Hebrews 11:6 a"But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
Some people are just lazy, which is why they never see anything accomplished with
their lives. They blame their lack of success on this, that, and everything but themselves. But God is no respecter of persons. What He does for one, He will do for all. The key factors that make the difference are not about God, but about a person's level of determination and his or her willingness to do whatever is necessary to achieve a goal.
It may be a hard fact to face, but ultimately we are all responsible for our success or our lack of success. We all possess the same promises, the same faith, the same power, the same Spirit, and the same Jesus who sits at the right hand of God to
make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25). The main thing that determines who succeeds
and who doesn't succeed is attitude and action.
In the preceding verse The phrase "diligently seek" in Hebrews 11:6 is taken from the Greek word ekzeteo, and it carries an entire range of power-packed meanings. It means to zealously seek for something with all of one's heart, strength,and might. It presents the picture of one who seeks something so passionately and determinedly that he literally exhausts all his power in his search. It is this passionate pursuit, this attitude that God rewards.
If you're serious about succeeding in life, you'll have to adjust your level of
commitment and give your full attention to what God has called you to do. Diligence
cannot be a sideline issue. Your assigned task must have your full consideration,
your undivided attention, and your mental and spiritual concentration. You must
immerse yourself in faith, prayer, and meditation regarding God's call on your life.
Distractions are not allowed.
It takes hard work to achieve any goal, and complaining about that hard work won't
make it any easier. So be constant in your commitment. Refuse to relent! Stay stubborn
and unbending even in the face of opposition until your objective is achieved. Your
consistency and determination will push the powers of hell aside and obtain the
victory you desire!
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Friday, February 15, 2013
The Breathe of Heaven and the Renewed Mind
Breathe Again
Acts 3:19 – “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.”
Peter is proclaiming to the people that had gathered because of the healing of lame man who is now leaping that they need to repent. For so long the church has had a limited understanding of this word, which literally means to “change the way you think”. You cannot successfully turn away from anything, sin or old mind sets unless their has been a change of mind which has been caused by the revealing of present truth by the Holy Ghost. Peter is declaring to this host that they need to change the way they think about this Christ, about his coming. The people couldn’t except Jesus as messiah because he had been crucified and anything hung on the tree was cursed but they didn’t understand the mission of the messiah so Peter is bringing light to the darkness, revelation.
I like to say this verse like this, “Change the way you about Christ and His coming so you can return to your original purpose and create a karios or opportunity for the Lord to breathe again.” The release of the fresh breath (refreshing) is directly connected to repentance, not from sin but from a mindset that didn’t understand His coming. As we allow the Holy Spirit to change our mindsets concerning His coming, it creates in the spirit an opportune moment for God to breathe (exhale) again into the earth and the result is verse 21, which is the “restoration of all things” as described in Acts 3:21.
While many are looking to get out, God is looking to get in. There is a mindset, a paradigm shift coming in they way we have perceived the end, which will loose the people of God to receive a fresh breath and release it to the world around them bringing restoration, which has to come.
Acts 3:21 says specifically that Jesus is received into heaven “until” the restitution or restoration of all things, which comes as a result of a fresh breath that comes from a change of mind about Christ and His coming. We do the word injustice when we limit the Lord to only two comings. He came to Adam in the garden, Abraham as smoking flax, Moses as a burning bush, Joshua as the captain of the Lord’s host and many other pre-incarnate appearances. Even after His initial
Ascension (to place blood on the mercy seat) He appeared for forty days; again He appeared to Paul on the backside of the desert. The Lord has come, He is coming and He will come.
The Lord has visited every generation and I believe He is visiting us with with wisdom and revelation about His Kingdom so that we can participate with Him in the restoration of all things.
Colosians 1:27
“To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:”
The Church, the Bride who is to release the glory of Christ and the wisdom of God into the world.God’s confident expectation of the glory being released in the earth is Christ in you. As Jesus takes His rightful place in our heart and restores the fellowship that was broken in the garden, we receive the same glory and commission which the first Adam had. The original commission is still the commission today.
