 Easy-to-Read Version

²⁹When you talk, don’t say anything bad. But say the good things that people need—whatever will help them grow stronger. Then what you say will be a blessing to those who hear you. ³⁰And don’t make the Holy Spirit sad. God gave you his Spirit as proof that you belong to him and that he will keep you safe until the day he makes you free. ³¹Never be bitter, angry, or mad. Never shout angrily or say things to hurt others. Never do anything evil. ³²Be kind and loving to each other. Forgive each other the same as God forgave you through Christ.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

Building Others Up

While I was growing up, one of the things we were taught was to always tell the truth.

Of course!

But one important ingredient in telling the truth was sometimes left out.

We were not always told that we should speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15).

As a result I’ve sometimes told the truth without any regard for how it might hurt the other person.

According to the apostle Paul, we are to say only “what is helpful for building others up according to their needs.”

Before we speak, we need to ask ourselves:

“Should I say what I am about to say? And is it the right time to say it? Will I be speaking the truth in love, and will it build the other person up?”

If we learn to speak the truth in love and say only what builds others up, our relationships at home, at school, on the job, and everywhere else will go better.

Pray that the Holy Spirit will help you use the gift of speech to build up others.

Communicating More Like Christ

Communicate with people long enough, and two things become apparent: no one changes their mind on a topic after being insulted, and not everyone can or wants to be killed with a constant barrage of kindness – it sounds disingenuous.

If you search online, you can find a ton of videos of so-and-so ‘owning’ so-and-so in a debate – it is more important for some reason to be greater than.

Has anyone ever left one of those “I am better because debates” feeling even the least bit changed or more likely wondering why they wasted their time, efforts?

In our own personal lives, great expanse of social media, we do not have to look hard for examples of people striving to be inoffensive in everything they do.

Yet, at some point, they cause offense.

Because there will always be someone who will automatically take that offense.

Both of these approaches are severely flawed.

If you want evidence, then look around.

We all know that something has gone terribly awry in our society.

How fast We have forgotten how to talk to strangers, how to find depth in our conversations, how to give, take criticism, and learn how to agree to disagree.

The list goes on and on.

We pride ourselves as good communicators without actually understanding what good communication entails.

And though we all see the ever growing, ever expansive array of issues present in our culture, we don’t “erroneously blame ourselves”, just all the opposition.

We are all too quick to blame other Christians, non-Christians. The Democrats. The Republicans. Men. Women. the Older generations. the Younger generations.

Philippians 2:1-3 Easy-to-Read Version

Be United and Care for Each Other

2 Think about what we have in Christ: the encouragement he has brought us, the comfort of his love, our sharing in his Spirit, and the mercy and kindness he has shown us. If you enjoy these blessings, ²then do what will make my joy complete: Agree with each other, and show your love for each other. Be united in your goals and in the way you think. ³In whatever you do, don’t let selfishness or pride be your guide. Be humble, and honor others more than yourselves.

Is it .001% possible, could some measure of responsibility rest with all of us?

Are My Words Too Harsh or Too Kind?

In my own life, I’ve experienced first-hand how people refuse to take criticism.

In my life and I am reasonably sure in your life and experience, we have had more than our fair share of people who refuse to acknowledge even .01% truth.

One man told me she was working on not talking so much about himself.

Naturally, I called him on it, to his immediate gratitude.

Two weeks later, after consulting numerous other people, he came back saying nothing was wrong with his communication and that I was a nagging egotist.

Likewise, everyone is striving not to offend in any way.

One elderly Christian woman told me that she makes every effort to call people by their preferred pronouns because she steadfastly believes they “feel better.”

Other Christians I know make jokes that are so tame and innocuous, yet still meet their words with rampant apologies, just “in case” there’s “any offense.”

Never in my life can I recall, have I heard someone consider themselves a bad communicator, not unless they suffered something traumatic like a betrayal.

In those situations, they are forced to confront reality.

For the rest of us, we strive ever harder, to be ever smarter, more politically correct, to keep up with the veneer for as long as we can, sometimes forever.

I’ve had to ask myself, am I a Christian whose words are too harsh or too kind?

That’s a righteous question every believer should be asking themselves today.

Someone has to be the impetus for change.

Besides, if we are to effectively model ourselves after Christ, we should do so not just in the way we pray or the way we trust, but in the way we communicate.

Ways to Communicate More Like Christ

Here are some ways we can do better to communicate more like Christ.

1. Avoid Being Too Harsh

Saying things just to rile people up is self-defeating.

Not only is the recipient’s mind and heart not changed, but you potentially ruin the relationship in the process.

Even if you’re not intending to be harsh, be mindful of your words.

Put yourself in the other person’s shoes and predict how they will respond to what you’re about to say.

Sometimes being offensive is necessary, other times, not so much.

2. Avoid Being Too Nice

Saying things just to get people to like you is self-defeating.

In fact, people-pleasing is a sin (Galatians 1:10).

¹⁰Now do you think I am trying to make people accept me? No, God is the one I am trying to please. Am I trying to please people? If I wanted to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. [Easy to Read Version]

Rather than actually appreciating you, they’ll only appreciate what you offer.

The moment the offering stops so does their appreciation.

Furthermore, you enable bad behavior when you only go along to get along.

Apathy and Complacency results for them and for you.

3. Engage with People

People will remain strangers unless you talk to them.

Growing your social circles doesn’t need to be objective, but what about serving others?

The more willing we are to engage with people we know and those we don’t, the more we can display God’s kingdom here on Earth through humble servitude.

There’s an obvious difference between a community that communicates in contrast with a community who “politically” “socially” isolates that does not.

4. Be Honest

Be honest with other people, and be honest with yourself.

If you withhold the truth from people, then you’re being deceitful or, even worse, lying.

That’s a sin.

If you aren’t honest with people about their sins, then you are enabling them.

Don’t think for a second God will not hold you accountable nor blameless.

Similarly, sometimes people don’t give us the truth because they are afraid of how we will respond.

They don’t think we can handle the truth, and if they’re correct, that’s a serious problem.

If we recognize ourselves as sinners in need of a Savior, then we must be flawed.

And if flawed, then we can and should be admonished.

5. Stop Talking about Yourself

Too many of our conversations start, end, and endure because of the subject matter – ourselves.

How many conversations would we have, and how long would we bother talking if instead of discussing ourselves, we focused on other people and their ideas?

6. Actually Love People

A number of us Christians believe we are loving others, when in fact, we are doing just the opposite.

To love someone does not equal nor equate to being nice to them.

To love someone is to do what’s best for them.

Sometimes that love manifests as nice words and gestures.

Sometimes love manifests as punishment and criticism.

In either case, the intended result is the same – to help the other grow.

Connecting This With Living Into The Resurrection

Once we have identified ways in which we can grow and mature, then grow and mature into living into the resurrection life Christ Jesus died to exemplify to all.

Once we have identified ways we can help others grow and mature, then we help them grow and mature into the resurrection life Christ Jesus died to exemplify.

Obviously change and transformation won’t “simply” happen for them or for us overnight, but only by the grace of God, 100% change can and will happen.

