“That they may be one even as we are one” John 17:23

The starting point with God is your decision for Jesus. You might get to this point by a crisis, the troubles of life, or you just might open up your heart to hear the gospel and accept the gift of salvation by faith.

The decision for Jesus causes you to renounce your old life and agree to live for Jesus. You cannot experience the essence of salvation until you “let go” and give up ownership of your independence and individuality. Also, your motives in this transaction cannot be to use God to achieve your goals. It is a voluntary act of giving up!

God takes you as you are and begins to transform you into a new creature in Christ Jesus. This beautiful experiment unites your personality with the personality of God. You come to live in oneness with Jesus through the function of the Holy Spirit.

You have to personally meet the Living God to understand the fullness of the gift of salvation. Until this happens you will flounder in your faith. When you see who God is and understand your limitations, this will cause you to respect and want more of the grandeur of God. Jesus will become your everything!

The Living God is the author of life and has power and dominion over all things in heaven and earth. And, the beauty of salvation is He wants to share Himself with you.

This powerful truth cannot be received through your intellect. It has to be implanted in your heart through the work of the Holy Spirit who baptizes you into the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus.

The gift of salvation is living in the reality of God!

“For the day of the Lord upon all the nations is near;
As you have done, it shall be done to you;
Your reprisal shall return upon your own head.” Obadiah 1:15

We have entered a period of the final judgment of God. The day of the Lord is upon all nations. As you have done, it shall be done to you.

God is furious with the lack of respect and fear for who He is. He will be unleashing His punishment upon all nations. He also detests those who live with a haughty or arrogant attitude.

God has communicated His plan to me through the Book of Obadiah. The nation of Edom did not come to the rescue of Israel when they were under siege by enemy nations. In fact, they participated in the destruction of Israel.

The actions of Edom caused their nation to suffer greatly and to be literally destroyed by God.

God made an everlasting covenant with Abraham and all his descendants. They were selected by God to be His chosen people and a special treasure above all the nations. Regardless of the Israelites lack of faith and stubbornness, God promised to never leave or forsake them.

As a believer, you are standing in the middle of this cloud of judgment and cannot escape the scrutiny of God. You can choose to be lukewarm and suffer or you can turn to God with a heart of repentance and a desire to do His will.

The good news in this story is God has set a place in Mount Zion (the sanctuary of God) to deliver His people and allow them to dwell in His holiness.

The survivors of this judgment will be the remnant of the Body of Christ. They will be God’s anointed people and will live with Him forever!

This is the perfect time to make sure you are good with God. Come to Jesus with a genuine heart and an openness to walk in His ways!

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.” Proverbs 13:12

We all have hopes and dreams in life. As a believer, you and I look to God to fulfill these desires. You can also be comforted by the Word of God which promises those that delight in the Lord will have their desires come to fruition. In fact, God promises to give you more than you ask or think and He is a rewarder of those that diligently seek Him out.

Now lets get back to today. Your desires may seem years away or even hopeless. You may look upon your life and see emptiness or bleakness. God wants you to praise Him for who He is and find His goodness in today. If you defer your hope to the future this will make your heart sick and probably bring depression.

The spiritual attitude is “I believe God will bless my desires and until this happens I will walk by faith, praise Him, and seek God out for wisdom and joy.”

God is the tree of life and all things come from Him. He knows you better than you know yourself and His plan for you is perfect.

Most of the time we have to “let go” of something in order to experience the greatness of God.

So be content with where you are today and ask the Holy Spirit how you can have an awesome day.

He will do for you what you can never do for yourself. God loves you!

“That I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ” Ephesians 3:8-9

God called the Apostle Paul to reach out to the Gentiles and offer them the unsearchable riches of Christ.

Something “unsearchable” cannot be found. It is hidden away. In the beginning the first and last God appeared to all mankind and displayed His mighty signs and wonders. He also revealed His laws and precepts for living.

So in ancient times to have fellowship with God you had to keep His laws and rituals.

The hidden mystery is Jesus was with God from the beginning and God created all things through His Son. God chose not to reveal Jesus until a perfect time in history.

The manifold wisdom of God was made known by the church (Body of Christ) to all the principalities and powers in the heavens. This wisdom confirmed the eternal purpose of God which He accomplished in Christ Jesus.

What does all this mean to a believer?

The only method to draw near to God is by faith in His Son. You can now come directly to God through Jesus with boldness and confidence. The mystery has been revealed and the laws and rituals in the Old Covenant died with Jesus on the cross.

Quite simply, you are saved by accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior. This is a step of faith where you renounce your old life and agree to live for Christ.

Jesus forgives all your sins and sets you free to lead an abundant life. He places the Holy Spirit within you to act as your helper. He does not want you to be a religious believer. This turns most people off. He just wants you to be His light touching those living in darkness.

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

Jesus never changes. You and I have to change. You have been born into a world which is not governed by Jesus. And, you have to deal with the desires of the flesh which want to satisfy self.

