Tag: Pondering our Christianity

When We Feel Stuck, When We Are Not At All Convinced We Can Still Make a Difference With Our Life. John 21:15-19

John 21:15-19 Amplified Bible

The Love Motivation

15 So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these [others do—with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I [a]love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Feed My lambs.” 16  Again He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me [with total commitment and devotion]?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.” 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me [with a deep, personal affection for Me, as for a close friend]?” Peter was grieved that He asked him the third time, “Do you [really] [b]love Me [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend]?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know everything; You know that I love You [with a deep, personal affection, as for a close friend].” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.

Our Times Are in His Hand

18 I assure you and most solemnly say to you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and walked wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and arms, and someone else will dress you, and carry you where you do not wish to go.” 19 Now He said this to indicate the [c]kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after saying this, He said to him, “Follow Me [walk the same path of life that I have walked]!”

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

(Psalm 144:4) Man is like a mere breath;
His days are like a shadow that passes away.

Perhaps there exists something so natural to us we take it too much for granted.

Perhaps that something which so very natural to us is our time alive, our time allotted to us by God to simply breathing and moving and living on this earth.

Do we take the time to ponder exactly how Time is so precious — time with our families, children, parents, friends, brothers and sisters in Christ – With God?

How do we invest our time?

When do we invest our time?

Where do we invest our time?

With whom do we invest our time?

Why do we invest our time with whomever we invest our times?

You know, when it comes right down to it, getting back to the basics of life, our time with God and each other is really more valuable than the money we invest.

Once the present time and its opportunities are gone, they can’t be reclaimed.

So as we begin each day, as we look at the sunshine through the rain, perhaps contemplate “time management” “thought management,” ask God we will be able to “know His time,” to see it for what it is, to use it for its greatest good.

Irretrievably so, time – God’s Time” passes quickly, like the shadows of early evening, it’s not long before it is absorbed into the gathering darkness of night.

When We Feel “Forever Stuck” In The Moment?

From time to time, while in the process of drafting a new devotional, I find myself in a deep mental conundrum – my mind and my spirit seem to go blank.

The kind of blankness I so desperately want to escape, but as every cliched movie villain always says, “escape is futile, resistance to change is futile”

Sometimes the same conundrum affects me on an emotional level, even spiritually – what difference is anything I write about a particular subject I believe the Holy Spirit provides, going to make in anyone I truly care about?

I feel a certain way and don’t want to, but the villain tells me yet again, escape is futile – In other words, I’m feeling stuck in my moment- or so I tell myself.

The first kind of hindrance is writer’s block, something every author eventually faces during his or her artistic pursuits.

Then there’s the kind of barrier we can all relate to, where we’re looking for a change on an emotional or spiritual level, but find ourselves confused, maybe even miserable – we are longing for answers but find none – That’s a life block.

We encounter them in our relationship with God, with each other.

We find them on the job and at home and on vacations.

We find them in ourselves and of ourselves.

In other words, we contend with a seemingly insurmountable problem; but only to us, the problem is not seemingly, but definitely perceived as insurmountable.

We’re stuck in a moment of time, or in a memory, or so we will take great pains to try to sell it that way to ourselves.

Escape is futile, we keep talking to ourselves and therefore we come to believe.

Yet, the reality is, deep down, we know the movie villain is 100% exaggerating.

For the dramatic effect and for their audiences, they will always exaggerate.

There is a way through the barrier, a way to get unstuck, a way back to writing those stories, transforming perspectives, having the right perspective of God.

Though the frustration and confusion may be too deep, ceaseless, unrelenting, too aggravating, too anger provoking, the solution is simple and two-fold.

First, take a break; not in the sense of giving up, but in the sense of ending your striving.

There’s only so much we can control in our lives.

The sooner we realize this, the more peace we will find.

After you take a break, either wait or look for inspiration.

Sometimes finishing a devotional requires that I stop writing for ten minutes so that I can go for a walk or have a quick moment to wander around my home.

Sometimes finishing a devotional requires me to temporarily set it aside, to pray to God and then as God will’s it, come back after a day or longer.

That time off from the writing effort is useful for conjuring up, discerning new ideas, letting the Holy Spirit work and gaining insight from God or other people.

Creating distance from the problem at hand often helps with developing a more objective perspective.

The same applies when we’re navigating relational conflict, battling addiction, battling mental health issues, family issues or just trying to discern God’s will.

After we take a break from all the struggles of doing things our own way, we can find “Father, Son and Holy Spirit” inspiration for tackling our circumstances.

Proverbs 16:1-4 Amplified Bible

Contrast the Upright and the Wicked

16 The plans and reflections of the heart belong to man,
But the [wise] answer of the tongue is from the Lord.
2 
All the ways of a man are clean and innocent in his own eyes [and he may see nothing wrong with his actions],
But the Lord weighs and examines the motives and intents [of the heart and knows the truth].
3 
[a]Commit your works to the Lord [submit and trust them to Him],
And your plans will succeed [if you respond to His will and guidance].
4 
The Lord has made everything for its own purpose,
Even the wicked [according to their role] for the day of evil.

Inspiration comes only through our connection to God, sometimes through people, sometimes through nature, and sometimes through so much more.

Inspiration also finds us through God’s Word, the wisdom of the Cross, and a visit from Jesus helping us see with a perspective that doesn’t come naturally.

Stuck in His Guilt, Peter is Restored to Discipleship

John 21:18-19 Amplified Bible

Our Times Are in His Hand

18 I assure you and most solemnly say to you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and walked wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and arms, and someone else will dress you, and carry you where you do not wish to go.” 19 Now He said this to indicate the [a]kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. And after saying this, He said to him, “Follow Me [walk the same path of life that I have walked]!”

On the night Jesus was arrested, Peter had instantly revoked his discipleship.

Under threat of arrest and exposure and potential death sentence, by those in the courtyard he had denied three times that he was a follower of Jesus – each time he publicly proclaimed his denials more desperate than the previous one.

Luke 22:54-62 Amplified Bible

Peter’s Denials

54 Then they seized Him, and led Him away and brought Him to the [elegant] house of the [Jewish] [a]high priest. And Peter was following at a [safe] distance. 55 After they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat among them. 56 And a servant-girl, seeing him as he sat in the firelight and looking intently at him, said, “This man was with Him too.” 57 But Peter denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him!” 58 A little later someone else saw him and said, “You are one of them too.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not!” 59 After about an hour had passed, another man began to insist, “This man was with Him, for he is a Galilean too.” 60 But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” Immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed. 61 The Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had told him,  “Before a rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times.” 62 And he went out and wept bitterly [deeply grieved and distressed].

Again, to emphasis, the power of the moment, its deep significance, when he realized what he had done, he went out and wept bitterly (Matthew 26:69-75).

In that moment frozen forever in time, He was indescribably overwhelmed by incalculable shame and immeasurable guilt.

Luke 24:36-43 Amplified Bible

Other Appearances

36 While they were talking about this, Jesus Himself [suddenly] stood among them and said to them, “Peace be to you.” 37 But they were startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a spirit. 38 And He said, “Why are you troubled, and why are doubts rising in your hearts? 39 Look at [the marks in] My hands and My feet, [and see] that it is I Myself. Touch Me and see; a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see that I have.” 40 After saying this, He showed them His hands and His feet. 41 While they still did not believe it because of their joy and amazement, He asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” 42 They gave Him a piece of broiled fish, 43 and He took it and ate it in front of them.

Even as Peter with the other disciples in the Upper Room, heard the words from the resurrected Jesus – “Peace be To You,” the question – “why are you troubled and why are doubts rising in your hearts,” having been offered the opportunity to look at the marks in His hands and feet, to even touch them for his own self,

We can say that Peter’s heart, despite all of the irrefutable evidence offered by the resurrected Jesus to the contrary, Peter kept significant doubts of himself.

He looked directly into his Messiah’s eyes when he betrayed Him and wept bitterly and inconsolably – only an exchange of words with eye to eye contact would make any significant and lasting difference which did not happen here.

Such a moment required utmost discretion couples with the utmost presence of God in Christ and the utmost intimacy and the utmost compassion, forgiveness.

Jesus comes to the lakeshore.

After breakfast, Jesus and Peter together, go much further down the beach.

Jesus quietly looked into Peter’s eyes and quietly asked Peter a few questions.

But the questions were not “What were you thinking?” “Why did you abandon me when I needed you?” or “Why didn’t you have the guts to stick up for me?”

It was simply “Do you love me?”

Jesus had died on the cross for Peter’s sins.

What Jesus wanted to know now was only whether or not Peter still loved him.

Peter’s sins were in the past; Peter’s expression of love would shape his future.

When Peter said, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you,”

Jesus, the conqueror of sin and death and the Lord of life, graciously invited him to take up his discipleship again and forgiven, follow him into the future.

Doing the same with us, Jesus is astonishingly gracious.

He doesn’t bring up our past sins, betrayals, or infidelities.

He simply wants to know if we love him.

He simply wants to know, to hear He can still make a difference in Peter’s life.

He simply wants to hear Peter acknowledge he still believed in himself, in his ability to move through and beyond his transgressions, to make a difference in the lives he will come to engage with until his own death at some future point.

Did Peter believe, though still being stuck in the brutality of his mistakes, he could still make a significant difference, significant impact in God’s kingdom?

Forward through the Ages for Christ’s sake – for that makes all the difference.

Whatever horrendous mess you might be stuck in now, are you seeking Jesus?

Forward in His Forgiveness, Forward through the Ages,

Do you Still love Him as He still loves you?

Will you still serve Him as He first Served you (Mark 10:35-45, Luke 19:9-10)?

Micah 6:6-8 Amplified Bible

What God Requires of Man

6 
With what shall I come before the Lord [to honor Him]
And bow myself before God on high?
Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings,
With yearling calves?
7 
Will the Lord be delighted with thousands of rams,
Or with ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I present my firstborn for my acts of rebellion,
The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 
He has told you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
Except to be just, and to love [and to diligently practice] kindness (compassion),
And to walk humbly with your God [setting aside any overblown sense of importance or self-righteousness]?

He invites us to go out and serve him today!

Steadfast and Immovable Gracious and Compassionate In Him.

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

Let us Pray,

Eternal God, please give me the wisdom to use the time given me today to do what is best, right, good, and profitable for Your Kingdom. I want to better invest my time in what is truly enduring and redemptive and transformative, living in and loving out from the depths of resurrection, from the depths of your mercy and forgiveness for all my sins. Please help me use my time to influence and bless all those with whom I may interact with so that they too are brought closer to you. In Jesus’ name, I pray.

Adeste Fideles! Laeti Triumphantes! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

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Will The Cross Open Wide Our Eyes Too? The Centurion’s Unexpected Confession: His Declaration Of Jesus’ Innocence. Luke 23:44-49

Luke 23:44-49 Amplified Bible

44 It was now about the sixth hour (noon), and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour (3:00 p.m.), 45 because the sun was [a]obscured; and the veil [of the Holy of Holies] of the temple was [b]torn in two [from top to bottom]. 46 And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit!” Having said this, He breathed His last. 47 Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he began praising and honoring God, saying, “Certainly this Man was innocent.” 48 All the crowds who had gathered for this spectacle, when they saw what had happened, began to return [to their homes], beating their breasts [as a sign of mourning or repentance]. 49 And all His acquaintances and the women who had accompanied Him from Galilee were standing at a distance, watching these things.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

It was to become the Greatest Injustice in the History of Mankind.