And if we can change as individuals, then as a community, change is inevitable.

The signs of a degrading society don’t have to be qualities we accept.

We have the choice right now to be different, and if different, then better.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 19:13-14 Easy-to-Read Version

¹³Don’t let me do what I know is wrong.
    Don’t let sin control me.
If you help me, I can be pure
    and free from sin.
¹⁴May my words and thoughts please you.
    Lord, you are my Rock—the one who rescues me.

Bread of life,

through your life you taught us to put away bitterness and anger,

through your life you ministered to us with tenderhearted kindness

to humble ourselves, to share the fruit of our labor with the needy.

By your resurrection, by thy empty tomb, Strengthen us by your grace,

that in a blessed and holy and most sacred communion with you,

we may forgive one another as you forgave us all on Calvary‘s mount.

and with you alone in our hearts, live in love as Christ loved us. Amen.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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When and If Someone Should Ask You: “Okay, Why Should I or Anyone Believe in The Resurrection of Jesus Christ?” 1 Corinthians 15:12-19

1 Corinthians 15:12-17 Easy-to-Read Version

We Will Be Raised From Death

¹²We tell everyone that Christ was raised from death. So why do some of you say that people will not be raised from death? ¹³If no one will ever be raised from death, then Christ has never been raised. ¹⁴And if Christ has never been raised, then the message we tell is worth nothing. And your faith is worth nothing. ¹⁵ And we will also be guilty of lying about God, because we have told people about him, saying that he raised Christ from death. And if no one is raised from death, then God never raised Christ from death. ¹⁶If those who have died are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. ¹⁷And if Christ has not been raised from death, then your faith is for nothing; you are still guilty of your sins.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

Doubters Going to Doubt, Haters – Hate

We are at the closing words of Paul’s First Letter to the followers at Corinth.

Despite the Corinthian Christians being saved by grace through faith in Christ, Paul had some severe concerns about their ungodly conduct, their spiritual immaturity, their argumentative behavior, and their abuse of spiritual gifts.

When any church fellowship allows carnality to enter its gates and permits the philosophy of the world to infiltrate its ranks, it is not the least surprising that doubts, false doctrines begin to proliferate and false teachers enter the flock of God – knowingly, unknowingly muddying the crystal-clear message from God.

Sadly, this is what happened at the Church at Corinth to such a great extent… that the central, foundational facts of their faith in Christ’s death, burial, and Resurrection became so distorted the saints had started to deny the likelihood of Christ’s actual resurrection and of their very own resurrection from the dead.

Although they did acknowledge that there was some form of life after death … they had started to suggest that there would be no bodily resurrection from the grave – they didn’t believe in the physical resurrection of the body through God.

These early 1st Century Christians, with their limited understanding, bought into the mistaken belief that there is no physical resurrection from the dead.

Though some may have yet believed in some type of spiritual afterlife – Paul found it necessary to cover this complex, growing misunderstanding, in great detail in 1st Corinthians 15 – which is often called the Resurrection Chapter.

In this closing part of his letter, step by step, Paul was guiding these confused Christians through the gospel message of grace – that Christ died for our sins according to the Words of available Scripture, and that he was buried, and was raised from the dead, according to the Scripture.

He made the substantial effort to remind them that following his death, Jesus appeared to James and the other apostles and that He ate and drank with them.

He further reminded them through the availability of many yet living witnesses who saw Him with their own eyes and touched Him with their very own hands.

These early believers in Corinth needed be bottle and spoon fed “spiritual milk” before given their forks “stab, dig into,” with gusto, to feast and feed on, fully ingest the “best spiritual meat and potatoes” of the most fulfilling, nourishing central tenets of their faith to understand that Christ was their very pattern –

and that all who believe on His name must follow in His footsteps… for He is the firstborn from the dead – the first of many who will be raised into life immortal.

To mature in their faith, know their old sin nature was put to death with Christ on the Cross, and they received a new nature, a new life being the life of Christ.

And just as they are identified with their new life, this new life hidden in Christ, with Christ’s resurrection, so they are identified with His bodily Resurrection.

Why We Can Believe in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ

1 Corinthians 15:1-8 Easy-to-Read Version

The Good News About Jesus Christ

15 Now, brothers and sisters, I want you to remember the Good News I told you. You received that Good News message, and you continue to base your life on it. ²That Good News, the message you heard from me, is God’s way to save you. But you must continue believing it. If you don’t, you believed for nothing.

³I gave you the message that I received. I told you the most important truths: that Christ died for our sins, as the Scriptures say; ⁴that he was buried and was raised to life on the third day, as the Scriptures say; ⁵and that he appeared to Peter and then to the twelve apostles. ⁶After that Christ appeared to more than 500 other believers at the same time. Most of them are still living today, but some have died. ⁷Then he appeared to James and later to all the apostles. ⁸Last of all, he appeared to me. I was different, like a baby born before the normal time.

With these words, Apostle Paul pointed out believing on Christ’s Resurrection is foundational to the Corinthian follower’s faith – because He lives, we will also live, in newness of life – in newness of the abundant life only available in Christ.

Translating This Into Our 21st Century Context

Scripture teaches that we will one day receive a body like unto His glorious body… uncorrupted by sin – an immortal body of flesh and bone that will never die – for His life-blood was shed at Calvary so that we might receive His resurrected life in an incorruptible body, through the power of the Spirit.

Like Jesus, we are to be raised spirit, soul, and BODY.

If Christ had not been raised from the dead, then everything about the glorious gospel of grace, and our faith in the Lord Jesus would be false and worthless!!

“If Christ has not been raised, then your faith is worthless,” Paul wrote, “and you are still in your sins!” 1 Corinthians 15:17

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, the emptiness of the Tomb, the immovable stone rolled away are the exact cornerstone of our Christian faith.

If Christ did not rise from the dead, your faith is in vain. But you can be assured that the good news is true. Jesus Christ “was buried [and] he was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:4).

Throughout the ages, countless skeptics have tried to disprove the Resurrection experience, but after two thousand some odd years, it stands to the test of time.

Scriptural Proofs of the Resurrection

2 Timothy 3:14-17 Easy-to-Read Version

¹⁴But you should continue following the teaching you learned. You know it is true, because you know you can trust those who taught you. ¹⁵You have known the Holy Scriptures^[a] since you were a child. These Scriptures are able to make you wise. And that wisdom leads to salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. ¹⁶All Scripture is given by God. And all Scripture is useful for teaching and for showing people what is wrong in their lives. It is useful for correcting faults and teaching the right way to live. ¹⁷ Using the Scriptures, those who serve God will be prepared and will have everything they need to do every good work.

Here are at least six proofs that reveal Savior Jesus actually rose from the dead:

First Proof— The Resurrection was foretold by Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests, and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life. —Matthew 16:21

Second Proof— The Resurrection is the only reasonable explanation for His empty tomb.

Joseph brought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. —Mark 15:46

Third Proof— The Resurrection is the only reasonable explanation for the appearance of Jesus Christ to his disciples.

