MAY 10, 2016

MY FRIENDS, ARE WE ALLOWING THE WORLD TO DEFINE WHO OUR GOD IS?

How can we proclaim God if our mind is not “set on things above, [but only] on earthly things” Col. 3:2 (NIV) As God’s chosen, we are unique in what we do and how we act? We must not allow the world to define who we are. “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world……is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.” 1 John 2:15 (KJV)

My friends, that is a promise of life eternal if we can remain focused on our Journey and where Christ is leading us as we define who we are through Christ, His word and Spirit. In addition, this can only be done if our character is uniquely different from the world. “And not conformed to [the things of this] world, but transformed by the renewing of our mind, that we may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Romans 12:2 (KJV)

And God’s will must be our only focus, which becomes a shared vision and a shared passion that goes from where we are today to the promise land. As we “seek first Gods Kingdom and his righteousness; and then all [our needs] shall be added unto [us.]” Matt. 6:33 (NKJV) We must also have the same passion for spreading the good news of Christ second coming.

And finishing up His mandate here on earth, that we have for what we anticipate that God has planned for each of us in that place, “eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” 1 Cor. 2:9 (NKJV) So as God’s chosen, we must define who we are through Christ, and don’t allow the world to do so for us.

In other words, we should not be able to discuss the latest episode of Empire, Scandal, House Wife’s of Atlanta, and the Have and Have Not’s with individuals whose spiritual compass always points towards this earth. When Paul speaks of the Israelite’s in 1 Cor. 10:6-7 (NKJV) He says, “now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.”

Idolaters defined as those who worship idols or the things that we have placed in our lives that are an abomination to God. “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” Eph. 2:10 (KJV) and as God’s chosen we represent the living God not the god of this world because, “we are His workmanship.”

Created in His very image, a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that [we] may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you [and I] out of darkness into His marvelous light.” 1 Peter 2:9 (NKJV) David a man after “God’s on heart” could not let an uncircumcised Philistines define who His God was. “For who is this Philistine David ask “That he should define the armies of the living God?”

My friends, as God’s Chosen, a new generation of men and women after God’s on heart. We should seek daily with God’s word and Spirit in hand all who defy God and tell them Jesus saves.

May 5, 2016

MY FRIENDS, HE LET’S CONTINUE OUR JOURNEY FROM HERE!!

“I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.” My friends “let’s go from hear” [because we have lingered long enough, there is work to be done.] Matt 14 30-31 (NKJV)

Luke 11:24-26 (NKJV) says “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man or woman, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds.” Then Luke tells us, “the unclean spirit finds our mind and body is swept and put in order.” But today my friends, we are going to re-word that text since it’s personal and say when the unclean spirit returns to our lives, there is no entry because Gods presence now abides within us.

And His word and spirit now abides within us. And there is no entry because we pray without ceasing because we know the enemy is forever looking and watching to move back in. And most important, there is no entry for the enemy to abide because we are strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. We also realize we cannot fight against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

So we now stand firm on the promises of God because we have put on His full armor, starting with the “belt of truth buckled around our waist, along with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and on our feet we are fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition in our hand we have the shield of faith, with which we can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

And on our head, we are wearing the helmet of salvation. And in our other hand we are forever clinging to the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And daily we are praying in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. And with this in mind, we ae alert because we know the enemy goes about [“like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour”] Eph. 6:10-18 NKJV paraphrased)

My friends, there is a war being waged daily against our character because Satan knows he lost the battle in his pursuit “to be like the most High”at Calvary. “Now when [Christ] rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.” Mark 16:9 (NKJV)

That text tells us, our Savior lives and “because He lives” Mary Magdalene can be our example of the love grace and mercy of Christ that even though Ms. Magdalene kept returning back to her sinful life and kept allowing the god of this world to take her down that road that she didn’t want to go down and even after seven times, Christ forgave, while never leaving nor forsaking, when she needed Him the most.

And since God is a personal God, He personally tells Ms. Magdalene first, before anyone else that He lives and now she can face tomorrow and so can you and I. My friends, we have given Satan to much credit because even though the god of this world has claimed us “our father which art in heaven” has given us His only begotten Son to Die for our sins if we only believe and endure until the end while forever remembering He lives. So now Christ is calling us to “go from hear,” there is work to be done.

May 4, 2016

MY FRIENDS, HAVE OUR SALVATION BECOME OPTIONAL?

Two thousand years ago our mission started with only two. “And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Matt 4:18-19 (NKJV) Then the church went from two to twelve in just a short period of time.

And from those twelve, Christianity or the teachings of Christ begin and from twelve it grew to 120 men and women who had gathered as Christ had commanded them before His ascension, do “not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the Promise of the Father,” which we now know was the Holy Spirit. “120 believers in the upper room went to Jerusalem along with pilgrims from all over the world to celebrate the day of Pentecost.

This is a ratio of one Christian to approximately every 500,000 to 580,000 people in the empire at that time. From a human standpoint, Jesus’ command to preach the gospel to the world seemed unthinkable, but yet, the Christian church exploded in growth. Tens of thousands were converted. The message of Jesus’ love was carried to the remotest parts of the empire and it reveals that in a few generations Christianity had invaded nearly every level of society even in the remote provinces.” (Mark Finley)

This shows each of God’s chosen who are committed to serving God, the power of God and His Spirit, when we as Christian’s come together as one and have an upper room experience. And friends, it is not finished. Christ has told each of us to “go into all the world and preach the gospel.” So if that is our mandate, we must first start with family and friends, our communities and co-workers which is only our starting point.