As Prophesied by Jesus Himself three times to His Disciples.

Betrayed, Falsely Accused, a Bevy of False Witness testified against him.

A Kangaroo Court held in the darkest of street corners, behind locked doors.

By His own people who once declared the triumph of his life and ministry.

Pilate Himself declared his innocence, tried everything to release him alive.

But Jesus’ own people would have none of it – Crucify! Crucify! Crucify!

Beaten and Scourged and Humiliated to almost beyond recognition.

Forced to carry his own means of death.

Both Hands and Both Feet Nailed to the Cross in the most painful of ways.

Raised up for all the great gathered crowds to bear their ugliest witness to.

Ceaseless, Unrelenting Mockery and Scorn shouted and heard far and wide.

Finally, more quieted and Hushed Words are uttered and heard but by a few.

“I am Thirsty.”

“Father, Forgive them for they know not what they do.”

“It is Finished.”

“Father, into Your hands I Commend My Spirit.”

And finally, all the words come to their ends, Jesus is dead …

But into this moment when all else is suddenly hushed …

But the hushed flow of words continues from unexpected sources …

Luke 23:47 Amplified Bible

47 Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he began praising and honoring God, saying, “Certainly this Man was innocent.”

Who else had heard these words spoken by the Centurion, the man with the authority to command and lead others to do his bidding, the man under the even greater authority of Pilate, under ultimate authority of his Emperor.

Yes, who else heard these hushed words of the Centurion …

Luke 23:48 Amplified Bible

48 All the crowds who had gathered for this spectacle, when they saw what had happened, began to return [to their homes], beating their breasts [as a sign of mourning or repentance].

The Word of God for His Children was undoubtedly rare and and far rarer still were the Words of God for His Children to remain hush, unspoken in those days.

Now, it is two thousand some odd number of years later and we “hear” again.

Through the Word of God for His Children and Song we remembered the scene.

Good Friday has passed us by, we have returned to the comfort of our homes.

To quietly await the quiet and hushed arrival of the sunrise on Easter Morning.

In that between time, on that day of whatever comes rushing to your mind – perhaps the final rush of housework, shopping and meal preparation for the final assembly of family and friends and perhaps even your neighbors too …

Question: What happens in your heart when you think of Jesus on the cross?

Probably not too much because like most you are waiting for the Preacher to lead the morning worship and Preach their messages on Sunday morning.

A day meant for personal reflection, perhaps family devotionals is what …?

Perhaps, if you are like me and perhaps a few others who went home “beating their breasts in hushed acts of confession and reflection and repentance, it is a time of inviting the Holy Spirit to intercede into your all too hushed moments.

I guess it is too hard to spend any extra time with God (Matthew 6:6-7) to try to imagine the indescribable, immeasurable depths of injustice on Good Friday.

His suffering is especially hard to imagine during this season of the year when we are still perhaps remembering his Advent and thinking about his birth too.

Our hearts are filled with emotion – the joy, and triumph and the Glory of God, the single greatest act of God’s love and God’s Justice of all time. (John 3:16-17)

The hearts of those who witnessed the Lord’s suffering were filled with all sorts of emotions, too.

Like the Centurion’s, Does The Cross Opens Our Eyes?

Luke 23:47 Amplified Bible

47 Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he began praising and honoring God, saying, “Certainly this Man was innocent.”

The seasoned Roman officer handling the execution praised God and knew this man Jesus was not guilty of any crime.

The crowd went home with deep sorrow.

John and Jesus’ mother Mary and a few others stood by the Cross …

John 19:25-27 Amplified Bible

25 So the soldiers did these things.

But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, His mother’s sister [[a]Salome], [b]Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 So Jesus, seeing His mother, and the [c]disciple whom He loved (esteemed) standing near, said to His mother, “[Dear] woman, look, [here is] your son!” 27 Then He said to the disciple (John), “Look! [here is] your mother [protect and provide for her]!” From that hour the disciple took her into his own home.

Most of Jesus’ friends went home in repentance or watched from a distance.

We have all of these “reactions from the ground as they look up at the Cross.”

What are we to make of them still today – in these 21st century times, seasons?

We have not understood, indeed we cannot understand the implications of the the harshness, yet also the beauty of cross unless it has changed us personally.

After Jesus “breathed his last” (Luke 23:46), Luke records for us the reactions of those who witnessed the crucifixion.

“All the crowds that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, returned home beating their breasts” (v 48).

Yes, there was sadness, but once the spectacle was over, they left to get on with their lives.

Verse 49 then informs us “all his acquaintances … stood at a distance watching” —and we can barely even imagine what was running through all of their minds.

But the most striking and the most personal reaction that Luke captures is that of the Roman centurion, who, seeing what had happened, “praised God, saying, ‘Certainly this man was innocent!’”—or, as the NIV renders it, “Surely this was a righteous man.”

Here, amid the darkness of hypocritical religious leaders, cynical rulers, and callous passersby, the hushed whispers of lingerers, is a tiny glimmer of light.

Perhaps the very last person we would expect to see the truth—a man with no previous connection to Jesus, no background in Old Testament studies, and no predisposition to the things of God, just utterly obeying his Roman bosses—not only grasped what he looked at, but he immediately responded personally to it.

He saw

“what had taken place”—the words of Jesus, the darkness overhead, the manner of His death—and realized, 

Here is no ordinary man. Here is a man who is different from every other man. Here is a man who is entirely innocent, wholly righteous. 

Indeed, the Gospel narrative of Mark adds that the centurion confessed that the man on the cross was undoubtedly none other but “the Son of God” (Mark 15:39).

With his incredible and trained eye for detail, Luke places a clear emphasis on giving his readers a “from the ground up” seeing what took place on the cross.

He probably hoped that some readers would remember that when Jesus had read from the scroll of Isaiah earlier in His ministry, He had said, “The Spirit of the Lord … has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor … to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind” (Luke 4:18).

Indeed, a great theme found throughout the Gospel of Luke is that of darkness being invaded by light—the confusion and hardness of the people’s hearts and their minds being subsequently invaded by the liberating power of God’s truth.

1 Corinthians 1:18-25 Amplified Bible

The Wisdom of God

18 For the message of the cross is foolishness [absurd and illogical] to those who are perishing and spiritually dead [because they reject it], but to us who are being saved [by God’s grace] it is [the manifestation of] the power of God. 19 For it is written and forever remains written,

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise [the philosophy of the philosophers],
And the cleverness of the clever [who do not know Me] I will nullify.”

20 Where is the wise man (philosopher)? Where is the scribe (scholar)? Where is the debater (logician, orator) of this age? Has God not exposed the foolishness of this world’s wisdom? 21 For since the world through all its [earthly] wisdom failed to recognize God, God in His wisdom was well-pleased through the [a] foolishness of the message preached [regarding salvation] to save those who believe [in Christ and welcome Him as Savior]. 22 For Jews demand signs (attesting miracles), and Greeks pursue [worldly] wisdom and philosophy, 23  but we preach Christ crucified, [a message which is] to Jews a stumbling block [that provokes their opposition], and to Gentiles foolishness [just utter nonsense], 24 but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks (Gentiles), Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25  [This is] because the foolishness of God [is not foolishness at all and] is wiser than men [far beyond human comprehension], and the weakness of God is stronger than men [far beyond the limits of human effort].

Any attempt to articulate Christianity that denies the absolute centrality of the wisdom of God and the wisdom of the Cross can never lead to saving faith.

And while we do not always understand how the Spirit moves in leading men and women to be born again, our message must always and ever be the same:

“But We Preach Christ crucified” (1 Corinthians 1:23).

It is beholding the cross that brings life for anyone who responds to the man who hung there by confessing who He is and praising God for His saving work.

Unless and until the “goodness” of the cross is personal to us, it is essentially to be considered as utterly useless for us.

So, when was the last time you simply looked UP at your Savior on the cross and just walked away?

Or, when was the last time you looked DOWN at your Savior on the cross and up, just walked away into whatever else is about to rush into your hushed mind?

So, when was the last time you simply looked UP at your Savior on the cross and spent the intervening time waiting for the Easter moment and just praised God?

Which one best describes your reaction?

Don’t you find it even minimally amazing that probably the least commendable, the most hushed, the least exemplary response was that from Jesus’ friends?

In these intervening times and seasons, let’s not be just observers of the cross, but rather a people deeply sorrowed by our sins which took Jesus to OUR cross.

However, in our sorrow, let’s make sure we don’t let grief consume us.

Instead, let’s praise God for his grace and the salvation he has provided for us.

Then, rather than walking away, having been hushed by the moment, going into hiding like the fearful friends of Jesus (John 20:19),

Let’s maybe share the confession of the Centurion, and the grace of God with;

O’ Come All Ye Faithful …

Adeste Fidelis …

O’ Come Let Us Adore Him …

Venite Adoremus …

Joyful and Triumphant …

Laeti Triumphantes,

To the King of the Angels …

Regem Angelorum …

To Christ the Lord!

Dominum!

Amen!

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

Let us Pray,

Psalm 24 The Message

24 1-2 God claims Earth and everything in it,
    God claims World and all who live on it.
He built it on Ocean foundations,
    laid it out on River girders.

3-4 Who can climb Mount God?
    Who can scale the holy north-face?
Only the clean-handed,
    only the pure-hearted;
Men who won’t cheat,
    women who won’t seduce.

5-6 God is at their side;
    with God’s help they make it.
This, Jacob, is what happens
    to God-seekers, God-questers.

7 Wake up, you sleepyhead city!
Wake up, you sleepyhead people!
    King-Glory is ready to enter.

8 Who is this King-Glory?
    God, armed
    and battle-ready.

9 Wake up, you sleepyhead city!
Wake up, you sleepyhead people!
    King-Glory is ready to enter.

10 Who is this King-Glory?
    God-of-the-Angel-Armies:
    he is King-Glory.

Holy and Almighty God, Author of my Life, Perfecter of my Faith, my heart breaks that Jesus had to die as a sacrifice for sin … especially my sin. However, I praise you for your plan of grace, for your desire to provide mercy at the expense of your own heartbreak, and for your overwhelming love for people like me. In Jesus’ name.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Laeti Triumphantes, Dominum.

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

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A Ransom Paid in Full: Reflecting, Understanding, the Justice of God. Matthew 20:24-28

Matthew 20:24-28 Amplified Bible

24 And when the [other] ten heard this, they were resentful and angry with the two brothers. 25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles have absolute power and lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them [tyrannizing them]. 26 It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, 27 and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your [willing and humble] slave; 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many [paying the price to set them free from the penalty of sin].”

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

Background: He Who Has Ears, Let Them Hear …

Matthew 20:17-19Amplified Bible

Death, Resurrection Foretold

17 As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, He took the twelve [disciples] aside, and along the way He said to them, 18 “Listen carefully: we are going up to Jerusalem; and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court), and they will [judicially] condemn Him and sentence Him to death,  19 and will hand Him over to the Gentiles (Roman authorities) to be mocked and scourged and crucified, and He will be raised [to life] on the third day.”

On the journey to Jerusalem Jesus predicts that his death will take place there.