He was buried…raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and…appeared to Peter and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to…me also, as to one abnormally born. —1 Corinthians 15:4-8

Fourth Proof— The Resurrection is the only reasonable explanation for the beginning of the Christian Church.

The Coming of the Holy Spirit

2 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. ²Suddenly a noise came from heaven. It sounded like a strong wind blowing. This noise filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³They saw something that looked like flames of fire. The flames were separated and stood over each person there. ⁴They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak different languages. The Holy Spirit was giving them the power to do this. – Acts 2:1-4

This man was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. —Acts 2:23-24

Fifth Proof— The Resurrection is the only reasonable explanation for the transformation of the disciples.

The disciples went into hiding in an upper room “for fear of the Jews” (John 20:19).

After seeing and talking with Jesus for approximately six weeks, they went out to “turn the world upside down” (see Acts 17:6), and fearlessly proclaiming Jesus Christ (also see Acts 3:12-26; 4:1-33; 8:4; 17:6).

Sixth Proof— The Damascus Road Experience: The witness of the apostle Paul and the transformation of his life, can be reasonably explained only because of the resurrection of Christ. Acts 9:1-22

“Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ” (Acts 9:22).

There are undoubtedly more “proofs” other far more educated people can bring to the forefront of a public debate, discussion on this critically important topic.

I am a laity person – I have no seminary nor any theological school background.

It is my prayerful intent and hope that by anyone reading this devotional, that a whole host of significant discussions will be forthcoming and undertaken in all manner of places and times amongst Christians everywhere this writing is read.

Quality time and effort is expended in diligent study of the Word of God for His Children, not just study but significant times spent fellowshipping and prayer.

There is a great many “1st Century Corinthian followers” among us even today.

There are many on the streets who will not hesitate to “in your face” directly confront our faith and our knowledge of the central tenets of the resurrection.

It absolutely matters to the Kingdom of God that we can make our sure defense.

Someone’s eternal soul hangs by the very barest and least visible of threads.

How prepared are any one us reading this devotional to walk up to any stranger

Ask the single most important question anyone, every one needs to hear:

IS IT WELL WITH YOUR SOUL TODAY?

Let us pray that soon and very soon we can all come together to console each other, to reconcile ourselves with God, study the truth of God’s Word and read and plumb the deepest depths of this amazing 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians, and let us discover and let us extract and let us each share the truest wonders of the bodily resurrection that is now ours in Christ.

All who have been saved by grace through faith in Him, have been promised their earthly, perishable body will be raised a heavenly, imperishable body.. and our mortal flesh will be changed into immortality in the twinkling of an eye.

How wonderful would it be for the Kingdom of God to know we can sing with all the saints: “Where exactly O death is your victory and Where O grave is your sting?”

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Heavenly Father, thank You for the amazing 15th chapter of Corinthians which goes into such specific detail about Christ’s victory over sin and death – on our account. I praise and thank You that because of His great sacrifice on the Cross and glorious, bodily Resurrection, we too are raised into newness of life in Christ – not only in this world but also into the eternal ages to come, where we will be clothed in our eternal, resurrected bodies – for when we see Him as He is we shall be like Him, for which I cannot, will not cease to praise Your holy name. Thank You, in Jesus’ name, AMEN.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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Truly Living For Jesus: What It Means that “Your Life Is Hidden with Christ.” Colossians 3:3-4

Colossians 3:1-4 Easy-to-Read Version

Your New Life

3 You were raised from death with Christ. So live for what is in heaven, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. ²Think only about what is up there, not what is here on earth. ³Your old self has died, and your new life is kept with Christ in God. ⁴Yes, Christ is now your life, and when he comes again, you will share in his glory.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.

Colossians 3:3 Amplified Bible

³For you died [to this world], and your [new, real] life is hidden with Christ in God.

Where is Jesus today?

That seems a good place to answer this question.

If a Christian’s life is hidden with Jesus Christ, we ought to want to know where that hiding place is.

We know that after Jesus died, He rose again from the dead and ascended into heaven.

There He was seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven (Mark 16:19; Acts 2:33; Romans 8:34; 1 Peter 3:22).

Jesus is in heaven with the Father.

Yet we are told in Colossians 3:3 that our life is “hidden with Christ in God.”

How can our life be hidden with Jesus in heaven, whilst we carry on living here on the earth?

Moreover, believers are hidden in Jesus Himself.

We are in Him and He is in us (1 John 4:13).

We are united with Him by the Spirit He has given to us.

What does all of this mean?

Colossians 3:3-4 The Message

These beautiful verses are in a section of Scripture where Paul deals with one of the most basic aspects of the daily Christian life; believers are One in union with their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to reiterate this – we are each one with Him.

Our Savior Jesus Christ, chose our life over our condemnation, died on the Cross and because we believe, we are His children (His seed), we also died with Him.

We were with Christ and we were in Him when He was nailed to the Cross, for we are His seed.

We died at the same time that Christ died on Calvary.

The deadly sin issue in our lives was a settled action at this point, for in Christ Jesus, our sins were forever forgiven and we were each eternally redeemed.

We were bought back by God with a great price – the precious blood of Christ.

As far as God is concerned, every sin you and I have ever committed, past, present, future, was directly, decisively dealt with at this point on the Cross.

Because the Lord Jesus died, we who are His seed also died and the sin issue in our lives was dealt with there and then.

Because of Christ’s finished work in the past, sin is no longer an issue in my life, in your life, now or forever.

But it is even better…

Because our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was raised from the dead, we too share in the same “raised” life that He has.

We are in union with His life and our life is now and forever hidden in Christ.

The wonderful thing is, we not only live in the security of being in union with CHRIST and are hidden in HIM, but we have double security, for we are ALSO hidden WITH Christ IN GOD.

This position of safety, this safe haven, was secured in the past at the Cross of grace and the tomb or life and continues to be the case in our present life today.

And because the gifts and calling of God are without repentance, because God does not change (Hebrews 13:8), this is an unchangeable fact in each of our lives.

And it is as if God has underlined this truth in His Word, for He has written this glorious truth in the past tense, to demonstrate that in His economy it is a done deal – a fait accompli – which literally translates into an accomplished FACT.

Being in union with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ means to us that the past, present, and future aspects of our life are now and forever tied up and remain in perfect union with Christ, and it all began at the Cross when we died with Him.

The unchanging condition of our sin lives may appear to contradict this truth, when difficulties uncountable, unmanageable, rain down upon us all, but no matter what life throws at all our souls, our union with Christ is 100% secure.

We are the possessors of eternal life because when the Lord Jesus was raised, we who are in our Savior Christ are all His seed, were all raised at the same time.

And in God’s economy – because our Savior Christ was raised from the dead, we were raised at the same time into an undeniable, unimaginable newness of life.

As far as God is concerned, our new life is already eternal because we are in union with Christ: “For you are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.”

A New Life in Christ Jesus

Followers of Jesus are given a new life in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).

We become united to Jesus in His death and resurrection.

Those desires that we used to have for earthly things are weakened as we set our minds on heavenly things (Colossians 3:2).