Acts 3:19 – “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.”
Peter is proclaiming to the people that had gathered because of the healing of lame man who is now leaping that they need to repent. For so long the church has had a limited understanding of this word, which literally means to “change the way you think”. You cannot successfully turn away from anything, sin or old mind sets unless their has been a change of mind which has been caused by the revealing of present truth by the Holy Ghost. Peter is declaring to this host that they need to change the way they think about this Christ, about his coming. The people couldn’t except Jesus as messiah because he had been crucified and anything hung on the tree was cursed but they didn’t understand the mission of the messiah so Peter is bringing light to the darkness, revelation.
I like to say this verse like this, “Change the way you about Christ and His coming so you can return to your original purpose and create a karios or opportunity for the Lord to breathe again.” The release of the fresh breath (refreshing) is directly connected to repentance, not from sin but from a mindset that didn’t understand His coming. As we allow the Holy Spirit to change our mindsets concerning His coming, it creates in the spirit an opportune moment for God to breathe (exhale) again into the earth and the result is verse 21, which is the “restoration of all things” as described in Acts 3:21.
While many are looking to get out, God is looking to get in. There is a mindset, a paradigm shift coming in they way we have perceived the end, which will loose the people of God to receive a fresh breath and release it to the world around them bringing restoration, which has to come.
Acts 3:21 says specifically that Jesus is received into heaven “until” the restitution or restoration of all things, which comes as a result of a fresh breath that comes from a change of mind about Christ and His coming. We do the word injustice when we limit the Lord to only two comings. He came to Adam in the garden, Abraham as smoking flax, Moses as a burning bush, Joshua as the captain of the Lord’s host and many other pre-incarnate appearances. Even after His initial
Ascension (to place blood on the mercy seat) He appeared for forty days; again He appeared to Paul on the backside of the desert. The Lord has come, He is coming and He will come.
The Lord has visited every generation and I believe He is visiting us with with wisdom and revelation about His Kingdom so that we can participate with Him in the restoration of all things.
Colosians 1:27
“To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:”
The Church, the Bride who is to release the glory of Christ and the wisdom of God into the world.God’s confident expectation of the glory being released in the earth is Christ in you. As Jesus takes His rightful place in our heart and restores the fellowship that was broken in the garden, we receive the same glory and commission which the first Adam had. The original commission is still the commission today.
Friday, February 8, 2013
Work out your salvation? Carry your Cross?
Aren’t we supposed to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling? What about our Cross? Let's take a fresh look at some old ideas.
Philippians 2:12 -"Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling"
Read that verse from the A.S. Way translation: “… work out, with fear and self-distrust, ay, with trembling self-distrust, your own salvation. You have not to do it in your unaided strength: it is God who is all the while supplying the impulse…"
Paul wrote this during his Roman imprisonment awaiting possible death. Knowing that he might never return to his beloved Philippian church, his most generous supporter, he lovingly tells them that they must not rely upon him any longer but they must trust in the impulse of God within them.
The apostle was essentially teaching them to drink from the Source of salvation, and not just be the messengers of it. The sense of the Scripture is not working out our salvation in our own strength, but in fact, it is the opposite. It is that we should trust none but God alone, who is giving us the strength and the impulse for our salvation. We should approach our salvation with trembling self-distrust, resting solely in God’s wondrous ability.
If we miss the meaning of these simple Scriptures, we are in danger of placing the emphasis upon ourselves instead of on Christ.
Christ is our substitute; His sacrifice should not, and indeed cannot, be followed. I’m not talking about giving our lives in martyrdom for the Gospel; I’m talking about attempting to pay a price that only He was anointed to pay.
Matthew 16:24- "Whoever wants to come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me."