Jesus takes his disciples aside to report to them that it will include wholesale betrayal, humiliation and condemnation by the religious leaders of his people.

Those who should be welcoming him as the promised Messiah will instead sentence him to suffering and death, thoughtlessly handing him over to to a brutal time and season of mocking, flogging, and crucifixion by the Romans.

Then Jesus also shockingly predicted that he would rise again three days after!

But it seems that after hearing the predictions about Jesus’ suffering and death, the disciples somehow tuned out.

It’s as if they missed hearing the promise that “on the third day” he would be “raised to life!”

When the time came and Jesus died on a cross, the disciples were a despondent group of followers wondering about the suddenness what had just happened.

As predicted, in the Garden of Gethsemane they scattered in fear, at the arrival of the Temple Authorities unjustly leaving the burial, preparations to others. (See Matthew 26:56; 27:45-28:10.)

In this critical moment, there was no expectation of Jesus’ coming to life again!

In our own day and age, considering the number of years which have come, and passed us by since those events transpired, is our own “hearing” any different?

As we again, for the umpteenth time approach Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, as we again come to the umpteenth recitation and those sermons of Palm Sunday, as we again try to come to realization of what we know is to come, has already transpired, has already been written and narrated – why is any of this relevant?

We have not heard with our own ears the actual voice of Jesus as the disciples.

We could not immediately begin the process of giving it our fullest attention.

We could not be stunned in the same way as the disciples were upon hearing it.

We could not be apathetic or excited or wondering or stunned or any of that.

We did not talk, or walk, hear or listen to and with Jesus in that moment – in a more contemporary colloquial sense of the moment – “walk and chew gum and do everything else (preparing ourselves for the Passover) all at the same time.

Nowadays, we do not all concern ourselves to prepare to celebrate the Passover.

We are not looking for donkeys or mules or horses to ride to be paraded about.

We are not looking for “Upper Rooms” – Just sanctuaries inside our churches.

No Gardens of Gethsemane …

It is doubtful to the utmost we are worried about our running away naked in the middle of the night with thoughts of running away, betraying our own Savior.

Jesus will not be arrested again.

He will not be betrayed, mocked and humiliated in such a horrible way again.

We will not have to subject ourselves to the sight, witnessing him dying again.

All these things have already come to pass and by faith we believe and accept it.

Now, what experiences do we have to substitute for those of what the disciples witnessed first hand, experienced to the utmost first hand, threatened by too?

We hear pandemic, dire economic warnings or a doctor’s frightening diagnosis, and we’ll soon forget Jesus’ words: “I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20).

We experience ridicule or rejection and forget that God’s Word warns that we may be called to share in Christ’s sufferings (John 15:18-20; Romans 8:17).

Facing them throughout the year is hard enough, but how much of that effort includes an intense time of self examination, reflection upon the Cross itself?

Facing them mutually, letting God work, let’s remember Jesus was raised to life.

We know what happened then to Jesus – three days later, as promised, he arose!

Our belief in the Resurrection of our Savior is core central to our Christian faith.

Yes! We absolutely love and live for and utmost sacrificially serve a risen Savior!

But the lingering question, the utmost intense question we probably devote so precious little of our time to study, reflecting upon: what relevance is the Cross?

A Personal Reflection: Why the Cross?

24-28 When the ten others heard about this, they lost their tempers, thoroughly disgusted with the two brothers. So Jesus got them together to settle things down. He said, “You’ve observed how godless rulers throw their weight around, how quickly a little power goes to their heads. It’s not going to be that way with you. Whoever wants to be great must become a servant. Whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave. That is what the Son of Man has done: He came to serve, not be served—and then to give away his life in exchange for the many who are held hostage.”

Why does Jesus take his disciples aside to shock, awe them with his prophecy?

Why are such momentous words and such miraculous history transforming events still to be read and found, studied and prayed over and celebrated too?

Why is such a detailed, embarrassing account of the failure of the disciples?

Why do we celebrate ourselves being re-subjected to these terrible moments?

To give us another opportunity to run away from Jesus, recoil from them, him?

To mostly learn and then relearn to repeatedly avoid re-living the indescribable intensity of those moments, to make them our own as God repeatedly call us to?

Why the ugliness of the Cross … to learn, to relearn to hug its wondrous beauty?

Why such an intense concentration, centralized focus on the Cross at Calvary?

Why such an ugly, not so gentle, intentional, purposeful, graphic reminder?

Why didn’t God simply say, “Look, everyone, I know you have sinned against Me, but I am going to pardon you right now. It’s okay. I forgive all of you!”

God didn’t do that because it doesn’t work with His nature and character.

The justice of God requires obedience and sacrifice.

He could not accept us into fellowship with Himself unless we paid the penalty—or someone paid it on our behalf.

Romans 3:25 tells us, “For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past” (NLT).

The cross demonstrates the ultimate expression of the justice of God.

At the cross of Calvary, the love and justice of God met.

Yes, God had to satisfy His justice.

The Scriptures say, “The person who sins is the one who will die” (Ezekiel 18:20 NLT), “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23 NLT), and “without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness” (Hebrews 9:22 NLT).

God was saying, “My righteous requirements must be met.

But I love humanity beyond their ability to acknowledge, fully measure and comprehend, and there is no way they can do it on their own.

So, I must, and I WILL help them.”

Therefore, He sent His only begotten Son Jesus to bridge the gap. (John 3:16-17)

This is why Jesus Christ is the only way to God.

People like to say that all roads lead to God.

People also like to say that the road to hell is paved with our good intentions.

It really concerns me when I hear Christians parrot statements to that effect.

There is only one path.

There is only one way.

If that were not true, then why did Jesus have to die?

If all roads lead to God, then why did Jesus go through the indescribable anguish, the immeasurable humiliation, torture, and pain of the cross?

Matthew 20:26-28 Amplified Bible

26 It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, 27 and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your [willing and humble] slave; 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many [paying the price to set them free from the penalty of sin].”

The primary reason Jesus came to this earth was to save us, to die for our sins.

Paid in Full

Jesus’ mission was a matter of “search and rescue.”

He came to seek and save those who were lost (Luke 19:10).

He not come to be served but to serve, give his life as a ransom for many.

Mark 10:42-45 Amplified Bible

42 Calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, “You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them; and their powerful men exercise authority over them [tyrannizing them]. 43 But this is not how it is among you; instead, whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wishes to be first and most important among you must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a [a]ransom for many.”

He fulfilled that mission by giving his life at Calvary “as a ransom for many.”

As Jesus hung on the cross and spoke the words “It is finished” (John 19:30), he was announcing that his mission was now accomplished.

Because he was obedient and faithful to His Father, offered his perfect life as the sacrifice for sin, God was pleased to welcome home all his lost children!

https://www.blueletterbible.org/esv/jhn/19/30/t_conc_1016030

https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g5055/esv/mgnt/0-1/

The brief sentence “It is finished” translates from just a single word teleō in the original Greek text.

The same word was used by shopkeepers to announce that someone’s bill was finally paid.

When the final payment was made on a purchased item, the merchant would say “Tetelestai” (“It is finished”) – in other words, the debt was paid in full.

When I made the last payment on the first car I ever bought, I remember how good it felt to see the bank teller stamp “Paid in Full” on my loan documents.

Never again would another payment be required!

As Jesus said “It is finished” on the cross, he was assuring us that his mission was complete.

He had paid in full all the costs required for our sin.

And when we faithfully focus our lives, when we centralize our lives now place our full faith-filled trust in him, our debt for sin is forever wiped off the books!

On that Hill far away, stood an Old Rugged Cross, the emblem of suffering and shame. And on that old cross Jesus suffered and died to pardon and sanctify me.

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

Let us Pray,

Loving Lord, I praise and thank You for Jesus, my Mighty Savior and Servant King. Lord, today I pour out my life as an offering to You. I pray that I would serve You wholeheartedly and my service would bless those around me and be a witness to bring many to the knowledge of salvation in Jesus. O God, thank you that Jesus has bought salvation for me! He has done everything needed for me to know you, love you, and serve you now and forever! Amen. Thank You that Jesus gave His life as a ransom for me and for all who would believe in His name. In Jesus’ name, AMEN.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

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God’s Justice In Jesus: The Greatness of Grace Is Reflected in Our Salvation from Sin. Romans 3:21-26

Romans 3:21-26 Amplified Bible

Justification by Faith

21 But now the righteousness of God has been clearly revealed [independently and completely] apart from the Law, though it is [actually] confirmed by the Law and the [words and writings of the] Prophets. 22 This righteousness of God comes through faith in Jesus Christ for all those [Jew or Gentile] who believe [and trust in Him and acknowledge Him as God’s Son]. There is no distinction, 23 since all have sinned and continually fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are being justified [declared free of the guilt of sin, made acceptable to God, and granted eternal life] as a gift by His [precious, undeserved] [a]grace, through the redemption [the payment for our sin] which is [provided] in Christ Jesus,  25  whom God displayed publicly [before the eyes of the world] as a [life-giving] [b]sacrifice of atonement and reconciliation (propitiation) by His blood [to be received] through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness [which demands punishment for sin], because in His forbearance [His deliberate restraint] He passed over the sins previously committed [before Jesus’ crucifixion]. 26 It was to demonstrate His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the One who justifies those who have faith in Jesus [and rely confidently on Him as Savior].

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

God’s Justice In Our Savior Jesus

There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace.—  Romans 3:22-24

So there is no difference.

You, me, people all around the world, family members, coworkers, and all our neighbors—together, we “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

None of us is in this alone.

Paul’s intent, though, is not to clarify that sin has a lot of company.

He is setting the stage for what Jesus came to do.

God’s goal from the beginning, when sin first entered the picture, was not just to judge us; nor was it just to rescue us from eternal punishment.

God’s goal has always been to get us back with him.

But for that to happen, there needs to be a sacrifice, which we can’t provide.

And there is no difference: whenever we live, whoever we are and wherever we live, we all need Jesus to be that one and only sacrifice of atonement for us.

Sometimes we lose sight of why God had things go this way.

A philosopher once suggested that it’s really not a big deal; God ultimately has to forgive us because that’s his job as God.

But God wants us to understand that Jesus’ sacrifice is not just some neat and ultra dramatic, ultra manipulative “love gesture.”

It is a big deal because as God, his job is also to be just.

The difference is that God gives us His only Son Jesus—because his goal is not his job.

God’s goal is us.

2 Peter 3:8-9 Amplified Bible

8 Nevertheless, do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like one day. 9 The Lord does not delay [as though He were unable to act] and is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is [extraordinarily] patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

God’s Goal: We Should Know Him as He Knows Us.

If you have ever felt depressed, ashamed, condemned, forgotten, or alone, or forsaken or abandoned or homeless, then you understand what sin feels like.

In our fallen world, sin is intricately woven into the fabric of what it means to be human, and even without a theological definition, all of us can recognize it.

We recognize the sorrow and emptiness of sin every day.

Sin is not just about ‘doing bad things’:

sin corrupts who we are created to be and separates us from the relationship with God we are designed to know and love.

The Painful Roots of Sin.