But our passion to serve must not become optional. “For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.” Matt 24:38-39 (NKJV)But we are living in a “whatever.” Society where Satan has the minds of the masses bound to the things of this earth.

But if  God has given us a message “for such a time as this,” our salvation cannot be optional or based on our desire to upgrade from a thirty two inch flat screen to a seventy inch, or from a Chevy to a Mercedes  because the world says we must lay up our treasures here of this earth.  My friends our legacy here on earth must be all about Christ legacy which begins at Calvary and will end at His second coming.

If our goal is God’s kingdom then we must “prioritize our transformation each morning we wake up and it must be something worthy of the God we serve” and what His needs are. What we want to achieve today can no longer be about our vision but God’s vision. Our only goal must be the proclamation of the word of God to this generation.

In addition, we cannot preach a straight and narrow road to the kingdom that very few will find, if we have not found that road ourselves because our priority for what is important is now controlled by what the god of this world tells us what is important. My friends, If we are going to endure to the end it must become personal as we maintain a passion to serve and a vision of a new heaven and a new earth.

May 3, 2016

MY FRIENDS, MOVE ON THERE IS WORK TO BE DONE!

My friends, I need us to personally focus on where God is leading us on our journey to the “promise land?”  In addition, what is our plan and how will it develop into victory as we maintain a shared vision along with a passion till the end? First we must believe “if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 6:9 (NKJV)

Lets go to the book of Jeremiah where God speaks to Jeremiah saying: Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.” Jer. 23:1-5 (KJV) And of course that righteous Branch was Jesus Christ. In Acts 13:22 (NIV) we go to a narrative of Paul and one of his sermons to the men of Israel as he talks of their desire at one time in their history for a king.

And so God gave them “the desires of their heart” which was Saul and then “After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do. From this man’s descendants God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as he promised.”

And then in Heb.11:32-40 (KJV) we have David along with many more of God’s faithful being placed in the “Hall of Fame” of great men and woman in God’s word being singled out “Who through their faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions. Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.

Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;(Of whom the world was not worthy)

They wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.  And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise.” My friends, as we think about our own legacy of faith on our journey. Let’s first Focus today on the exchange of words between Nathan the Prophet and David in 2 Sam. 12:13 (KJV)

“David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin;” At this time in David’s life he had become a wretched sinner in the eyes of God, who coveted another man’s wife, then He committed adultery with her, he then Had the man killed. Such horrific sins for a man after Gods on heart.

But then came David’s sincere repentance “I have sinned against the Lord.” and then came a sincere forgiveness from God  “The Lord also has put away your sin; and throughout the Bible those horrific Sins were never mentioned again and David still today remains a man after God’s on heart. My friends, God needs your undivided attention in these last days as we move out onto the front lines of the battle field to serve.

So with a sincere and contrite heart if we have cried out to the Lord “I have sinned against You” then the Lord like David “has put away our sins,” and we are now God’s chosen, also men and women after God’s on heart. So let’s move on, there is work to be done.

May 2, 2016

MY FRIENDS, DO WE STILL HAVE A PASSION TO FINISH?

Each decade of our life, we rewrite history, as situations shifts, goals and destinations and people change. Family and love one’s move on. We look back and picture a babe in diapers. Now we are doing the electric slide at their wedding celebration. If we go back farther we are singing the Temptation’s, “My Girl” over a friend’s house.

Further back in time, maybe you have your battery operated radio up to your ear, listening to Chubby Checker and trying to do the twist at the same time. The timeline becomes blurred at times, but one thing we can forever count on in our lives, two forces, both operating simultaneously with each other, both moving in opposite directions with different agendas and different outcomes.

One force representing everything changeable, unpredictable, and distressing in our lives where all hope is lost in a state of spiritual ruin as we plunged deep into the abyss with no chance of escape. The other force, a much more powerful one, representing the sure movement of God’s wise and sovereign purposes.

My friends, on this Journey we travel on our way to the promise land, the insurmountable amount of mountains and valleys we encounter daily, as the tempest rages, and at times, rages out of control. But in spite of, our God is forever transcending a deep flow of His unchanging love within us, along with the power of his Spirit that transfoms our lives.

And Through it all, the Lord’s [grace] and mercies, we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is [His] faithfulness. Lam. 3:22-23 (NKJV) and one day if we believe and endure, we will enter that place “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which He hath prepared for them that love him.” 1 Cor. 2:9 (KJV)

My friends, its personal because you are the only one that can see yourself listening to Chubby Checker and trying to do the twist at the same time. So it’s only you and I that can acquire an attitude of passion that keeps us focus, and on our knees as we cry out, Lord not my will but thy will be done. As we enter the threshold of the promise land, discouragement is not an option, we must hold on, finishing this journey with our “torches still lit,” and shinning bright with the radiance of the Son who gave it all for our salvation.

In addition, we can never allow our minds to linger aimlessly, seeking after the things of this world, forgetting the prize at the end of this journey, eternal life. God’s word is a perfect curriculum for finishing this course and there can be no fear of the unknown for “God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” 2 Tim 1:7 (NKJV)

And if you are a child of God who has been seeking, searching and serving God with a passion, it becomes personal, because we know our Savior left  and will return soon. And we know, once we get to God’s kingdom there can be no eviction or foreclosure on the prize we have obtained. Because through our faith we would have “endured great tribulation.

And at that point our robes would have been washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb. Rev. 21:21 (NKJV) My friends, discouragement overwhelms us only when Satan tells us that our dreams and goals for eternity are unattainable. So let’s keep our eyes and heart on Calvary on the one who gave it all for our salvation.

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