The following verse (Colossians 3:3) says that “you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

Our old, sinful nature was permanently crucified with Jesus on the cross.

Romans 6:6 says

“We know that our old self was crucified with Him so that the body of sin might be rendered powerless, that we should no longer be slaves to sin.”

If we belong to Jesus, we have “crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:24).

We begin to walk in step with the Holy Spirit at work in us (Galatians 5:16-18).

As our new life begins by the power of the Holy Spirit working inside of us, we will subtly look at the world around us differently – “growing strangely dim.”

In turn, others may look at us differently too.

Those who do not yet know Jesus may wonder why our life is different.

They may see the love and grace of God at work in us and want to know more.

Then there are others who will look at us strangely.

After all, we are strangers, pilgrims, and temporary residents here (1 Peter 2:11).

It is when our lives conform to the world that we do not appear any different to those around us.

As Jesus sends us His Holy Spirit to be in us and with us, we are transformed by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2).

We can live for Jesus in this generation, empowered, inspired and strengthened by God, who lives with us and within us.

A Living Hope For A Living Future

When we are born, we enter a broken and fallen world, and we ourselves carry sin in our body that we have inherited from Adam.

We are dead in sin but ALIVE in Christ.

Yet, Jesus is the “last Adam,” and He gives new life where we are born again into a new and living hope.

Through one man, sin entered the world, and all died (Romans 5:12), yet through the one man Jesus, the gift of God’s grace abounds (Romans 5:15).

Christians become part of God’s family, adopted as sons and daughters, and have an “eternal unchanging inheritance” reserved for them in heaven.

Knowing that believers have died to sin should shift our gaze upwards to where Christ is enthroned.

As it says in 1 Peter 1:8:

“Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy…”

He is the object of our faith, and our hope is based on the wonderful truth that Jesus has risen from the dead.

Peter says that Jesus

“has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, reserved in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power for the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:3-5).

Christians are hidden with Christ where a future inheritance that cannot ever be taken away is waiting for them.

It is “reserved in heaven” where Jesus is.

This is something we can look forward to on earth now as we wait expectantly for what is to come.

But we can have access to God directly today because Jesus has reconciled us to Himself.

We can pray to our ABBA Father in heaven knowing that Jesus “is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them” (Hebrews 7:25).

Being hidden in Christ means we have eternal fellowship, eternal relationship with Father, Son and Holy Spirit, which is a solid hope for today and forever.

A Blessed Assurance

Christians have not yet been raised to eternal life with Christ.

But God has awakened us to the truth.

He has “made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions” (Ephesians 2:5).

It was His forgiveness, His mercy, love and grace which saved us on the cross.

When we were given this new life, “God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6).

When the Father looks upon us now, He sees Jesus the Son and His perfect righteousness.

We are no longer separated from God because of our sin.

Our status has changed before God from guilty sinner to a free saint.

We are raised with Jesus, hidden with Him in heaven now “in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace” (Ephesians 2:7).

One day in the near or not too distant future, we will glorify God for eternity because of His loving-kindness towards us.

Yet, we do not need to wait until that glorious day when Savior Jesus calls us heavenward – each and everyone of us can glorify Him exactly today, right exactly and exactingly right now, where we are sitting, standing or reclining.

Being hidden with Him means there is a security about our life after death.

We have an eternal inheritance that will not spoil or fade.

There has been a deposit made into our account from the account of Christ.

He has emptied Himself completely on the cross, so that we may be filled with the Spirit to live as strangers on the earth, raised on the last day with Him in glory, and have everlasting security in the presence of our wonderful Savior.

With this eternal guarantee, we can eternally rejoice with great anticipation of our Savior Christ’s return and know that we are “hidden” and safe with Him.

An Impenetrable Refuge

We are precious to God.

He protects us from evil, hides us under the shadow of His wings, and He is described as a shield and a refuge (Psalm 91:4).

There is no safer place than being in and with Jesus.

Even if our souls and bodies came under attack, our soul is safe with Jesus.

We do not need to fear the one who can destroy the body, but not the soul (Matthew 10:28) for our Savior Jesus is the protector of our life for all eternity.

When we repent and place our faith in Christ’s saving work on the cross, we experience a new birth, a new life, and we are a new creation.

It is Christ’s work by the power of the Holy Spirit that is at work in us.

Knowing how loved we are by God, that He sent His only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16) frees us to not love the world, but to look to and adore Christ.

We can have close communion with Jesus, today and for all eternity.

Being hidden with Christ in His everlasting arms can give us confidence to live for Him in a fallen and perverse generation.

He is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble (Psalm 46:1).

A Heavenly Perspective

As our lives are hidden with Christ in God, we can keep our eyes fixed on Him in the heavenly place.

In the same letter to the Colossians, Paul says we are to “set [our] minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Colossians 3:2).

It is because we are “hidden with Christ” that we are able to set our minds to where He is.

This perspective on looking to Christ because we are united to Christ is one which believers around the world need to be reminded of often.

Just like we hear the gospel and believe, it does not mean we need to stop hearing and believing the gospel.

We need the good news of Jesus every day of our life!

In the same way, just because we are secure and hidden in Jesus once for all, it does not mean we stop fixing our eyes on Him.

Being rescued from this present evil age by Jesus (Galatians 1:4), a heavenly perspective is still needed.

When Jesus prayed to His Father for His followers before His death, He said, “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one” (John 17:15).

As we live for Jesus in the world, we can know He is with us, has prayed for us and He will protect us. We can live boldly knowing our life is hidden with Him.

As we reflect often on all Jesus has done, we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to live with Him and for Him on earth, as we wait with greatest expectation and joy-filled, thankful hearts for Him to come again from heaven.

As it says in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17: “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”

Being hidden with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ means we have a new life, a living hope, a blessed assurance, a secure refuge, and a heavenly perspective.

Nothing can separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:39).

One day, what is hidden will be revealed as Jesus returns once again for His bride, His body, His people – the church.

May we all rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, and be constant in prayer until that glorious day (Romans 12:12).

In the name of God, the Father and God, the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Heavenly Father, thank You that my life is hid with Christ in You. As I die to self and live for Christ, may my life reflect Your love, gentleness, compassion, and truth. Dear Father, My God, I know that I have died and that my life is hid with Christ. He holds the outcome of my life wholly in his hands; He is my whole life. Grant that I may wait patiently yet expectantly, knowing that when He appears, I will also appear with him in His glory. Father, I thank you for this blessed hope. Let the true joy of it fill my life every day as I daily sojourn here on this earth. Let me put the things of this world in perspective through the victory that Christ brings. In the name of Jesus I ask. Amen.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.

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What Can Make Us All Whole Again? Only The Purifying Life Blood of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 1 John 1:7

1 John 1:5-10 New International Version

Light and Darkness, Sin and Forgiveness

⁵This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. ⁶If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. ⁷But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all^[a] sin.

⁸If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. ⁹If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

⁷But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 1 John 1:7 ESV

A believer in Jesus Christ must be humbled by the fact that the righteousness that he or she has received is because of the blood of Jesus at Calvary.