Romans 3:22-23 Amplified Bible

22 This righteousness of God comes through faith in Jesus Christ for all those [Jew or Gentile] who believe [and trust in Him and acknowledge Him as God’s Son]. There is no distinction, 23 since all have sinned and continually fall short of the glory of God,

The truth is that we are all born sinful – each and every one of us – and within our own power we have no means to escape our sin.

We can never ‘be good enough’ to shake the curse of sin.

As Paul writes in Romans 3, there is not a single person who is righteous on their own, nor can anyone even say that they are ‘a good person’ (Romans 3:11-12).

Nothing we can think, do, or say will free us from sin. 

This seems harsh, but any parent knows what this looks like.

No child has to be taught how to lie.

No child needs to be taught selfishness, greed, or anger.

Left to our own devices, we all come by these emotions naturally and must be diligently taught how to avoid them.

This is the nature of sin at work within us.

The Glory of God

Fortunately, this is not where things must end!

Sin entangles itself into every aspect of who we are, leading to hopelessness, until we understand that there is a way to be cleansed of it.

This is the good news!

We do not have to live in the shame and pain of sin! 

Leading up to this assertion of sin, Paul wrote “our unrighteousness” serves a purpose, as it “serves to show the righteousness of God” (Romans 3:5).

Our sinful nature is not who we are designed to be, nor is it where we are designed to stay.

The fact we cannot make ourselves ‘good’ only serves as proof that God alone is good, that through Him, we can have everything that sin holds us away from!

Sin reveals a sharp contrast between the love of God and the evil of the world.

In accepting His grace and forgiveness we see His truth and beauty tear down the lies of sin.

Redemption in Christ Jesus

Romans 3:24 Amplified Bible

24 and are being justified [declared free of the guilt of sin, made acceptable to God, and granted eternal life] as a gift by His [precious, undeserved] [a]grace, through the redemption [the payment for our sin] which is [provided] in Christ Jesus,

It sounds silly, but when I see the word ‘redemption’, I often think of …coupons.

Whether you find them online, in a mailer, or even if you still bust out the scissors and clip them from the newspaper, all coupons state what it is to be redeemed, and where this redeeming can take place. 

When you ‘redeem’ an item with a coupon, you pay less (or sometimes nothing) for that particular product.

The important thing is that the price and value of the product have not changed.

The retail price is still the retail price.

But when you walk to the checkout counter and hand over that coupon, you do not pay that price because it has already been paid for you.

The coupon is a gift that just needs to be acted upon.

The entirety of scripture is filled with accounts of God’s redemptive work among us, a redemption that we cannot ever possibly earn enough to pay for ourselves.

Not even close!

Our redemption is a gift of God’s grace alone.

Our eternal worth in Christ is not something we could ever afford to pay, but the price is already paid through Christ’s redemption on the cross.

It is for us to simply accept this redemption of our souls.

When we learn to embrace and proclaim this truth, we find the freedom we cannot even imagine any other way.  

Justified by God

Even once we have accepted His infinite grace, can we truly be justified before God?

We may often ask ourselves this question, as many have asked it for generations before us.

Throughout scripture we see the question written ‘in between the lines.’

In Ecclesiastes 3:16, King Solomon clearly states the difficulty in finding justice in the world, saying “in the place of justice, even there was wickedness, and in the place of righteousness, even there was wickedness”. 

We humans regularly fail to define and determine justice.

True justice is found only in and only from God.

The justice he offers us through his redemption is completely unmerited and unrestrained by anything we consider ‘just’.

The good news of the gospel is that we who are guilty before him can be justified, the price of redemption has been paid, and God’s justice satisfied.

The Gift of Grace

Earlier in Romans 3, Paul drives home the fact that we are all sinners deserving of God’s wrath, but he doesn’t end the discussion there!

He continues on into verse 24 with the truth that we are justified through the gift of grace!

Paul, in his letter to Titus echoes this thought, as he writes, “being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:7).

Through this gift of God’s grace, we are justified, made clean, made Holy, and given the opportunity to share this grace with those around us.

Our freedom in Christ springs from the fact His grace is free, His justification is final, and His redemption is complete.

Through His holiness alone, through His righteousness alone, we are each free to live for Him, unhindered by shame and guilt, strengthened by the power of the Holy Spirit, and equipped to do what only He can do in and through us.

The Greatness of God’s Grace Is Reflected in Our Salvation from Sin.

To God, and God alone, be the glory for His matchless, infinite grace!

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

Let us Pray,

Heavenly Father, thank You that You are a righteous God and that You chose to redeem mankind by means of the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank You that I have been imputed with righteous – even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ and that all who trust in Him for salvation will also be declared righteous, through time and into eternity. Heavenly Father, your justice is real, because you have given your Son, Jesus, to die in my place, paying the price for my sin. Thank you that through the sacrifice of Christ I may know freedom from my sins, to live in your love alone as my Father in heaven. in Jesus name, AMEN

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

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Let Us All Give Thanks To God For Our Foundation of Hope! Colossians 1:3-8

Colossians 1:3-8 Amplified Bible

3 We give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, as we pray always for you, 4 for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus [how you lean on Him with absolute confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness], and of the [unselfish] [a]love which you have for all the saints (God’s people); 5 because of the [confident] hope [of experiencing that] which is reserved and waiting for you in heaven. You previously heard of this hope in the message of truth, the gospel [regarding salvation] 6 which has come to you. Indeed, just as in the whole world the gospel is constantly bearing fruit and spreading [by God’s power], just as it has been doing among you ever since the day you first heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth [becoming thoroughly and deeply acquainted with it]. 7 You learned it from [our representative] Epaphras, our beloved fellow bond-servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf 8 and he also has told us of your love [well-grounded and nurtured] in the [Holy] Spirit.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

The Root Of Our Hope Is Our Savior Jesus

It’s wonderful when someone comes into the kingdom of God.

That person receives God’s gift of grace through faith in Jesus, and they begin a new life of walking with the Holy Spirit.

The new believer realizes that the full measure of their “sacred cow” plans for their old life of selfish pursuits offers them nothing that will ever satisfy them.

By their new hope in Christ Jesus, they have turned their back on the darkness and are enjoying the light of the world, Savior Jesus – Praise God for his love!

Paul is filled with thanks to hear that the people of Colossae have come to faith in Christ Jesus and are showing their love for all God’s people.

He even says, “We always thank God . . . when we pray for you . . .”

They have become wonderful examples of living by faith in Jesus.

They believe and trust, they love, and they hope in what God has already stored up in heaven for them.

Drawing all this together, today we can echo with great assurance with Paul that the new faith of the Colossian believers is decisively rooted in Jesus Christ.

Friends, my prayer is you will have faith in Christ Jesus; my hope for you is that in Jesus’ name you are loving others, giving yourself up for them, and growing in hope in all that God has promised and is storing up for you and me in heaven.

Stay rooted in Christ, stay united in His hope anticipating the reality of our own resurrection, the reality of God’s coming kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.

The Hope of Resurrection Brings Us All Together

What is the basis for Christian unity?

What is the basis for being able to correct another believers doctrine?

What is the foundation of love and faith in the Christian life?

Paul answers these questions in the beginning of his letter to the church at Colossae.

In the beginning of Colossians, Paul teaches that the basis of Christian faith and love is hope.

We can view hope as elemental to the gospel message, proclaimed to all who believe.

This foundation of hope in the gospel unites us with other believers, for all believers share the same foundation of the message of Christ.

From those foundations proceed faith and love, essential to the character of believers.

Faith And Love As Reasons For Giving Our Thanks

Paul thanks God for the faith and love evident in the church at Colossae.

The believers at Colossae were believers in Christ Jesus, found in Him and known by Him.

Their faith set them on the side of light.

For, Christians have been rescued from darkness and transferred to the Kingdom of the Son, Jesus Christ (Colossians 1:13-14).

The Incomparable Christ

13 For He has rescued us and has drawn us to Himself from the dominion of darkness, and has transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption [because of His sacrifice, resulting in] the forgiveness of our sins [and the cancellation of sins’ penalty].

Faith is what made these believers dwell in a new understanding about life, truth, what matters on this earth, and what matters for times to come.

And Paul even heard about the faith of the Colossians, so completely notable was their expression of it.

Paul also heard about the love that believers had for the saints.

The believers had love for their fellow believers, and this was an outworking of the eternal truths of the gospel.

Their love is further identified in the letter as being “in the Spirit” (Colossians 1:8), the mark of its veracity.

Paul notes the rich and beautiful Christian love of the Colossian church:

Colossians 2:1-3 Amplified Bible

You Are Built Up in Christ

2 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those [believers] at [a]Laodicea, and for all who [like yourselves] have never seen me face to face.  2 [For my hope is] that their hearts may be encouraged as they are knit together in [unselfish] [b]love, so that they may have all the riches that come from the full assurance of understanding [the joy of salvation], resulting in a true [and more intimate] knowledge of the [c]mystery of God, that is, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge [regarding the word and purposes of God].

Paul will ultimately write to the church at Colossae about heresy creeping in, and with that in mind, he writes he desires the body of Christ to be encouraged together with hearts unified in love.

This is Paul’s desired way for the church to have reception of truth and correction of error: to write to a church about these matters who is knit together in the love of Christ.

Then, they would be able to further share in the genuine message of Christ, separate truth from error, and have the full experience of Christ leading and guiding in truth amidst His very own body at Colossae.

No wonder Paul thanks God for the love he sees in the saints at Colossae: it gave him genuine confidence about the message of correction he would be sharing.

That love in the context of faith was made possible by the foundation of hope in Christ and Christ alone present in the church.

The Hope of the Gospel in Us

Hope as a Foundation

Paul credits hope as the foundation for the believers’ virtues. Hope is the basis for Christian faith and love.

Hope is the basic element of the faith — that we have a future with Christ through the truth of the gospel.

And hope is the basis for Christian love — that we have a future with One who unites all believers.

Faith springs from the message of hope. Love flows through the message of hope because the message is what unites the church, one to another.

Hope from the Gospel

Hope comes from the gospel, the word of truth.

The hope of the gospel is restored union and communion with Jesus Christ, the God who made us. 

Colossians 1:27 says that Jesus Christ in us is the hope of glory.

Surely this is the center of Paul’s message in the opening words of his letter.

Hope is the basis for faith and love — and the basis for this hope is that we have restored relationship with Jesus Christ.

This relationship means we have a future of even closer communion with Jesus when we are one day with Him in glory.

Hope Passed On

The word of truth is learned through the teaching of another.

The gospel is passed from person to person through teaching.

Hope becomes passed through the fellowship and instruction of other believers.

Not only had Paul and this church not met face-to-face, so it was with many believers spread throughout the world.

The gospel — the hope of Christ — spreading is an encouraging point of union between Paul and the church a Colossae.

Their shared hope is spread by Jesus Christ who would surely build His church (Matthew 16:18).

Hope is the foundation from which virtues spring and is testified to in the gospel of Christ.

The Blessed Unity of Believers’ Shared Foundation of Hope

Because Paul and his fellow believers at Colossae had a strong foundation of hope — with evidence he could hear about — he is solidified in his union with them through Christ.

Paul’s Connection with the Church at Colossae

Paul uses this expression of prayer-filled thanks to establish his unity with the church at Colossae.

He would be writing to warn against heresy creeping into the church.

But at this juncture, He is establishing truths about the faith, love, and hope that are basic to the Christian message.