This seems to be one of the most twisted and misunderstood verses in the Bible. To most people, this verse seems more like another burden to bear, rather than a burden lifted, which is its intended meaning. Jesus said first, “Follow Me.” Where was He going? He was going to Jerusalem to be crucified and to pay the ransom for all humankind, to lift the burden of sin from humanity. This Scripture is not a call for the self-sacrifice of the disciples or the believer but a call to follow and trust in Christ and His work that He was about to accomplish on the cross.
He had just revealed this to His disciples in the previous verses. And of course, good ol’ Peter rebuked Jesus for saying such crazy things. This “Crucified Messiah” did not fit into Peter’s grid.
In the most practical sense, Jesus was saying to His disciples, “Hey guys, we got some rough times ahead. I’m gonna be killed pretty soon but it will be OK. You boys better stick with Me; I know what I’m doing. Don’t go running off on your own and getting yourselves into trouble. Just trust Me!”
It is Christ who bore our burdens, and continues to bear them and us to Himself. In our trying and hard times, we are to rejoice even more, knowing that Christ has everything sovereignly in His hands. I’m not saying that hard times don’t come; I’m simply saying that you can have supernatural joy in the midst of them. In the eternal sense, this verse means that we are to follow after Christ’s sacrifice, not mimic it, but trust in it alone for our salvation and sustainment.
This verse in Matthew 16 in no way implies that believers have anything to do with the removal of sin from their lives by carrying their own cross. Here is a simple question: Whose cross was Jesus carrying? His own? No way! When Christ was hanging naked and mutilated on the tree of Calvary, it was not for His own crimes, but ours. He was murdered! He was innocent of all evil.
He was our scapegoat—the substitution for all of humanity.“ He was not carrying His cross; He was carrying our crosses!” He commands us to “deny self'—this word here actually means “to forget and lose sight of self."
The sense here in this Scripture is not self-sacrifice in the way that most would see it. It actually is a call to deny any heavenly advancement through self-achievement. It means that salvation or any of its benefits cannot be owed or due to ourselves!
Celebrate the full and finished work of our King!
Philippians 2:12 -"Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling"
Read that verse from the A.S. Way translation: “… work out, with fear and self-distrust, ay, with trembling self-distrust, your own salvation. You have not to do it in your unaided strength: it is God who is all the while supplying the impulse…"
Paul wrote this during his Roman imprisonment awaiting possible death. Knowing that he might never return to his beloved Philippian church, his most generous supporter, he lovingly tells them that they must not rely upon him any longer but they must trust in the impulse of God within them.
The apostle was essentially teaching them to drink from the Source of salvation, and not just be the messengers of it. The sense of the Scripture is not working out our salvation in our own strength, but in fact, it is the opposite. It is that we should trust none but God alone, who is giving us the strength and the impulse for our salvation. We should approach our salvation with trembling self-distrust, resting solely in God’s wondrous ability.
If we miss the meaning of these simple Scriptures, we are in danger of placing the emphasis upon ourselves instead of on Christ.
Christ is our substitute; His sacrifice should not, and indeed cannot, be followed. I’m not talking about giving our lives in martyrdom for the Gospel; I’m talking about attempting to pay a price that only He was anointed to pay.
Matthew 16:24- "Whoever wants to come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me."
This seems to be one of the most twisted and misunderstood verses in the Bible. To most people, this verse seems more like another burden to bear, rather than a burden lifted, which is its intended meaning. Jesus said first, “Follow Me.” Where was He going? He was going to Jerusalem to be crucified and to pay the ransom for all humankind, to lift the burden of sin from humanity. This Scripture is not a call for the self-sacrifice of the disciples or the believer but a call to follow and trust in Christ and His work that He was about to accomplish on the cross.
He had just revealed this to His disciples in the previous verses. And of course, good ol’ Peter rebuked Jesus for saying such crazy things. This “Crucified Messiah” did not fit into Peter’s grid.
In the most practical sense, Jesus was saying to His disciples, “Hey guys, we got some rough times ahead. I’m gonna be killed pretty soon but it will be OK. You boys better stick with Me; I know what I’m doing. Don’t go running off on your own and getting yourselves into trouble. Just trust Me!”