When Jesus was crucified he was bleeding from the cross for you and for everyone in the world.

Even as he was dead on the cross he continued to shed his blood.

But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs: But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. (John 19:33-34, KJV)

This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. (1 John 5:6, KJV)

In the Old Testament times there was the first covenant in which the sins of the people of Israel had to be covered up by the shedding of the blood of an animal.

However, with the arrival of Jesus Christ came a new and better covenant in which he became the perfect sacrifice for our sins.

Hebrews chapter 9 provides for us a comparison and contrast of “cleanliness.”

What Can Wash Away My Sins-Hebrews 9

Hebrews 9 New International Version

Worship in the Earthly Tabernacle

9 Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary. ²A tabernacle was set up. In its first room were the lampstand and the table with its consecrated bread; this was called the Holy Place. ³Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, ⁴which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. ⁵Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now.

⁶When everything had been arranged like this, the priests entered regularly into the outer room to carry on their ministry. ⁷But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance. ⁸The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first tabernacle was still functioning. ⁹This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper. ¹⁰They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the time of the new order.

The Blood of Christ

¹¹But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here,^[a] he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. ¹²He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining^[b] eternal redemption. ¹³The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. ¹⁴How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death,^[c] so that we may serve the living God!

¹⁵For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

¹⁶In the case of a will,^[d] it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, ¹⁷because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living. ¹⁸This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood. ¹⁹When Moses had proclaimed every command of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. ²⁰He said, “This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep.”^[e] ²¹In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. ²²In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

²³It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. ²⁴For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with human hands that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence. ²⁵Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. ²⁶Otherwise Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But he has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. ²⁷Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, ²⁸so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

We have all seen the commercials on television or on the internet advertising all kinds of the best laundry soap for all the very worst kinds of stains imaginable.

We see the kids rolling around in all kinds of mud puddles, stomping mud pits, rubbing their muddy hands all over their clothes and parents looking stunned.

Their eyes and mouths are all wide open, and their facial expressions and their slouched and bewildered bodily postures say: “What detergent will clean that?”

Or to try and tone it down a bit, when kids play outside and get a bit sweaty, we will softly often say to them, “OK, jump in the shower and do a quick rinse-off.”

Other times, when they have played outside for hours and they need more than just a quick rinse—they need that deep-cleaning shower or a soak in the tub.

Then parents get on their hands and knees, with soap and start the scrubbing.

In some ways, the old Hebrew covenant laws of cleansing the body and the spirit and the soul after a time of uncleanness provided just a quick rinse.

It wasn’t any kind of deep-down cleaning – that would take too much time..

But then, the millions of people needed to be cleansed through and through.

But then, the millions of people needed to be cleansed once and for all time.

Today there are billons and we all need to be max cleansed from our lives of sin.

What the old laws could not ever hope to do, as there were simply not enough High Priests to do it, directly and decisively points us all today, to that only someone who could provide a “one and forever done” max full, deep cleaning.

That High Priest is Jesus Christ, whose coming, whose life, ministry, whose death and whose resurrection for our sake, provided purification once for all.

The Old Hebrew Testament law included ritualized ceremonial Temple practices of washing to be clean.

What soap was used in the Bible?

There are also Biblical accounts of the Israelites making soap gel from ash lye and vegetable oils showing the importance of personal hygiene was realized.

Moses gave the Israelites laws governing personal cleansing through the use of ‘borith’ – Hebrew for soap – shortly after their Exodus.

But the cleaning was never complete.

And God knew this and vigorously denounced it through Jeremiah;

Jeremiah 2:20-24 New International Version

²⁰“Long ago you broke off your yoke
    and tore off your bonds;
    you said, ‘I will not serve you!’
Indeed, on every high hill
    and under every spreading tree
    you lay down as a prostitute.
²¹I had planted you like a choice vine
    of sound and reliable stock.
How then did you turn against me
    into a corrupt, wild vine?
²²Although you wash yourself with soap
    and use an abundance of cleansing powder,
    the stain of your guilt is still before me,”
declares the Sovereign Lord.
²³“How can you say, ‘I am not defiled;
    I have not run after the Baals’?
See how you behaved in the valley;
    consider what you have done.
You are a swift she-camel
    running here and there,
²⁴a wild donkey accustomed to the desert,
    sniffing the wind in her craving—
    in her heat who can restrain her?
Any males that pursue her need not tire themselves;
    at mating time they will find her.

The people continually turned away from God, worshipped Baal idols, turned their lives away from diligently obediently serving God to personal corruption.

People would get “dirty” again – their whole year of sins would need cleaning by the High Priests – and sin offerings would need to be repeated over again.

Year after Year after Year … ad infinitum

More and more material resources, “perfectly imperfect” animals sacrificed.

Hands and feet cleansed, whole Bodies cleansed …

But what of the sin stained soul?

What no man can physically wash or cleanse with any kind of bodily soap?

God knew this and vigorously condemned this disobedience – but did also point to a future time when one would come and be that perfect sacrifice for all sins;

Isaiah 53 New International Version

53 Who has believed our message
    and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
²He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
    and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
    nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
³He was despised and rejected by mankind,
    a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces
    he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.

⁴Surely he took up our pain
    and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
    stricken by him, and afflicted.
⁵But he was pierced for our transgressions,
    he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
    and by his wounds we are healed.
⁶We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
    each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
    the iniquity of us all.

⁷He was oppressed and afflicted,
    yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
    and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
    so he did not open his mouth.
⁸By oppression^[a] and judgment he was taken away.
    Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
    for the transgression of my people he was punished.^[b]
⁹He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
    and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
    nor was any deceit in his mouth.

¹⁰Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
    and though the Lord makes^[c] his life an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
    and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
¹¹After he has suffered,
    he will see the light of life^[d] and be satisfied^[e];
by his knowledge^[f] my righteous servant will justify many,
    and he will bear their iniquities.
¹²Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,^[g]
    and he will divide the spoils with the strong,^[h]
because he poured out his life unto death,
    and was numbered with the transgressors.
For he bore the sin of many,
    and made intercession for the transgressors.

then God made for us the definitive revelation of Isaiah 53,

John 3:16-17 Amplified Bible

¹⁶“For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] ^[a]only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life. ¹⁷For God did not send the Son into the world to judge and condemn the world [that is, to initiate the final judgment of the world], but that the world might be saved through Him.

God sent His only begotten Son Jesus as the only perfect sacrifice for us, cleanse us thoroughly and providing such a deep-down cleaning we all receive new life.

As Hebrews 9:14 explains, the blood of Christ, shed for our sake, cleanses “our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!”

For all who confess with their whole heart, their maximum trust in Christ, we are washed in his blood, fully cleansed from our sin so that we may serve him!

1 John 1:5-10 Easy-to-Read Version

God Forgives Our Sins

⁵We heard the true teaching from God. Now we tell it to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness. ⁶So if we say that we share in life with God, but we continue living in darkness, we are liars, who don’t follow the truth. ⁷We should live in the light, where God is. If we live in the light, we have fellowship with each other, and the blood sacrifice of Jesus, God’s Son, washes away every sin and makes us clean.