He heard about this church’s faith through Epaphras, not being a church that he planted.

But he had thanksgiving-filled unity with this church nonetheless because of the message of the gospel.

Paul’s Connection with All Churches

With thanks, Paul indicates that the message of the gospel was spreading throughout the world — and not only through Paul’s ministry.

What joy that these Christians could receive a message of warning through Paul based on Christian gospel unity — and not based upon personal connection.

Many could, and indeed would, be wary to receive correction from someone not personally known, but Paul would deliver this message faithfully and with great hope that it would prayerfully be received well by those he had never even met.

Through the unity of the gospel and on the basis of broad Christian unity through Jesus Christ, Paul would be proceeding with his message of correction.

Suggested Points of Meditation and Application

As we consider Paul’s opening comments of the letter to the Colossians, we can note hope as the central theme, and basis for his commitment and unity with the church members.

This commitment and unity comes from a heart that shares the indwelling of Christ Jesus through the ministry of the Holy Spirit with fellow believers.

As you take these teachings to heart, pray over the following application points:

1. Strengthen your understanding with conviction in the hope that you have

2. Ensure that you are loving others in the church because of the hope that you share from the hope to be found only in resurrection of our Savior Christ Jesus.

3. Know that your hope means your faith is in a different world, for a different life to come. John 17:6-12 Amplified.

6 “I have manifested Your name [and revealed Your very self, Your real self] to the people whom You have given Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept and obeyed Your word. 7 Now [at last] they know [with confident assurance] that all You have given Me is from You [it is really and truly Yours]. 8 For the words which You gave Me I have given them; and they received and accepted them and truly understood [with confident assurance] that I came from You [from Your presence], and they believed [without any doubt] that You sent Me. 9 I pray for them; I do not pray for the world, but for those You have given Me, because they belong to You; 10 and all things that are Mine are Yours, and [all things that are] Yours are Mine; and I am glorified in them. 11 I am no longer in the world; yet they are still in the world, and I am coming to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, so that they may be one just as We are. 12 While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them and protected them, and not one of them was lost except [a]the son of destruction, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.

4. Trust a shared foundation of hope with other believers provides a foundation for doctrinal correction—should you ever be placed in the position of giving or receiving such correction

5. Be ever more thankful to God than to humanity for the unity of the gospel being spread throughout the world.

Resurrection of Hope

It’s not the experience of hope but the object of hope that is stored up for us in heaven–and that gives rise to faith and love, says the apostle Paul.

Colossians 1:27, Paul talks about “the hope of glory,” meaning the final unveiling of our salvation, when “righteousness and peace kiss each other” (Psalm 85:10). 

This grand source of hope does not mean we ignore this present life.

Instead, this hope encourages love.

In a sermon on this text, author John Piper says,

“Only one thing satisfies the heart whose treasure is in heaven: doing the works of heaven. And heaven is a world of love.”

He adds, “It’s not the cords of heaven that bind the hands of love. It is the love of money and leisure and comfort that do that, and the power to sever those cords is Christian hope.”

To live in the utter certainty, centrality of the hope of His coming glory, frees us all from greed and bitterness, despair and laziness, from impatience and envy.

Being fully captivated by this future Paul says we’ve heard about in the gospel empowers, inspires, moves us forward against the tsunami’s of culture, to give us grace to live in faith and in love to become examples of God’s new creation.

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

Let us Pray,

In your kingdom, Lord,
there are no favourites,
all are equal,
all carry the image
of the one who made all things,
and all are welcome in your home.
You forgive those who in humility
make the journey to repentance,
even those who now reject you.
Such love, Such faith, Such hope,
beyond our imagining.
Such love, Such faith, Such hope,
that could die for us.
Such love, Such faith, Such hope,
sown into hearts,
that we might display its beauty
through hopeful lives and hope-filled words.
Thank you Lord!

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

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Studying, Meditating, Pondering Upon Ways We Can Hear from God Regularly. Habakkuk 2:1-4

Habakkuk 2:1-4 Amplified Bible

God Answers the Prophet

2 I will stand at my guard post
And station myself on the tower;
And I will keep watch to see what He will say to me,
And what answer I will give [as His spokesman] when I am reproved.
2 
Then the Lord answered me and said,
“Write the vision
And engrave it plainly on [clay] tablets
So that the one who reads it will run.
3 
“For the vision is yet for the appointed [future] time
It hurries toward the goal [of fulfillment]; it will not fail.
Even though it delays, wait [patiently] for it,
Because it will certainly come; it will not delay.

4 
“Look at the proud one,
His soul is not right within him,
But the righteous will live by his faith [in the true God].

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

God is constantly speaking to people.

But too often, they miss out on hearing God’s messages because they seek His guidance only occasionally – usually when they are going through a crisis or they are about to be facing a major life decision – family, health, finance, career.

Then, with a dire need to hear from God, people will become confused and then become sad, and frustrated when they do not clearly hear what they should do.

They start to wonder when and how to hear from God and why they are not.

It does not have to be that way.

God wants everyone to hear His messages clearly, and it’s possible to do so.

The key is to forget about formulas and gimmicks for hearing from God, and to focus instead on developing the kind of relationship with God will empower you and me to hear God speaking regularly.

The closer you get to God, the more you can enjoy ongoing conversations with Him, both listening and hearing from Him, and the more God will use those conversations to transform you into the person He wants me, you to become.

Simple Keys to Hearing God’s Voice

There are a few simple keys that can be found in Habakkuk 2:1-2, which unlocks the treasure of hearing God’s voice.

Using these simple keys together allows the hearer of God’s voice on a daily basis.

Being intentional about hearing God’s voice is a critical step.

In Habakkuk 2:2, Habakkuk knew the sound of God speaking to him.

Elijah also described this as a still, small voice (1 Kings 19:12-13).

Do you know that we can listen to God in an inner audible voice?

God does speak that way to us at times.

However, we find that God’s voice usually comes as spontaneous thoughts or flowing thoughts.

Have you ever experienced driving down the road, and had a thought come to you to pray for a certain person or situation?

Don’t you think it’s God’s voice telling you to pray?

It’s not really an audible voice most of the time.

Instead, it’s a spontaneous thought.

It’s God who is already giving us a prophetic discernment to pray for this person.

Usually, humans are able and capable to experience, Holy Spirit-level communication as spontaneous thoughts, impressions, and visions, and Scripture communicates in many ways.

For example, one definition of ‘paga’, a Hebrew word for intercession, is “a chance encounter or an accidental intersecting.”

When God gives us a burden for specific people, He does it through ‘paga’, a chance-encounter thought “accidentally” coming into our minds.

The inexperienced prophet might consider it a chance encounter, spontaneous or owing thoughts.

Even Satan can plant deception in our minds through spontaneous thoughts.

Paul tells us to take captive of those thoughts (2 Corinthians 10:5).

Have you encountered evil thoughts coming to you in the middle of prayer and worship times?

There are different things going on in our minds.

Humans are usually responsible for analytical thoughts.

Spontaneous good thoughts come from the Holy Spirit, and spontaneous evil thoughts come from evil spirits.

God’s thoughts line up with Scripture and His different names and roles: Comforter, Counselor, Teacher, Giver of Life, Healer, and Deliverer.

God’s thoughts edify, exhort, and comfort you.

They are pure, peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy, good fruits, and are unwavering (James 3:17).

On the other hand, Satan’s thoughts line up with his different names as well: Accuser, adversary, thief who comes to steal, kill, and destroy. Satan’s thoughts condemn, bring despair, rejection, fear, doubt, unbelief, and misery all together. Satan’s thoughts also bring jealousy and selfish ambition (James. 3:14-15).

Studying, Pondering, Meditating, Ways to Regularly Hear from God

1. Recognize that God created you for a very personal relationship.

By design, the way we hear best from God is in the context of a friendship with Him.

God intends for us to figure out His will freely and intelligently as you engage in regular conversations with Him.

God’s will is to be personally present with you and speaking with you moment by moment as you go through life.

Then we’ll grow to understand Him more and become more like His Son, Jesus.

2. Consider your motives for wanting to hear from God.

Honestly reflect on why you want to hear from God.

Is it because we are truly open to whatever God has to say and committed to putting His guidance into action and fulfilling His purposes, even when doing so is so fully, completely and utterly enveloping, overwhelming, challenging?

Or is it for a selfish reason, such as wanting to feel righteous or comforted?

Confess and repent of any wrong motives.

Ask God to give you an openness to hear and respond faithfully to what He wants to tell you.

3. Make your goal more than just hearing God.

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. – Matthew 6:33

While it’s important to hear from God, that shouldn’t be your ultimate goal.

Instead, make your main goal to become a spiritually mature person in a close relationship with God.

That’s the only way we’ll clearly and correctly hear what God has to say to us.

4. Know that you’re important to God, but be humble.

Have the confidence that God is willing to speak to you just as powerfully as He did to the ancient people in the Bible, because He values you, me, just as much.

However, do not let pride creep into your soul, because you must be humble in order to faithfully receive and respond to the messages God has for you and me.

5. Don’t try to force God to tell you something.

No matter how much you want to hear from God about something or how hard you may try to convince Him to speak to you.

We will only hear from God when He chooses to communicate with us.

Focus on developing a respectful relationship with God and wait for His timing to deliver messages to you.

Also, if God chooses not to give you specific guidance about something you’ve prayed about, what you’re considering is within the Bible’s moral principles,

we can confidently go ahead and make our own decision about what to do and still be within God’s will.

6. Recognize that God communicates in many forms.

God may choose any one of many different ways to communicate to you, me, according to what’s best at particular times and in particular circumstances.

You may sometimes hear God’s message in dramatic ways, such as through angels, visions, or miraculous events.

But more often, we will hear God speaking through our thoughts, and He will use ordinary practices such as reading and studying the Bible, praying quietly, learning from circumstances, or seeking counsel from other Christians to reach out to us as you think about them.

God will also use dramatic, even miraculous means to get our attention when necessary, but His goal is for you and me to be so closely connected to Him that you and I will pay attention whenever He speaks to us.

Usually, God speaks through what people have described as a “still, small voice” (1 Kings 19:12-13) to encourage those He loves to choose to keep walking closely with Him through life.

7. Renew your mind.

Since God often speaks to you through your mind and wants you to develop what the Bible calls the “mind of Christ” (the ability to make decisions as Jesus would), it’s crucial for you to follow the Bible’s urging in Romans 12:2:

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will.”

As we invite the Holy Spirit to renew your mind every day, He will cleanse it from such dirt and clutter as false beliefs and attitudes, unhealthy feelings, and misguided plans.

Then the Holy Spirit will minister to us, intercede, work to replace all of that spiritual mess with true thoughts that more genuinely reflect God’s purposes.

8. Invite the living Word to help you when you read scripture.

The Word of God is a living, creative force – Jesus Himself – and He is actively at work when you read God’s written word – the Bible – prayerfully.

Hebrews 4:12 Amplified Bible

12 For the word of God is living and active and full of power [making it operative, energizing, and effective]. It is sharper than any two-edged [a]sword, penetrating as far as the division of the [b]soul and spirit [the completeness of a person], and of both joints and marrow [the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and judging the very thoughts and intentions of the heart.

