Wednesday, April 29, 2020

When You Know That You Will Win In The End!

Matthew 26: 36-45


 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.”  He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled.  Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
 He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”
 When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy.  So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.
Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour has come, and the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners.  Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”


My Lord Jesus knew why He had come to the earth, to save the lost children of God, to bring peace and salvation into the hearts of those who would be willing to accept The Lord's free gift of salvation from their sins. He knew that He would have to suffer and die on a cross, suffer great mental, emotional, and spiritual pain on our behalf. He took our place, paid our sin penalty with His blood, and He went willingly to His own slaughter. 

The Great news is that death could not keep Him as He was innocent of any sin. He rose from the dead by the power of The Holy Spirit and He received  the full power and authority of His Father in His hands.  He now has a solution for all  of the people of the world. The sentence for sin is death, and we have now been given a sentence of everlasting life and love in God's presence forever and ever because Jesus Christ choose to die for our sins. We can now live for the Lord and believe that His Son Jesus  is our personal Lord and Savior.

How was Jesus able to face His fate and complete His mission upon the earth?  He believed God's report that if He would willingly give up His life for us, that He would succeed. It was not easy. He went to the garden of Gethsemane with His disciples, and they were all sad and depressed. The disciples knew that Jesus would die on the cross, though they did not understand why He needed to die or that He would be resurrected from the dead.

Jesus was filled for sorrow and remorse because He knew what was about to happen to Him; maybe He even had a vision of what was to come. He was fully God, but also He was fully human, and no person in their right mind would ever want to go through what He was about to go through. 

He knelt down on the ground and appealed to His father in Heaven. He asked for a better solution, but He never once said to the Lord that He would not do as the father asked. He received His answer from the Lord, who gave Him comfort, and strengthened Him, and reassured Him that If He did the Father's will that He would succeed.

It was not a instant revelation but a process, as Jesus spent a few hours at the feet of God's throne reconciling Himself to the idea of dying a humiliating death on a cross. He won the battle within himself and accepted His fate, and  God gave Him the power and authority to do what was the Father's will for this life.

Can you agree to live according to the Lord's will for your life? What do you need to believe that He will never leave you nor forsake you?  We must trust in His word, and then read it for comfort and to receive the power and authority that we need to succeed in this life.

Learning to live for Him is a process, and this cannot be hurried or ignored. We must go through the process of sanctification if we are willing to live for Him. There is no other way to learn how to live in God's word or to learn to how worship in His presence.

It all starts at the feet of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Once we admit that we need His gift of salvation and that we accept Him as our personal Lord and Savior, we have the freedom to live for Him and we have the power to do so.

There is no other solution that man can make up for themselves, no other religion or dogma that can cure a sinful heart. Why don't you try Him for yourself. Test the waters of his love and forgiveness. you won't have any regrets when you do so - say this prayer out loud:

    "Father, I know that I have broken your laws and my sins have separated me from you. I am truly sorry, and now I want to turn away from my past sinful life toward you. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sinning again. I believe that your son, Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. I invite Jesus to become the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen."




Sunday, April 12, 2020

The Meek Shall Inherit The Earth

Matthew Chapter 5:5

Blessed are the meek,
    for they will inherit the earth.




The meek are not praised or honored in our society. People tend to worship people in places of earthly power and authority. The rich, the famous. the talented, the bold money makers: these are the idols of the world. Power and authority given in the world cannot compare to the riches of God's love, compassion, and grace.


If you are meek, the world thinks that you are weak, soft, and unassuming. But God has a different perspective. He allows His people to experience pain and suffering in their lives so that they can appreciate His delivering power. When you know that you cannot make it on your own, when you desire the power of the Holy Spirit in your problems and circumstances, then you begin to live for God instead of for yourself.

To be meek in God's eyes is to be gentle, kind, compassionate, and humble. We need to show the true nature of God by our actions as well as our words. When we are kind to others, when we give of ourselves and our time, when we  learn to comfort other people, when we wait for God's timing and not our own when making important and small decisions about our lives, we show the world what God is truly like.


He seeks people who want to give rather than take, who love rather than hate, who will pray for bad people as well as good people, who will believe Him with all of their hearts and minds. That is why we are here; to know God, to love Him, and to accept Jesus Christ, His son, as our personal Lord and Savior. Once we accept the Holy Spirit into our hearts and minds, we can begin to express the meekness of our Father God.


That is why the meek shall inherit the Earth.




Sunday, April 5, 2020

The Fruit Of The Vine

GALATIANS 5:22-24

 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.





The fruit of the spirit represents the results of the Holy Spirit on people's lives. It is the fruit of  the vine. we are the vine that God lovingly chastens and transforms with His word and His Spirit; we will find our rest within His heart.

The fruit will  manifest in our lives when we choose to obey Him, listen to His word, and allow the Holy Spirit to do His work in our hearts and minds. Do you feel love that flows into compassion for yourself and for others that you meet everyday?

Is there joy in your heart when you think about God's love and provision for you, where there is no fear for the future, but an anticipation of the day when you will live in His presence forever and ever? Does peace flow from your heart when you find yourself in tough situations, when there is pain and suffering, when there seems to be no way out of your problems?

Do you find yourself filled with compassion and kindness toward others, even others that may not show kindness and compassion to you? Does God's love touch your heart so that you will have a willingness to do the right things, to obey the voice of the Lord that rises in your heart? When you are His child, being good and doing good things come naturally.

His love inspires us to be faithful, to give praise to His name, and to give our whole heart to Him. We find that we are patient and gentle toward others, and we are willing to give of ourselves when necessary. When under pressure, or when we are tempted to do some things that we know are not the right things to do, it is His Spirit that helps us to learn how to say no; we cannot do it by ourselves. 

When we find the self control to live according to His standards and not our own, that is a sign of real spiritual growth. If we have these fruits of the Spirit, we can rest in Him with the knowledge that we are living just as Jesus wants us to live. It is our pleasure and honor to live for Him.

What if you find that you do not have the fruits of the spirit in your personal life? That is when you must come to the Lord Jesus, repent of your sins, and then ask Jesus to come into your heart. He is the only way to eternal life and salvation. He gives us His power and authority to do what seems impossible by man's standards. Never underestimate the power of God's love for you, and His grace and mercy in your life!