⁸If we say that we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹But if we confess our sins, God will forgive us. We can trust God to do this. He always does what is right. He will make us clean from all the wrong things we have done. ¹⁰If we say that we have not sinned, we are saying that God is a liar and that we don’t accept his true teaching.

From mankind’s fall in the Garden of Eden, Sin is 100%, an undeniable reality.

Its effects can be seen every day in our lives, in our families, and in society.

Sin is the transgression of God’s law and the lack of conformity to that law.

We sin against God in our words, thoughts, and actions—and even by not doing the good we should do.

We sin because we are sinners.

We were conceived and born in sin, and we live in sin.

We cannot cleanse ourselves.

Sin has affected every possible aspect of our reason, our emotion, and our will.

All areas of our lives have been stained and tainted by sin.

No religious ritual can cleanse us from sin.

Sin separates us from God, setting a impenetrable barrier that we cannot cross.

Jesus Christ, the Only Son of God, has done for us what we ourselves cannot do.

By his death we have life, and by his life blood we have cleansing from all sin.

No sin we commit is too great for him to cover, or so bad God cannot forgive it.

In Jesus Christ, our Savior, we have redemption—abundant, full, and free!

Praise God from whom all blessings of abundant life flow!

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 84 The Message

84 ^1-2What a beautiful home, God-of-the-Angel-Armies!
I’ve always longed to live in a place like this,
Always dreamed of a room in your house,
where I could sing for joy to God-alive!

^3-4Birds find nooks and crannies in your house,
    sparrows and swallows make nests there.
They lay their eggs and raise their young,
    singing their songs in the place where we worship.
God-of-the-Angel-Armies! King! God!
    How blessed they are to live and sing there!

^5-7And how blessed all those in whom you live,
    whose lives become roads you travel;
They wind through lonesome valleys, come upon brooks,
    discover cool springs and pools brimming with rain!
God-traveled, these roads curve up the mountain, and
    at the last turn—Zion! God in full view!

^8-9God-of-the-Angel-Armies, listen:
O God of Jacob, open your ears—I’m praying!
Look at our shields, glistening in the sun,
our faces, shining with your gracious anointing.

^10-12One day spent in your house, this beautiful place of worship,
    beats thousands spent on Greek island beaches.
I’d rather scrub floors in the house of my God
    than be honored as a guest in the palace of sin.
All sunshine and sovereign is God,
    generous in gifts and glory.
He doesn’t scrimp with his traveling companions.
    It’s smooth sailing all the way with God-of-the-Angel-Armies.

Holy! Holy! Holy! Lord God Almighty, holy is your name. Sin does not dwell with you. Thank you for sending your Son, for the full and free forgiveness that Jesus’ blood has purchased for your Children, allowing them to be close to you. In the Savior’s name.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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Becoming More Like Christ; Comfort and Encourage: God Shows Through Our Experiences. 2 Corinthians 1:3-7

2 Corinthians 1:3-7 Amplified Bible

³Blessed [gratefully praised and adored] be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, ⁴who comforts and encourages us in every trouble so that we will be able to comfort and encourage those who are in any kind of trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. ⁵For just as Christ’s sufferings are ours in abundance [as they overflow to His followers], so also our comfort [our reassurance, our encouragement, our consolation] is abundant through Christ [it is truly more than enough to endure what we must]. ⁶But if we are troubled and distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted and encouraged, it is for your comfort, which works [in you] when you patiently endure the same sufferings which we ^[a]experience. ⁷And our ^[b]hope for you [our confident expectation of good for you] is firmly grounded [assured and unshaken], since we know that just as you share as partners in our sufferings, so also you share as partners in our comfort.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

Come! Listen! Let Me Tell You What My Savior Has Done For Me.

Psalm 66:16-20 The Message

^16-20All believers, come here and listen,
    let me tell you what God did for me.
I called out to him with my mouth,
    my tongue shaped the sounds of music.
If I had been cozy with evil,
    the Lord would never have listened.
But he most surely did listen,
    he came on the double when he heard my prayer.
Blessed be God: he didn’t turn a deaf ear,
    he stayed with me, loyal in his love.

The writer of Psalm 66 wants to tell us his “GOD story” when he says, “Come and hear, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me.”

The psalmist does not want to talk about his accomplishments or achievements.

The Psalmist wants to talk about what God has done for him throughout his life.

His life had not been easy.

He had been tested and refined like silver.

He had experienced many burdens.

But through it all God had been with him and by listening to his cries for help,

God had led him, guided him, directed him to “a place of abundance.”

Like the Psalmist, each and every one of us has a strikingly similar story to tell.

All of us can bear great witness to the weight of burdens we have had to carry.

All of us can testify to hardships in our lives—but also to the one irrefutable fact that God, and God alone, has always been there and always acted on our behalf.

We must make sure we tell our story.

We must make sure you tell about God’s presence in our life and about his amazing grace in the midst of our much diverse and various degrees of trials.

We must wake sure we tell, re-tell it to our children and our grandchildren.

Someone once said to me,

“If something were to ever happen to you, I am sure I would not know anything about any legitimate kind of relationship to God or His Son or the Holy Spirit.”

Don’t let that happen to you.

Start contemplating your story.

Start writing or telling your story today!

A story which begins with (Song by Bill & Gloria Gaither and Ladye Love Smith)

Days are filled with sorrow
Days are filled with sorrow and care
Hearts are lonely and drear
Burdens are lifted at Calvary
Jesus is very near

Troubled soul, the Savior can see
Every heartache and tear
Burdens are lifted at Calvary
Jesus is very near

and ends with ….

A repetition of this guided affirmation of faith in our Savior Jesus Christ ….

Burdens are lifted at Calvary
Calvary, Calvary
Burdens are lifted at Calvary
Jesus is very near

Let Us Now Lift Up Our Hearts Unto Calvary Because Jesus is Very Near

I want us to imagine that we are each standing at the end of a long hallway.

The hallway represents the entirety of our life so far on earth.

To begin with, look down to your feet, where you are standing is todays date; all the way down at the far distant other end of the hallway is the day of your birth.

Now, just begin walking – please do not run, skip or jog or sprint or fast walk, Neither get on your skateboards, roller blades or roller skates or your bicycles.

Leave your car keys, your truck keys, your mini-van, your hybrid or EV car keys.

You are not driving anywhere – you are only and just walking with Savior Jesus.

Go outside of self and stretch your legs a bit, start working that heart muscle.

As you begin walking down the hallway heading back in your life, I want you to take notice of all of the notice various and diverse sizes of pictures on the wall.

These pictures are all of the “events” from your life; it’s like a photo album of your entire life which someone has taken the time to paint or print and hang.

Some are large framed pictures; they are the most significant experiences you have had so far.

Some are good; some are bad; some are happy; some are sad.

As you steadily walk down this hallway of your life, I want you to take a long and considered look at the content and context of all of these large pictures.

What significant events from your life do you see that stand out?

Is there a wedding?