As we read the Bible, as we study the Bible, we ask Jesus to make the Bible’s words come alive for us and through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, become conduits through which He sends His thoughts, faith, and love into your soul.

1 Timothy 4:12-14 Amplified Bible

12 Let no one look down on [you because of] your youth, but be an example  and set a pattern for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in [moral] purity.  13 Until I come, devote yourself to public reading [of Scripture], to preaching and to teaching [the sound doctrine of God’s word]. 14 Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, [that special endowment] which was intentionally bestowed on you [by the Holy Spirit] through prophetic utterance when the [a]elders laid their hands on you [at your ordination].

Then discipline yourself to focus on what He sends you and strive and work to orient yourself towards a pattern of faith so it will begin to transform your life.

9. Recognize God’s voice above all others.

By experience, you can learn to recognize God’s voice when He speaks, and to confidently respond to what He says.

When thoughts recur, pray about them to discern if they may be coming from God.

Keep in mind that God will never send you and me any message that contradicts the Bible’s principles.

Also, God’s voice carries the weight of authority within it, and expresses a spirit of compassion, peace, confidence, joy, assurance, reasonableness and goodwill.

If you think or believe that God may speaking to you, ask Him to confirm so as we study and meditate on the Bible, as we are alert to the circumstances we’ll encounter, or as we experience the Holy Spirit’s impressions in our mindsets.

10. Set aside time regularly to listen for God’s messages.

2 Timothy 2:14-15 Amplified Bible

An Unashamed Workman

14 Remind the people of these facts, and solemnly charge them in the presence of God to avoid petty controversy over words, which does no good, and [upsets and undermines and] ruins [the faith of] those who listen. 15 Study and do your best to present yourself to God approved, a workman [tested by trial] who has no reason to be ashamed, accurately handling and skillfully teaching the word of truth.

Make a plan to discipline your mind and your heart and soul, make a habit of intentionally and expectantly listening for whatever God may want to tell you.

It’s more important to become a person who listens regularly to God than it is to constantly ask God to give you guidance.

Set aside sometime today to begin listening for God’s voice and hearing his promises and plans for you.

Perhaps even keep a journal to remember the things he brings to life in you.

You open your Bible, but quickly become distracted.

You want to dig deeper, but you don’t know where to begin.

Frustrated, you close the book.

It’s not that you don’t love God—in fact, you long for more intimacy with God.

Maybe God is calling you to deeper waters . . .

Imagine yourself purposely, randomly, opening to a passage of God’s Word and by spending time, its becoming so engaging that you actually lose track of time.

Imagine yourself digging deep, and deeper still into God’s Word and seeing it, and hearing it come alive in amazing ways you had never experienced before.

Imagine starting each day—not with a tiny nugget of truth you hope will get you through—but through hearing a fresh encounter with our living Savior.

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

Let us Pray,

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Your faithful and kindle in us the fire of Your love.  Send forth Your Spirit and we shall be created.  And You shall renew the face of the earth. O, God, Who by the light of the Holy Spirit did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy Your consolations. Through Christ our Lord. Alleluia, Amen.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

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Spiritual Perception:”The Word of the Lord Was All Too Rare in Those Days.” 1 Samuel 3:1-10

1 Samuel 3:1-10 Amplified Bible

The Prophetic Call to Samuel

3 Now the boy Samuel was attending to the service of the Lord [a]under the supervision of Eli. The word of the Lord was rare and precious in those days; visions [that is, new revelations of divine truth] were not widespread.

2 Yet it happened at that time, as Eli was lying down in his own place (now his eyesight had begun to grow dim and he could not see well). 3 and the [oil] lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was, 4 that the Lord called Samuel, and he answered, “Here I am.” 5 He ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But Eli said, “I did not call you; lie down again.” So he went and lay down. 6 Then the Lord called yet again, “Samuel!” So Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But Eli answered, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” 7 Now Samuel did not yet know [or personally experience] the  Lord, and the word of the Lord the third time. And he stood and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you did call me.” Then Eli understood that it was the Lord [who was] calling the boy. 9 So Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and it shall be that if He calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

10 Then the Lord came and stood and called as at the previous times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant is listening.”

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

The Word of the Lord was TOO Rare in Those Days …

Have you ever found yourself thinking, “I wish God talked to us the way He spoke to His people in the Old Testament”?

Many times, Scripture describes God speaking to His people through a voice or an angel or through a dream. He even writes on a wall in one account (Daniel 5).

So it’s natural to want to hear God’s voice or see a big sign that will help you feel confident in God’s direction.

We all experience confusing circumstances.

Sometimes you may just want God to send you a text message to tell you what to do.

Maybe you feel far from God and want Him to reach out to reassure you He’s still there.

Maybe you’ve heard people say the God of the Bible is personal, but you have never interacted with God before and wonder how to begin.

He is the same God today that He was in the time of the Old Testament.

He still speaks to us today.

He made it possible for each of us to have a personal relationship with Him, which involves talking together every day.

He communicates with us. 

1 Samuel 3:1 English Standard Version

The Lord Calls Samuel

3 Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord in the presence of Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.

The Word of the Lord was “rare” in those most ancient days.

In the period of time between the words of the Prophet of Malachi to the New Testament Gospel Narratives and Apostolic writings of Paul and Peter, James, Jude and John, Hebrews, some 400 years had passed without a Word from God.

How frequently do we recall Jesus using the words: “He who has ears let them hear?” [Matthew 11:15, 13:9, 15, 16, 43, Mark 4:9, 23, 7:33, 35, 8:18, Luke 8:8, 9:44, 14:35]

I also recall this verse from Luke 1:44 when Elizabeth uttered the words to her cousin Mary: “For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.” and we preach it: “how miraculous was that?”

It begs the question, how rare is the Word of the Lord in contemporary times?

Could it be that one too many of us have just never learned how to recognize His voice, have we gotten confused or have we forgotten how we heard in the past?

The young Samuel was confused and unsure of who he was hearing calling him.

He “clearly” heard a voice and thought it was his mentor, Eli, calling for him.

He kept going to Eli’s room until even the aged, tired, and confused, and nearly blind Eli finally realized that the voice was God trying to get Samuel’s attention.

Hearing and listening for God, hearing and listening to God, is an important life skill for us to remember to give our full attention to for our God is never silent.

We live in a divisive noisy, politically correct “woke” culture that often speaks in ways which are considerably devastating and utterly contrary to God’s voice.

It can be difficult to hear God if we are more in tune with the voice of this world.

As we listen for God, we will be more in tune with his leading in our lives.

Listening, Samuel “Heard!”

1 Samuel 3:9-10 New American Standard Bible

9 And Eli said to Samuel, “Go lie down, and it shall be if He calls you, that you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

10 Then the Lord came and stood, and called as at the other times: “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for Your servant is listening.”

Hannah had named her son Samuel, which means “heard by God.”

When he was weaned, she brought him to Shiloh to present him to Eli the priest for uniquely specialized training as a spiritual leader of God’s people Israel.

God called on Samuel to listen to and bring the word of the Lord to his people.

God wanted Samuel to dedicate his life to this service.

Samuel became a prophet, and he led Israel in that role for sixty years as Israel moved from a loosely organized group of clans to a peaceful monarchy ruled by King David, an ancestor of Jesus Christ.

We live under the peaceful reign of the voice of one true, good, just King today.

“Peace on earth,” the angels sang to shepherds watching their flocks on the night that King Jesus was born (Luke 2:14).

Our Advent and Lenten peace is found in the birth of this child, who grew up to establish, by dying, the kingdom of peace over all on whom God’s favor rests.

Do you know this voice of peace?

Do you hear this voice of peace?

Are you listening for this voice of peace?

Are we paying any meaningful attention to this voice of peace?

Are we giving any meaningful thought towards this voice of peace?

Ask Jesus to rule in your heart and life, and He will welcome you into his kingdom of peace.

Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we can rest in true peace because we know he is our King and in control of all that happens in the world and our lives.

This is a peace not “as the world gives” (John 14:27); it is God’s peace, “which transcends all understanding” (Philippians 4:7).

Eli mentored Samuel by teaching him how to daily worship God, and how to respond to God’s voice: “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening”—in other words, “I am ready to hear what you have to say, and I am ready to obey!”

How Rare is the Word of God in These Days?

God speaks to us in many ways.

He speaks through creation, giving testimony to his faithfulness and creativity. [Psalm 19]

He speaks through his Word, where we come to understand his salvation and purpose for us.

He speaks through wise mentors in our lives.

He speaks through life situations, opening and closing doors.

God speaks by his Holy Spirit, equipping us with gifts and passions to use for service in his kingdom.

Are we listening?

Are we listening?

Do we even care if there is a voice of God speaking to us today?

Why should we care if there is a voice of God speaking to us today?

How are we listening, hearing, experiencing God’s leading in your life?

Are you and I numbed to hearing, listening attentively for God’s voice?

So in a world full of noise and distraction, should we care if God speaks?

Does it matter one iota whether or not God speaks to us if we take one long, view of the world versus God, to say: “how miraculous would that truly be?”

Do we actually desire, want or need “God’s miraculous voice” speaking to us?

So in a world full of noise and distraction, how does God actually speak to us?

So with many questions, how ought we to “miraculously” respond back to God?

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

Let us Pray,

Psalm 19 The Message

19 1-2 God’s glory is on tour in the skies,
    God-craft on exhibit across the horizon.
Madame Day holds classes every morning,
    Professor Night lectures each evening.

3-4 Their words aren’t heard,
    their voices aren’t recorded,
But their silence fills the earth:
    unspoken truth is spoken everywhere.

4-5 God makes a huge dome
    for the sun—a superdome!
The morning sun’s a new husband
    leaping from his honeymoon bed,
The daybreaking sun an athlete
    racing to the tape.

6 That’s how God’s Word vaults across the skies
    from sunrise to sunset,
Melting ice, scorching deserts,
    warming hearts to faith.

7-9 The revelation of God is whole
    and pulls our lives together.
The signposts of God are clear
    and point out the right road.
The life-maps of God are right,
    showing the way to joy.
The directions of God are plain
    and easy on the eyes.
God’s reputation is twenty-four-carat gold,
    with a lifetime guarantee.
The decisions of God are accurate
    down to the nth degree.

10 God’s Word is better than a diamond,
    better than a diamond set between emeralds.
You’ll like it better than strawberries in spring,
    better than red, ripe strawberries.

11-14 There’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.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

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Our Love’s for God’s Most Generous Expression: Our Learning, Growing, Living, Doing, in the Family of Faith. Hebrews 13:1-3

Hebrews 13:1-3 Amplified Bible

The Changeless Christ

13 Let love of your fellow believers continue. 2 Do not neglect to extend hospitality to strangers [especially among the family of believers—being friendly, cordial, and gracious, sharing the comforts of your home and doing your part generously], for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it. 3 Remember those who are in prison, as if you were their fellow prisoner, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body [and subject to physical suffering].

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

Love’s Generous Expression

Hebrews 13:1-3 Common English Bible

Our acts of service and sacrifice

13 Keep loving each other like family. 2 Don’t neglect to open up your homes to guests, because by doing this some have been hosts to angels without knowing it. 3 Remember prisoners as if you were in prison with them, and people who are mistreated as if you were in their place.

Keep Loving each other like family.

Do not neglect to open your homes to guests.

Remember the prisoners as if you were in prison with them.