It is Christ who bore our burdens, and continues to bear them and us to Himself. In our trying and hard times, we are to rejoice even more, knowing that Christ has everything sovereignly in His hands. I’m not saying that hard times don’t come; I’m simply saying that you can have supernatural joy in the midst of them. In the eternal sense, this verse means that we are to follow after Christ’s sacrifice, not mimic it, but trust in it alone for our salvation and sustainment.
This verse in Matthew 16 in no way implies that believers have anything to do with the removal of sin from their lives by carrying their own cross. Here is a simple question: Whose cross was Jesus carrying? His own? No way! When Christ was hanging naked and mutilated on the tree of Calvary, it was not for His own crimes, but ours. He was murdered! He was innocent of all evil.
He was our scapegoat—the substitution for all of humanity.“ He was not carrying His cross; He was carrying our crosses!” He commands us to “deny self'—this word here actually means “to forget and lose sight of self."
The sense here in this Scripture is not self-sacrifice in the way that most would see it. It actually is a call to deny any heavenly advancement through self-achievement. It means that salvation or any of its benefits cannot be owed or due to ourselves!
Celebrate the full and finished work of our King!
Friday, February 1, 2013
Is the Word at home with you?
In Colossians 3:16, Paul tells us that the word of Christ should "dwell" in us richly.
The word "dwell" is taken from the word enoikeo. The word "enoikeo" is
a compound of the words en and oikos. The word en means in, and the word oikos is
the Greek word for a house. When the two words are compounded together, they form
the word enoikeo, which means to dwell in a house. This is the same Greek word used
in both New Testament literature and secular literature to signify someone who takes
up permanent residency in a home. The person is so at home and contented in this
new location that he has chosen to make it his permanent dwelling place for the
rest of his life.
So when Paul tells us to let the word of Christ "dwell" in us, he is strongly urging
us to give God's Word such a grand, welcoming reception that it literally feels
at home in us and therefore comes to take up permanent residency!
The word when allowed not only takes up residence but helps us in our hearing and discerning the voice of the spirit. The more the Logos (written) word has a place the more we are prepared to hear the gentle leading, guidance and voice of the spirit. Ephesians tells that word is the sword, it is a weapon in the spiritual warfare we face. The word "word" used in that specific passage is the word "rhema," the logos when at home in our hearts prepares us for the rhema needed when we face the difficulties of life.
Does the Word have this kind of place in your life? Does it really "dwell" in you
richly? Does it feel at home and comfortable in your life? Or is the Word of God
treated like a stranger that is occasionally welcomed into your life as a visitor?
The word "dwell" is taken from the word enoikeo. The word "enoikeo" is
a compound of the words en and oikos. The word en means in, and the word oikos is
the Greek word for a house. When the two words are compounded together, they form
the word enoikeo, which means to dwell in a house. This is the same Greek word used
in both New Testament literature and secular literature to signify someone who takes
up permanent residency in a home. The person is so at home and contented in this
new location that he has chosen to make it his permanent dwelling place for the
rest of his life.
So when Paul tells us to let the word of Christ "dwell" in us, he is strongly urging
us to give God's Word such a grand, welcoming reception that it literally feels
at home in us and therefore comes to take up permanent residency!
The word when allowed not only takes up residence but helps us in our hearing and discerning the voice of the spirit. The more the Logos (written) word has a place the more we are prepared to hear the gentle leading, guidance and voice of the spirit. Ephesians tells that word is the sword, it is a weapon in the spiritual warfare we face. The word "word" used in that specific passage is the word "rhema," the logos when at home in our hearts prepares us for the rhema needed when we face the difficulties of life.
Does the Word have this kind of place in your life? Does it really "dwell" in you
richly? Does it feel at home and comfortable in your life? Or is the Word of God
treated like a stranger that is occasionally welcomed into your life as a visitor?
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