The successful purchase of your first home?

The Birth of your first child?

Are there family vacations or sporting events pictured on the walls?

Is there an achievement like a high school or college diploma or an award?

Is there a significant milestone depicted – high professional achievements?

Is there a significant milestone depicted – your long awaited retirement?

Are there spiritual experiences like your coming to faith in Christ or a time God miraculously entered into your sub-conscience, especially touched your life?

Are there significantly painful experiences—a divorce, the death of someone you really loved, a failure, a betrayal, abuse, alcoholism, a difficult to care for child which leads to a hardcore challenging, difficult marriage, a significantly threatening health diagnosis, an over abundance of “no money,” an addiction?

Take some time now to walk beyond all of that, walk all the way to the end of this hallway of your, notice “self-portraits” in all these significant experiences in your life… contemplate, take notice of all the ones named “my aloneness.”

[NOW TAKE SOME QUALITY TIME WITH GOD IN SILENT REFLECTION].

As I pray, for you like the Psalmist did, I plead with you to realize that all these experiences have actually shaped who you are today, whether you like it or not.

I pray for you to realize there is no time for self-blame, or blame God, He didn’t cause all of these hard things to happen, but did allow them to happen to you.

What GOD wants to do with us, within us, is to use all of these experiences–Good and Bad–to grow us spiritually and mold us into the likeness of our Lord and Savior Jesus and to shape us for the unique purposes He has for our lives.

His intent is not to cause us any harm (1 John 4:7-12 The Message)

God Is Love

^7-10My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God.

^11-12My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other. No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love!

By the unmeasurable enormity of this love He expressed through Calvary,

He does not intend nor want even one of our life experiences to be wasted.

With a very God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit specific long term intention:

Romans 8:28-30 Amplified Bible

²⁸And we know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose. ²⁹For those whom He foreknew [and loved and chose beforehand], He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son [and ultimately share in His complete sanctification], so that He would be the firstborn [the most beloved and honored] among many believers. ³⁰And those whom He predestined, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified [declared free of the guilt of sin]; and those whom He justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity].

God takes every single one of our life experiences—whether positive or painful, intentional or accidental, known or unknown, avoided or not, caused by you or by someone else, to shape all His Children for His unique calling in their lives.

Romans 8:28-30 may be, for some of us, the most personal verses in the Bible:

We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.

Your life experience and my own are one of the most overlooked ways that God uses to mold, shape, and transform us for the way He wants each of us to serve Him and others in this world, to edify, that is, to build up, His Kingdom alone.

The Bible says that God is working in every experience you have—our mistakes, our decisions, our successes and failures, our education or lack thereof, all of our different jobs, relationships, our lack of relationships, our unemployment, our disabilities, our marriages, our health issues, our finances—you name it.

God is working in every single thing in our lives—even in and through our own continued and continuous bent to our sins–to accomplish His purpose for you.

What Is The “God Specific” Purpose For Which God Is Even Now Working In Every Single Thing In Our life?

He is always working for the good in our lives.

Reverend Rick Warren puts it this way:

God can take the mess in our lives and bring a message out of it.

He can take the tests in our lives and create a testimony out of it.

He can take any crisis and show all of our Savior Jesus Christ through them.

GOD does not, never will, waste any experience any one of His Children have.

Moses murdered a man and had to flee into the wilderness between Egypt and Israel to save his life.

Some 40 years later God came to him in the vision of a burning bush and said, Moses, I have chosen you to go back down to Egypt to set my people free from slavery and guide and lead them through the wilderness to the Promised Land.

Moses knew the wilderness; he had lived there, learned its ways for 40 years.

Likewise, as Moses did, that through God, not our wits, God wants to use the wildernesses of our lives to help guide others, to find God’s way for their lives.

Joseph, his father Jacob’s favorite, was conspired against, thrown down a well and eventually sold to merchants into slavery by his hyper jealous brothers.

He ended up a slave and a prisoner in Egypt, but God gifted him and made a way for him to become the Prime Minister of Egypt and second only to the Pharaoh.

When famine threatened the very existence of God’s people, God used Joseph to plant, grow, harvest, store, manage the supply the grain that His people needed.

And when his brothers came to him starving, Joseph said to them: You intended to harm me, but God long intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the housing, settling and feeding, ultimately the saving of many lives.

But notice carefully God does not just do this for everybody.

God works His good for those who love Him and follow His plan.

The promise of Romans 8:28 is not for everybody.

God does not work His good in our lives when we don’t love Him or we turn our backs on Him.

It’s not that God turns His back on those who don’t follow His plan for their lives – God loves everybody, but He cannot help and use those who close their hearts, souls, minds, strengths and lives to Him and His plan for their lives.

One of the most common ways God uses our life experiences for good is to help others – to empathize, give comfort and encouragement while God works.

God can and does take each and everyone of our experiences, especially the painful ones, and turns them around, transforming them in a positive way.

Who better to help someone who is struggling than another person who has gone through the same struggle?

2 Corinthians 1:4 says, God, through Christ at Calvary, comforts and encourages us in all of our troubles so we can then, in turn, comfort and encourage others.

From Calvary then, when others are troubled, we will be able to reciprocate, to give them the same comfort and encouragement from Calvary God has given us.

Our troubles can become the very ministry God will use to help other people.

That uniquely painful experience in your life that you keep locked in the inner recesses of your soul could become your singularly unique, greatest ministry.

God has used the failures and hurtful experiences of my own life more than anything else to mold, shape and transform me exclusively for His purposes.

Those bad life experiences of my have helped me grow uniquely, spiritually.

Truthfully, in the good and happy times of my life, I have usually just coasted spiritually, taking God’s grace for granted that He will always, forever be there.

I have to see, from the long shadow extending outward from Calvary, and into eternity, God does not want me to allow my experiences to count for nothing.

I have to become the better person, through Christ, God needs me to become.

Now, it is my relationship with God which continues to keep me looking more forward versus more backwards, instead, a day at a time – Sweet Savior Jesus.

He was my Best Forever friend, much better than a brother I never had.

I was so “at ease, more comforted, more encouraged” with my Sweet Savior Jesus, stark comparison to the “disease of sin” I was struggling to recover from.

He truly brought wholeness to my life, an indescribable joy and immeasurable degrees of comfort that will always and forever be etched deep in my memory.

In His time on earth; Jesus had completed God’s mission for His life; and there is no doubt God touched uncountable many lives through him.

Through Calvary, by my walk to Calvary, My Sweet Savior Jesus helped me to see how life is supposed to be lived—in tune with my GOD and the Holy Spirit.

He helped me to find God and my family, the church to which my wife and I go.

On more than one occasion, the Bible says that God chooses to use weaker vessels to do His work so that He may get the glory.

In 2 Corinthians 12:9, God says: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

Paul responds: “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”

God can help people more through their weakness than we can through our strengths.

That’s why we need each other; it’s why we need the supportive fellowship of the church.

You can learn from others who have gone or who are going through the same struggles you are.

Perfection, if we could achieve it, would help nobody.