What an incredibly interesting array of both ancient, contemporary ideas!

Loving each other like family – respecting and honoring one another!

Respecting the home, respecting the life of the family and their belongings.

By showing kindness to strangers, you could be showing kindness to a messenger of God.

Paying it forward, buying an extra burger to share with a homeless person, helping someone change a flat tire on their car, offering a ride to a colleague who needs one—in these ways and countless more, our God often gives us all opportunities to show hospitality and compassion for someone who has a need.

As I encounter people who are not part of a faith community, it saddens me when they describe Christians as less-than-compassionate people.

Words I often hear in these conversations are that Christians are aloof,not friendly or forthcoming; cool and distant. and judgmental and condescending.

Many people see church buildings in their communities as little more than social clubs, entertainment centers or worse, only occupied on any Sunday.

Any other day, the parking lots are 99.99% empty of cars and any activity.

They hear church people speak out mostly about what the members oppose.

Where is that sound of “little children of all ages” glorifying God and Jesus?

The world needs to see the Body of Christians as people of compassion—good-news people who minister and act like Jesus.

That will happen only when we finally nurture a habit of practicing compassion.

It is not by accident that the writer of Hebrews urges readers to love each other and to look out for the needs of strangers.

It’s easy to overlook the unusual or the unfamiliar.

It takes the love of Christ to step out, move out and reach out to the stranger who might just bring a singularly unique blessing that you never saw coming.

Learning, Growing, Living, in the Family of Faith

There’s all the difference in the world between describing what it means to ride a bicycle and actually helping somebody learn to get on the seat and pedal away.

Making a layer cake seems to be fairly straightforward when I look at the recipe books, but I haven’t had much success in making one that actually tastes right!

What I need is hands-on guidance: somebody to actually take the time to teach me to do it in front of me and then patiently allow me to try my hand at it too.

The moral instruction provided for us in Hebrews 13 is to be trained and formed in our lives not by learning to apply abstract principles but as a result of seeing these principles successfully or erroneously worked out in the family of faith.

We can read, for example, about what it means to love one another, but it is far better to observe such love in the lives of loving people.

We can understand that we are supposed to care for strangers, but we can experience it firsthand if we are brought up and raised in a home where such care, consideration and compassion for one another is faithfully practiced.

We can extend ourselves into areas of ministry and mission which are quite challenging – church prison ministry (https://heartprisonministries.org/) or Christian Prison Ministry (Kairos https://www.kairosprisonministry.org/)

We can read the principles and hear sermons, demands for sexual purity, but we will do far better if we are raised in a flourishing home where they are modeled or we are even able to sit in such homes as we visit other families in our church.

Praise God, the list of mission and ministry opportunities goes on and on.

Establishing these ethical norms is demanding.

It takes the first love of God, our time, effort and patience, and involvement.

The miracles wrought through purposeful discipleship, transformation cannot be achieved by searching the internet, watching a video or reading an article.

If information was enough to bring about transformation, then all we would need to do is write it down or say it.

But you can’t learn love, honor, and faithfulness from the content on a screen.

No, if you are to be content, pure, loving, and hospitable, then that is going to have to be proactively discovered and actively worked out in the family of faith.

Look, then, to your brothers and sisters who exemplify Christ-likeness in these ways.

Read Hebrews 13:1-3 again, praise God for those you know who live these verses out, then be sure to learn from them so in these ways you become like them.

Make it your aim to follow their example that you, like Paul, might humbly be able to say to others, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1).

Easter is but a short time away.

Celebrating the ultimate act of agape love and sacrifice and service.

What will your efforts at discipleship and transformation in preparation for this coming Easter look like, sound like, be more Christ like in these coming weeks?

I have heard repeatedly: “it takes an entire community, an entire village.”

According to Wikipedia, the original quote “it takes a village to raise a child” is an African proverb meaning it takes a whole community of people interacting with a child to ensure he or she grows in a healthy and safe environment.

Regardless of which stage of life we are all in: parents raising children, married with no children, single, or late adulthood, even a church, we need community.

In these times of recovery, perhaps we need to go back to the essential basics of the Gospel to learn it all over again – to teach it unto each other all over again?

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

Let us Pray,

Heavenly Father, thank You that while we were yet sinners You loved us and gave Christ to be the propitiation for our sins. Help us in word and deed to increase and abound in brotherly love for one another, just as we also do for You. Give us wisdom as we enter into mission and ministry to our brothers and sisters in Christ and may we speak the truth in love to Your praise and glory. This we ask in Jesus name, AMEN.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

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Seeking, Growing Intimacy in Your Relationships. Deuteronomy 4:29-31

Deuteronomy 4:29-31 Amplified Bible

29 But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul. 30 When you are in distress and tribulation and all these things come on you, in the latter days you will return to the Lord your God and listen to His voice. 31 For the Lord your God is a merciful and compassionate God; He will not fail you, nor destroy you, nor forget the covenant with your fathers which He swore to them.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

“I can’t stand Sundays!”

The woman holding her newborn son shouted deep into the church angrily.

She rose from her pew and shared that on Sundays she often felt so lonely and empty because many of her friends were busy with families and ball games.

She was a single woman, new to the church saying she was not a member there.

She is unhappy about her situation and asked the congregation for prayer.

The congregation surrounded her, her young child and laid hands upon them.

Together, they prayed for a good fifteen minutes.

Following the service, she sat down, met privately with the Pastor and his wife.

She said she was separated, divorce papers had been filed with the courthouse.

The father of the child was caught being unfaithful.

she confessed that she felt her sense of intimacy had been badly betrayed.

She had tried dating in the past several weeks but didn’t find the “right” man.

She also went to a few ­churches but felt they weren’t “loving” enough either.

In their response to the woman,

the Pastor and his wife suggested perhaps she shouldn’t focus mainly on searching for the right man, or seeking even the right “loving” congregation.

The Bible teaches that everyone’s main concern should be about seeking the first love of the Lord first – cultivating and growing in their intimacy with God.

That’s the first step on our journey to a loving and secure peace and happiness.

In our passage from Deuteronomy for today we hear a call to earnestly seek the Lord with all of your heart and all of your soul.

This prophetic word was originally spoken to God’s people who would come to repeatedly betray the love of the Lord and be scattered in exile many years later.

The call is followed by a promise that those who are earnest in their search will find the Lord.

Please note that the act of earnestly seeking the intimate love of God is more than just taking a few or several first steps or a phase in our spiritual growth.

Rather, it is a lifelong quest.

The continued search for God, leading to the deepening experience of his love, is the foundation of securing our inner peace in the only One who never betrays.

Growing Intimacy in Your Relationships.

Psalm 63:1-3 Amplified Bible

The Thirsting Soul Satisfied in God.

A Psalm of David; when he was in the wilderness of Judah.

63 O God, You are my God; with deepest longing I will seek You;
My [a]soul [my life, my very self] thirsts for You, my flesh longs and sighs for You,
In a dry and weary land where there is no water.
2 
So I have gazed upon You in the sanctuary,
To see Your power and Your glory.
3 
Because Your lovingkindness is better than life,
My lips shall praise You.

Intimacy is something that each of our souls deeply desires.

Intimacy is defined as close familiarity or friendship; closeness.

Intimacy in marriage includes physical acts of intimacy, but we yearn for intimacy in every close relationship we have in our lives.

Our longing for closeness is a part of our created design.

In Psalm 63 it is articulated this way,

“O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.”

We long to be and remain close to God our Creator! [Psalm 139, Romans 8:35-39]

We long to be close to God, our Great Shepherd! [Psalm 23]

We long to be close to our Savior, the Resurrected Jesus! [John 21:15-17]

We were created by God for relationships.

Yet, we all know how difficult it is to create safe spaces for true intimacy in our lives.

Humans are imperfect, and we so easily hurt each other.

Hurt, disappointment, insecurity, and grief lead to walls going up in our hearts.

Only God is made of perfect love that we can trust with our whole hearts.

Nonetheless, we need each other and can’t give up on the work of tearing down the walls and trying again to build safe, long-lasting, and close relationships.  

Intimacy requires a commitment to forgiveness. 

Intimacy requires a radical commitment to forgiveness.

Please note that forgiveness does not mean you are called to remain present in an abusive or unhealthy relationship.

Forgiveness is a daily requirement to remain close to other very flawed humans.

Guess what, you need to be forgiven that much too because you bring just as much selfishness and brokenness to your home each day too!

It is so easy to see the ways one’s spouse lacks empathy, love, and kindness, but while we are worried about pointing out their failures, the question needs to be asked of ourselves: exactly what size plank am I missing that is in my own eye?

I have to lay down my right to be right if I want to feel close to this person who is my spouse, my life-long soulmate and embrace a life of radical forgiveness.

Unity is the foundation to an intimate relationship. 

1 Corinthians 1:4-10 Amplified Bible

4 I thank my God always for you because of the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus, 5 so that in everything you were [exceedingly] enriched in Him, in all speech [empowered by the spiritual gifts] and in all knowledge [with insight into the faith]. 6 In this way our testimony about Christ was confirmed  and established in you, 7 so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift [which comes from the Holy Spirit], as you eagerly wait [with confident trust] for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ [when He returns]. 8 And He will also confirm you to the end [keeping you strong and free of any accusation, so that you will be] blameless and beyond reproach in the day [of the return] of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful [He is reliable, trustworthy and ever true to His promise—He can be depended on], and through Him you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

10 But I urge you, believers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in full agreement in what you say, and that there be no divisions or factions among you, but that you be perfectly united in your way of thinking and in your judgment [about matters of the faith].

1 Corinthians 1:10 instructs, “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.”

God communicates with us that we are to relate with, interact with our brothers and sisters in Christ with a whole and earnest heart and soul which seeks unity.

He likens us to a body, each of us different in our skills, gifts, and uses but we all work together towards one mission which is to keep the body alive!

We do not have to see eye-to-eye on every issue in our relationships to live in unity, but we do have to be humble enough not to let divisions grow among us.  

Intimacy with God and each other is built when we earnestly seek to spend much quality time together. 

Psalm 24:5-7 Amplified Bible

5 
He shall receive a blessing from the Lord,
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 
This is the generation (description) of those who diligently seek Him and require Him as their greatest need,
Who seek Your face, even [as did] Jacob. Selah.

7 
Lift up your heads, O gates,
And be lifted up, ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in.

Psalm 27 Amplified Bible

A Psalm of Fearless Trust in God.

A Psalm of David.

27 The Lord is my light and my salvation—
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the refuge and fortress of my life—
Whom shall I dread?
2 
When the wicked came against me to eat up my flesh,
My adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell.
3 
Though an army encamp against me,
My heart will not fear;
Though war arise against me,
Even in this I am confident.

4 
One thing I have asked of the Lord, and that I will seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord [in His presence] all the days of my life,
To gaze upon the beauty [the delightful loveliness and majestic grandeur] of the Lord
And to meditate in His temple.
5 
For in the day of trouble He will hide me in His shelter;
In the secret place of His tent He will hide me;
He will lift me up on a rock.
6 
And now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me,
In His tent I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.

