“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:11

Christmas is a wonderful time of the year but it comes and goes quickly. Christmas creates a few moments of happiness then the worries of the world slowly creep back into your life.

Think of Christmas as a way of life not just a holiday. There are no restraints or limitations with this precious gift from God.

Christmas is eternal and gives you the ability to live in oneness with Christ and experience the fullness of His life.

Christmas is recognizing you are “sold under sin” and abysmal (extremely bad) in the sight of God. The miracle of Christmas is you can be forgiven for all your sins-past, present, and future. Most importantly, you can be fully restored to God. With Christ, in the eyes of God you are perfect.

Christmas is accepting the gift of Christ without preconditions or prejudices. You become a new creature in Christ Jesus. Old things fade away and all things become new. The work of Christ transforms you into a new person leaving your old life to die with Jesus on the Cross.

Christmas is making a decision to give up your independence and live for Christ.

Christmas is choosing to walk by faith believing and living in the promises of God.

Christmas is appreciating God for what He has done for you.

Christmas gives you the ability to overcome fear and doubt. This happens when you live with Christ by faith and reject the world.

Christmas allows you to be filled with the life of Christ and experience unspeakable joy, strength, and protection. This comes by faith regardless of the circumstances in your life. Christ died so you can have His life!

Christmas is not about doing things for Christ. It is living in oneness with Him through the Holy Spirit and seeking His will for your life.

Christmas is changing your priorities from the world to Christ. It is recognizing your sustenance comes from God. He is your bread of life.

Christmas gives you hope. This hope has nothing to do with the world. Your hope is in Christ who died so you can have life and have it more abundantly!

Christmas is living under the impervious shield of Christ. Your refuge is in Christ and nothing in this world can destroy you.

Christmas is eternal and life changing!

 

“The Lord makes a loud noise from Zion. He lets His voice be heard from Jerusalem, and the heavens and the earth shake. But the Lord is a safe place for His people, a strong place to the sons of Israel.” Joel 3:16

God punished the Israelites for their sins and allowed foreign countries to ravage them. The Israelites were sold into slavery and their land was stolen from them.

Then God looked down on the brutality afflicted upon the Israelites and said “I will do to you what you have done to them”.

God promised to take the foreign nations to the valley of punishment and bring retribution upon them for all their evil actions.

This microcosm of judgment allows you and I to see into the personality of God. He saw the sins of His chosen people and severely punished them. Then He saw how the foreign nations treated His own people and decided to turn the tables of judgment upon them.

How can you apply the reality of God’s judgment into your life today? Remember, God never changes!

At this time, many nations are under the judgment of God including our own country. We have sold out to the values of the world and forsaken God. And, Christianity is the one of the worst culprits. They have become corrupt and drifted away from the Word of God to appease the changing values in our society.

This problem is way to big to grasp or come to terms with God.

The truth is God makes a loud noise from Zion, the holy  mountain of God. He speaks from Jerusalem and the heavens and earth shake violently with His voice of judgment.

Your safe haven is in the Lord. There is no other refuge in the universe that is safe from the judgment of God. You can only find strength to deal with the tumultuous storms ahead in Christ Jesus. He is your all!

 

“You have answered Me.” Psalm 22:21

King David was going through probably the most difficult time of His life. He was suffering almost to the point of death. And, he felt abandoned by God. David prayed and there was mostly silence.

After David described a litany of all his problems, he spoke four words, “You have answered me.”

Then David went on to praise the Lord for His greatness and glory.

What happened is David heard the voice of God and the assurance he would be delivered by the hand of almighty God.

This is what you and I need to hear every day of our lives whether life is good or difficult.

Come before God like David and pour out your heart to Him. Then be still and know that He is God. Listen for the promises of your Savior and live by faith believing you will experience the goodness of God in the land of the living!

You and I cannot live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.

This is where you will find hope for today!

 

“For the Lord loves justice,
And does not forsake His saints;
They are preserved forever” Psalm 37:28

Sometimes it seems like God drops off the radar and cannot be found.

You see the justice in the world where prosperity comes to those who live without any rules. And, you live in deprivation! How can this be?

The truth is God loves justice and will never forsake His saints.

The challenge is understanding the justice of God. He dispenses justice on His terms and you and I can’t evaluate the merits of the justice of God. We don’t have the ability to look into someone’s heart or make decisions about justice with the mind of Christ.

We are blind to how God rules and have to accept the justice of God will come to us by faith in Christ Jesus and in His perfect timing.

You cannot look at your love for God, good deeds, or lifestyle in determining the justice of God.

God loves justice and will not forsake His saints. Accept this promise by faith and without interpretation. He is God and will do as He pleases.

Keep your eyes on Jesus and do not judge others or try to play God.

Jesus keeps His Word!

 

“For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.” 2 Corinthians 5:14-15

Very simply, one died for all. Jesus sacrificed His life so you and I can have life and have it more abundantly.

How does Jesus define an abundant life? There is worldly living and living for Christ. The entry to Jesus is the act of denying the world and seeking the kingdom of God above all else.

The abundant life is the life of Christ. The Cross literally offers you the ability to experience the vitality of the life of Jesus. This life is set apart from the world.

Jesus died so you and I can live for Him. There is no other way to find Jesus. You cannot experience the abundance of Christ unless you agree to follow in His footsteps and die to self and live for Jesus.

The question becomes how do you die to self? This happens when you abandon yourself to Christ. You agree to submit your will to the will of God.

At this point, God determines how you will die to self. You have nothing to do with this process. And, the act of dying to self will not be accomplished through religion or works.