What experiences have we had to confront in our own lives which GOD could use to help comfort and encourage others?

“I Thirst” and then “It is Finished”

John 19:28-30 Amplified Bible

²⁸After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said in fulfillment of the Scripture, “I am thirsty.” ²⁹A jar full of ^[a]sour wine was placed there; so they put a sponge soaked in the sour wine on [a branch of] hyssop and held it to His mouth. ³⁰When Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and [voluntarily] ^[b]gave up His spirit.

At Golgotha, the Place of the Skull, At Calvary, the death of the perfect Son of God was the darkest moment in world history, but look back at the portraits in the length and breadth and width of your hallway at how God used Jesus’ death.

Jesus’ death atoned for every single one our sins and everybody else’s sins and made for each of us an unobstructed way back to God, into heaven when we die.

Out of Christ’s crucifixion, God brought to all mankind the ultimate comfort and encouragement – God brought salvation for all who trust and follow Jesus.

This is our hope in Jesus Christ!

On that first Easter Sunday two millennia ago, God brought life out of death.

Jesus Christ died, three days later he arose from the dead and is now a living presence among us right now— forgiving us, delivering us, shaping us, guiding us, loving us, living in and among us and wanting to use us for His purposes.

God can use all your life experiences, good and bad, to shape you for His unique calling in your life—if forego any resistance to any, all change, if we let Him.

Hebrews 3:12-16 Amplified Bible

The Peril of Unbelief

¹²Take care, brothers and sisters, that there not be in any one of you a wicked, unbelieving ^[a]heart [which refuses to trust and rely on the Lord, a heart] that turns away from the living God. ¹³But continually encourage one another every day, as long as it is called “Today” [and there is an opportunity], so that none of you will be hardened [into settled rebellion] by the deceitfulness of sin [its cleverness, delusive glamour, and sophistication]. ¹⁴For we [believers] have become partakers of Christ [sharing in all that the Messiah has for us], if only we hold firm our newborn confidence [which originally led us to Him] until the end, ¹⁵while it is said,

“Today [while there is still opportunity] if you hear His voice,
Do not harden your heart, as when they provoked Me [in the rebellion in the desert at Meribah].”

¹⁶For who were they who heard and yet provoked Him [with rebellious acts]? Was it not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses?

“Today, while there is still opportunity, if we WILL hear His voice …”

“Do not harden your hearts again and again, with further acts of open rebellion …”

God’s Call and Invitation to each and everyone of us through Mount Calvary:

God has 3 callings in the lives of each and everyone of His Children:

(1) He calls you to salvation and a new life in Jesus Christ;

(2) He calls you to be an active part of His church;

(3) He calls you to serve Him and comfort and encourage others in the unique way He has gifted and shaped you.

Encouraging one another is an important part of our daily walk with Christ.

Comforting one another is an important part of our daily walk with Christ.

We live in a world corrupted by unbelief, sin, and, at times, persecution.

How can we stay firm in our faith?

Scripture gives us this recipe:

Comfort, Love, Encourage, and Daily Pray for one another.

In God’s grace, the Holy Spirit uses these acts of mutual and shared comfort, care and encouragement to guide us, see us, through the most trying of times.

When fellow believers are struggling, be quick to extend your helpful, sharing hand.

Be graceful and be generous.

Be gentle and be merciful as unto the Lord.

Be comforting and be encouraging.

Offer words of comfort and prayer, as well as tangible acts of help, encourage people around you, and be surprised by how much you are encouraged yourself!

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Would you pray this prayer with me?

Almighty God and my Everlasting Father, Lord of my life, I offer back my life to You. Everything I’ve been through, Lord, use it for Your glory. Jesus, I give You my all. In your name I pray and commit myself to Your continuing work in this world. Lead, Guide and Direct my Steps back towards Calvary from whence comes my Savior. That I may be a comfort as I was comforted, I may be an encourager as I was encouraged. For indeed, there is no other name under heaven through which mankind is saved.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Amen.

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Ecclesiastes 2:1-11, 24-26 Easy-to-Read Version

Does “Having Fun” Bring Happiness?

Does Hard Work Bring Happiness?

Chasing the Winds, Searching for the Winds

Unholy Discontentment

Single Mindedly Pursuing Satisfaction in God May Look Substantially Different Than What We Think.

Steps to Single Mindedly Pursuing God

Dissatisfaction and Discontentment of the World

Worldly Satisfaction Does Not Go with You or Me to Eternity

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Psalm 119:57-64 The Message

Revelation 21:3-5 The Message

Everyone’s Never-Ending Hunger and Thirst

Ecclesiastes 3:9-13 The Message

God, Our Portion

Psalm 119:57-64 New King James Version

ח HETH

The Cup Which Satisfies

How Can We Be Satisfied in God’s Presence?

John 14:15-18 New King James Version

Jesus Promises Another Helper

Psalm 40:1-10 The Message

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Colossians 3:1-4 New Living Translation

Living the New Life

God’s Heart Does Not, Must Not, Ever Stop With Us

1 John 4:7-10 Easy-to-Read Version

Love Comes From God

Matthew 5:14-16 Easy-to-Read Version

Make a Friend, Be a Friend, Bring a Friend to Christ

Colossians 3:1-4 The Message

He Is Your Life

Psalm 19:11-14 The Message

Getting to the Point of Asking: “Excuse Me, How is it With Your Soul?”

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Mark 6:7-13 English Standard Version

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve Apostles

Community Is Our Doing Difficult Things Together

Are We Recognizing Our Value to God’s Kingdom?

John 15:12-17 English Standard Version

Valued of Mankind versus Valued of God

Genesis 1:26-27 Authorized (King James) Version

Psalm 139:1-18 Complete Jewish Bible

Psalm 139:23-24 Complete Jewish Bible

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2 Corinthians 5:16-21 Easy-to-Read Version

The God of Reconciliation

About Those Unrepentant Sinners

Matthew 10:1-4 Easy-to-Read Version

Jesus Sends His Apostles on a Mission

2 Corinthians 5:16-17 Amplified Bible

What About Our Loving Our Unsaved Friends?

John 13:34-35 Amplified Bible

1. Value Them

2. Accept Them

3. Listen to Them

4. Pray for Them

5. Be More Like Jesus: Show Them Grace

John 1:14 Amplified Bible

The Word Made Flesh

What About Our “Efforts” to Love as Jesus Loved?

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Ephesians 4:29-32 Easy-to-Read Version

Building Others Up

Communicating More Like Christ

Philippians 2:1-3 Easy-to-Read Version

Be United and Care for Each Other

Are My Words Too Harsh or Too Kind?

Ways to Communicate More Like Christ

Connecting This With Living Into The Resurrection

Psalm 19:13-14 Easy-to-Read Version

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1 Corinthians 15:12-17 Easy-to-Read Version

We Will Be Raised From Death

Doubters Going to Doubt, Haters – Hate

Why We Can Believe in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ

1 Corinthians 15:1-8 Easy-to-Read Version

The Good News About Jesus Christ

Translating This Into Our 21st Century Context

Scriptural Proofs of the Resurrection