7 
Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;
Be gracious and compassionate to me and answer me.
8 
When You said, “Seek My face [in prayer, require My presence as your greatest need],” my heart said to You,
“Your face, O Lord, I will seek [on the authority of Your word].”
9 
Do not hide Your face from me,
Do not turn Your servant away in anger;
You have been my help;
Do not abandon me nor [a]leave me,
O God of my salvation!
10 
Although my father and my mother have abandoned me,
Yet the Lord will take me up [adopt me as His child].

11 
Teach me Your way, O Lord,
And lead me on a level path
Because of my enemies [who lie in wait].
12 
Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries,
For false witnesses have come against me;
They breathe out violence.
13 
I would have despaired had I not believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord
In the land of the living.
14 
Wait for and confidently expect the Lord;
Be strong and let your heart take courage;
Yes, wait for and confidently expect the Lord.

Building intimacy requires time spent sharing the same space with open ears and having an open heart ready to connect.

One tip for time together is to commit to making some of this time screen-free time – time for family bible study, family devotions, family prayer sessions.

When we seriously want to really hear our spouse, friends, family members, or children’s hearts, we have to deliberately, intentionally, remove distractions such as our phones, video game boxes, our televisions, so we can fully engage.

We grow closer to God, Jesus, Holy Spirit and in our personal relationships as, when we are intentional about being present with each other when we interact.  

Intersecting Faith and Life.

Habakkuk 3:17-19 Amplified Bible

17 
Though the fig tree does not blossom
And there is no fruit on the vines,
Though the yield of the olive fails
And the fields produce no food,
Though the flock is cut off from the fold
And there are no cattle in the stalls,
18 
Yet I will [choose to] rejoice in the Lord;
I will [choose to] shout in exultation in the [victorious] God of my salvation!
19 
The Lord God is my strength [my source of courage, my invincible army];
He has made my feet [steady and sure] like hinds’ feet
And makes me walk [forward with spiritual confidence] on my [a]high places [of challenge and responsibility].

For the choir director, on my stringed instruments.

What connections, relationships do you feel covenanted and called upon by God to be a bit more considered and intentional about cultivating more intimacy in?

What is one way you can push yourself to be more present and available in this relationship in the coming weeks, as we move closer to celebrating our Easter?

Are there things that you need to release to the Lord and forgive before moving forward?

Carve out some family time, time with friends, write out a prayer of forgiveness and share them, allow God to start healing the broken relationships in your life.

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

Let us Pray,

139 1-6 God, investigate my life;
    get all the facts firsthand.
I’m an open book to you;
    even from a distant sight.
You know everything I’m going to say
    before I start the first sentence.
I look behind me and you’re there,
    then up ahead and you’re there, too—
    your reassuring presence, coming and going.
This is too much, too wonderful—
    I can’t take it all in!

7-12 Is there anyplace I can go to avoid your Spirit?
    to be out of your sight?
If I climb to the sky, you’re there!
    If I go underground, you’re there!
If I flew on morning’s wings
    to the far western horizon,
You’d find me in a minute—
    you’re already there waiting!
Then I said to myself, “Oh, he even sees me in the dark!
    At night I’m immersed in the light!”
It’s a fact: darkness isn’t dark to you;
    night and day, darkness and light, they’re all the same to you.

13-16 Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out;
    you formed me in my mother’s womb.
I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking!
    Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
    I worship in adoration—what a creation!
You know me inside and out,
    you know every bone in my body;
You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
    how I was sculpted from nothing into something.
Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;
    all the stages of my life were spread out before you,
The days of my life all prepared
    before I’d even lived one day.

17-22 Your thoughts—how rare, how beautiful!
    God, I’ll never comprehend them!
I couldn’t even begin to count them—
    any more than I could count the sand of the sea.
Oh, let me rise in the morning and live always with you!

Father, Son and Holy Spirit, guide us and lead us, shepherd us to you in faith, obedience, and love. Guide us each day, teach us to be fully committed to you.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum

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

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Becoming Like Christ: Steps Towards Spiritual Freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17

2 Corinthians 3:12-18 Amplified Bible

12 Since we have such a [glorious] hope and confident expectation, we speak with great courage, 13 and we are not like Moses, who used to put a veil over his face so that the Israelite’s would not gaze at the end of the glory which was fading away. 14 But [in fact] their minds were hardened [for they had lost the ability to understand]; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed [only] in Christ. 15 But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil [of blindness] lies over their heart; 16 but whenever a person turns [in repentance and faith] to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty [emancipation from bondage, true freedom]. 18 And we all, with unveiled face, continually seeing as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are progressively being transformed into His image from [one degree of] glory to [even more] glory, which comes from the Lord, [who is] the Spirit.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

Becoming Like Christ

2 Corinthians 3:15-18 Amplified Bible

15 But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil [of blindness] lies over their heart;  16 but whenever a person turns [in repentance and faith] to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty [emancipation from bondage, true freedom]. 18 And we all, with unveiled face,  continually seeing as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are progressively being transformed into His image from [one degree of] glory to [even more] glory, which comes from the Lord, [who is] the Spirit.

If the Holy Spirit’s work in us is like the work of a master gardener, what is the Spirit growing in us?

The Spirit wants to reproduce Jesus’ character in us.

Our reading from 2 Corinthians today states that we “are being transformed into [Jesus’] image with ever-increasing glory.”

In other words, the Holy Spirit’s aim is to make us more and more like Jesus.

The Holy Spirit’s work is to nudge us, prod us, move us, transform us and shape us to think and act and be more like our Savior Jesus, for us to better mirror Jesus in our character, to increasingly help us love like Jesus in our daily life.

Of course, it’s not an overnight rush job.

The Spirit doesn’t guarantee delivery in full by 8:00 a.m. the next day—or even within a few days, months, years or decades.

This isn’t the work of a courier driver.

This is the work of the Master Gardener, the One with a master’s vision of the finished garden, the One who daily, gradually toils and works in our lives until the desired spiritual fruit eventually sprouts, blossoms, unto the glory of God.

There are times when the Holy Spirit’s work in us will be immediate, dramatic, and maybe even spectacular.

But usually the Spirit’s work in us is slow, subtle and gentle.

That’s the Holy Spirit’s trademark.

We are made in God’s image, in the image of God we are created, (Genesis 1:26-27) but that sacred image became spoiled and polluted in us because of sin.

So now God is slowly remaking that image in us—to be like our Savior Jesus!

Steps Towards Spiritual Freedom

Have we truly noticed that most of our unrest comes from ourselves?

We get stuck ruminating on the things we can’t change or control.

Un-forgiveness stops us from moving toward healing in our relationships.

Pervasive negativity prevents us from enjoying the moment.

Exhaustion keeps us functioning as only a shadow version of ourselves.

Repeated excuses keep us trying the same things over and over again that are no longer capable of working, are burning bridges and stop us from changing.

Fear, guilt and shame stop us cold from accepting God’s free gift of grace. 

Our unhappiness lives in our souls and finding peace starts as a process of Holy Spirit-led self-discovery.

How many of us will spend our lives turning a blind eye to our own hangups?

In our own stubborn blindness, we refuse to consider that maybe the rhythm of frustration we are up against might be something we have the power to change.

It’s so much easier to render our judgments, and then blame our surroundings.

To point out the sliver in our neighbor’s eye, all while avoiding our own planks. (Matthew 7:1-5)

We so often live stuck in a giant sheet of bubble wrap we wrapped around us.

Thank God He is patient with us! 

Thank God that God knows exactly what to do with bubble wrap – POP IT!

How, then, do we allow ourselves to be “popped by God” to get us past our blindness and grab onto the gracious freedom that God promises each of us?

1. Freedom comes when we abandon pride. 

The path towards freedom begins with a surrendering of the pride we each hold that claims we have what we need to fix ourselves all on our own.

This pride tells us to be ashamed, embarrassed, fearful and humiliated when we don’t live up to our own internal standards.

It relies on rules and religion rather than grace and a relationship with Jesus.

Step one towards freedom and making peace with the people God created us to be is to abandon our pride.

The Bible teaches that pride comes before a fall (Proverbs 16:18), and the humble find wisdom (Proverbs 11:2). 

2. God’s wisdom teaches us how to change. 

Wisdom helps us change.

Only through God’s miraculous truth can we see the way past the same thought processes which keep us trapped, wrapped, in our own fears, shame, bitterness. 

James 1:5 prompts us to ask God for wisdom when we don’t have it.

He gives it freely when we have a humble heart.

When we read and study God’s Word, spend time in his church, seek Him and His Kingdom through prayer, we discover what godly wisdom looks like.

Proverbs 1:7 instructs us that wisdom is found in the context of community.

We have to be willing to accept advice and instruction when we are stuck and looking for a new way forward. 

Proverbs 3:7 tells us that wisdom turns away from evil.

If our own set patterns get us stuck in sin over and over, then God’s wisdom, and our Savior’s Cross, His Resurrection power moves us away from that evil temptation that keeps repeatedly keeps maliciously tugging at our souls.  

3. Freedom points us towards others.

Interestingly God gives us the internal power through the Holy Spirit to find spiritual freedom, not so we can just enjoy ourselves better.

Even though a free you is a happier you and is a you that you can be confident in and enjoy.

The purpose of this Christ-purchased freedom is that we can serve others.

Isaiah 61:1 tells us God’s spirit in our lives gives us the ability to bring good news to the poor, assist the brokenhearted, and set free those imprisoned in this world!

We are set free, so we can help others find that same freedom.

When we find ourselves stuck, wrapped in our own frustrations or even upset with others in our lives because their sin nature is making our lives harder, we are invited to draw on God’s spirit to see new ways to love and to serve others.  

4. God’s spirit sets us free. 

2 Corinthians 3:17 says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”

There is a mysterious element to spiritual freedom.

Freedom is an indescribable moment or journey that can take time where Heaven meets us here on Earth.

Areas I’ve sought freedom in has been anxiety over diabetes management.

For me, this freedom journey has taken years, but God has been my faithful teacher and sustainer through step forward and backward, each up and down.

Other times our freedom is like a dam breaking all at once.

The old life is washed away in an instant, and a new one is ready to begin.

Why does God work one way in my life and a different way in yours?

That is part of the mystery of the Spirit.

God is connectional and relational and not a rule-based God, which is why each of us has a singularly unique and diverse and vastly different spiritual journey.

One thing the Bible does tell us is that if we want to find freedom in our lives, we have to seek His Kingdom through His Holy Spirit.  

Matthew 6:33 Amplified Bible

33 But first and most importantly seek (aim at, strive after) His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of doing and being right—the attitude and character of God], and all these things will be given to you also.

John 8:36 says, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

Jesus came to Earth, so we could not only escape death and join his family, but so we could experience freedom in our lives here on Earth.

I am so thankful that God has not left me as I was.

He is always renewing my mind and spirit.

May you, by God’s grace, take steps toward spiritual growth and freedom today.

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

Let us Pray,

Jesus, my Savior, I have been listening to too many lies for far too long. I have been tricked one too many times by the enemy and I am frustrated. I need to be free from these lies. Jesus, I know that You are true and that the truth will set me free. Jesus, help me to rejoice in the truth. I need to believe the truth. I pray that it really would set me free. Help me with my unbelief, Jesus. Holy Spirit, You know my heart, and know that I need help believing. Thank You, Jesus, that You offer truth to Your children. Thank You for Your patience with me. In Your glorious name, I pray.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

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

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