Dying to self is a life long process and the outcome will never be perfect until you enter the kingdom of heaven.

Discover the Living Christ and your life will never be the same!

 

“In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18

The definition of effusive is expressing feelings of gratitude, pleasure, or approval in an unrestrained or heartfelt manner.

You cannot find this spiritual value through your fleshly condition. It is impossible. The feelings of gratitude will always relate to good things taking place in your life.

We have to look to Jesus as a role model for exhibiting an effusive attitude in His life which was never related to circumstances. Jesus appreciated God for who He was and did not require blessings from God to create unrestrained gratitude.

The effusive attitude of a believer will originate in the work of the Cross. It is understanding the sacrifice of Jesus and the efficacy to a believer.

The gift of eternal life is living with Jesus forever and sharing in His life through the embodiment of His Spirit. The life of Jesus is alive in you and He desires to fill you with unspeakable joy.

There is a direct relationship between the joy of God and unbelief. If you fall into unbelief you are grieving the Holy Spirit and will lose the fullness of the joy of God

The joy of God and is not related in any way to worldly actions. It is understanding Jesus lives above the world and has authority over all things.

When you experience the Living Christ the things of the world will slowly fade away as you dwell in the greatness and glory of God. You gain a new appreciation and joy for your Savior which will abide with you through all the ups and downs of life.

Your joy will be heartfelt reflecting the love of God!

 

“Who knows the power of Your anger?
For as the fear of You, so is Your wrath.
So teach us to number our days,
That we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Psalm 90:11-12

No one wants to hear about the anger of God. We have been taught by Christianity that God is compassionate, loving and forgives all sin.

Christianity overlooks the character of retribution in the heart of God. Sin does not go unpunished! You and I are accountable to God for all our actions.

Moses understands the personality of God. He has witnessed the power of God’s anger and the relationship between the fear of God and His anger towards humanity.

The fear of the Lord is worshipping God for who He is and making Jesus the centerpiece of your life. It is living in oneness with God through His Spirit. God is a Spirit and we must worship Him in Spirit and Truth.

Moses admonishes believers to number each day in your life as a precious gift from God. Life is short so pray for a heart of wisdom.

Commit your works each day to God and ask Him to guide your footsteps. This is acknowledging the fear of God and the desire to be in the center of His will.

Dwell with God through His Spirit. Seek His voice out every day of your life. This act is an expression of your fear of the Lord and the importance of living in communion with the Living God.

 

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” Hebrews 13:8

The act of appeasing is to make concessions often at the sacrifice of principles. As believers, you and I tend to interpret scripture so it is compatible with our lifestyle. Or, we accept what we like and reject disagreeable elements.

 

It is very difficult to live in the world and not be influenced by worldly values. The world operates on the principle of satisfying self. God calls believers to die to self and live for Christ.

Where is the middle ground? We live in the world but we are not of the world. How can we employ the values of Christ into our life while enjoying the goodness in the world?

You have to develop the mind set the pathway to the goodness of God comes to those who seek Him above all else. This spiritual principle will never change and troubles come when you reverse the priorities and place self first.

Appeasement takes place when you yield to fleshy indulgences and reject the guidance of the Holy Spirit. You fall out of oneness with God to satisfy self.

The biggest issue with Christianity is appeasing scripture to fulfill the goals of religion or to comply with the changing needs of society. With God this is a non negotiable issue. God never changes and His Word cannot be watered down or revised.

The only way you can be insulated from the temptations in the world is to live in oneness with God yielding to the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is your teacher and He will show you how to live in the world without compromising the values of Christ.

Taking short cuts with God will lead to misery and destruction! Honor almighty God for who He is!

There is no one like Him!

 

And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” Luke 18:40

This question was spoken by Jesus to a blind beggar as He was walking along a road heading to Jericho.

There was a crowd passing by following Jesus and the beggar cried out “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me”?

The people around the beggar rebuked Him and told him to be silent. But this just caused the beggar to cry out more.

Jesus stopped and asked the beggar what he wanted Jesus to do for him? The beggar responded “Let me recover my sight” and Jesus said “Recover your sight; your faith has made you whole”.

The beggar was healed and followed Jesus giving glory to God. And, all the people who witnessed this miracle, gave praise to God.

Today, think about Jesus asking you the same question He asked the beggar. What can I do for you?

You have to ask Jesus with a resolute attitude understanding He has power and dominion over all things. Ask by faith without wavering unbelief. Remember, you are petitioning the Son of God who died for you on the Cross.

The ending to this miracle is the reason Jesus healed the beggar. The beggar and those around Him all gave glory to God. They believed in Jesus!

 

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.” James 1:5-7

If you woke up today in a cloud of confusion or lacking wisdom this narrative is perfect counsel for you. God desires to be a lamp unto your feet and a light unto your pathway.

Simply go before God and ask for wisdom. The promise from Christ Jesus is He will generously give wisdom without finding fault in you.

The caveat is when you ask you must believe and not doubt. The words of God are pure words like silver refined in a fiery furnace, purified seven times, you shall keep them O Lord.

You can trust the words spoken to you by God. They will never fail you and they do not need to be justified by proof or evidence.

When God makes a promise He cannot swear by anything greater than Himself. His Word is perfect and endures forever!

Heaven and earth will fade away but the Word of God is eternal and life changing. The Word is your only guarantee for an abundant life.

You and I have to live today invested in the promises of God and not waver because of the circumstances of life. Your safe haven is in God not in the corrupt ways of the world.