Jesus has laid out the plan of salvation which was culminated with His death on the cross. He has given you the gift of eternal life. There is nothing greater than this gift. It lacks nothing and is your conduit to the abundant life. It is the embodiment of Christ Jesus.

This gift is eternal and alive. It is life changing. You become a new creature in Christ Jesus and die to the world and live for Christ.

The miracle of this gift is the Holy Spirit. He is the essence of the life of Jesus and lives in you. He is your navigator through life. Come under the authority of the Holy Spirit and ask Him to have dominion over every aspect of your life.

The Holy Spirit is your intermediary to the throne room of God. It is crucial that you abide in God through the Holy Spirit. He is your helper and will supply you with strength, wisdom, and protection.

You want to be in compliance at all times with the Holy Spirit and reject taking actions to serve self. The best method to evaluate if you are in harmony with the Holy Spirit is to ask yourself if the peace of God is over your life. If you are experiencing peace, you are probably walking in God’s pathway.

When you cannot find peace, you are in someway out of the will of the Holy Spirit. It is very easy to allow self to creep into your life and override the Holy Spirit. Just take a timeout and do an inventory with the Holy Spirit. Ask the Spirit what adjustments you need to make.

Shortly, you will be back on the cloud with God!

 

“The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.” 1 Thessalonians 5:24

Today you will enter the juggernaut of life. There will be new life and death. There will be highs and lows. There will be crisis and suffering. You will experience the goodness of God and the evil of Satan.

How can you navigate through life without reacting emotionally to the events of life? You have to be rooted in the reality of the Living Christ and build your life on the promises of God. The reality of Christ cannot be found on earth. It lives in the Word of God.

If you justify your relationship with God through emotions you will be an up and down believer. When God seems distant or troubles arrive your faith will plummet. Your emotions will betray you because they do not acknowledge the truths of God. The emotional believer constantly needs a fix to walk with God.

Many believers attempt to live with God through experiences. It is wonderful to have a mountaintop experience but you have to get up the next morning and face the routine and mundane nature of life. God doesn’t react to the experiences of life. He responds to your steadfast faith.

When you become rooted in the reality of God you do not allow the circumstances of life to impact your faith. You understand life will bring ups and downs and you keep your eyes focused on Jesus and do not give any power to the details of your life. You live in a surreal world but your hope is in the promises of God. This is the reality of Christ Jesus!

Faith is simply believing in God to fulfill your needs without any evidence or proof. You accept the principle that God calls things that don’t exist as if they did.

Faith never reacts to the events of life. You live in oneness with almighty God through prayer, the Word, and the Holy Spirit.

Faithful is He that called!

“I and the Father are one.” John 10:30

The goal for a disciple is to live in oneness with God. This is not easy with the temptations in life and the desire to please self.

The starting point is you have to be in submission to God and have a genuine desire to do His will. Until you reach this point your actions will fail God.

God wants to live through all your thoughts, words, and actions. He has placed the Holy Spirit inside your body to help you navigate through life and reject the emotions and urges of self.

Jesus is your role model. He never yielded to self or fell into depression or gloom. He was successful in all his endeavors. How can you and I emulate the life of Jesus?

You cannot lead a spiritual life through an intellectual approach. You have to be born again with Water and Spirit. Your old life has to disappear and the life of Jesus come into fruition.

This will give you a new outlook on life. You will understand in the depth of your heart Jesus is the Creator of life and has power and dominion over all things in heaven and earth. This changes your perspective on living. You now realize nothing is impossible for a disciple of Jesus.

The objective of a disciple is to apply the teachings of Jesus into your life. Jesus has given you the tools to accomplish this mission. They are praise, prayer, the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit.

Jesus wants to infuse you with His abundant life—your health, relationship with spouse and others, work, finances, and recreational pursuits.

The secret is to keep “letting go” and walk with Jesus by faith. Turn to Jesus for help when troubles arrive. He is your rock and your fortress and will never fail you!

“If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is you, do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.” John 15:19

The world does not operate under the authority of God and functions on principles which are the antithesis of God. We are saturated with the importance of wealth, sex, and success. The characteristics of greed and pride dominate our culture. You are an enemy of the world and Satan wants to ruin your life.

As a believer, you belong to God. You think and act differently than the ways of the world. It’s like trying to fit a round peg into a square hole. You just don’t fit in or feel like you belong.

You and I are members of the “set apart” followers of Christ. We are called to exhibit the qualities of Jesus and to be a light touching those living in darkness.

How do you live in the world but not take on the things of the world?

The best way to avoid getting drawn into the ways of the world is to commit your works each day to God and ask Him to fill you with His thoughts.

Learn to listen to the Holy Spirit and follow His prompting. Be still and know that I am God. Remember, God lives in you and wants to guide your footsteps.

Develop the discipline of drawing upon God for the resources to have a successful day. For example, you wake up feeling overwhelmed and weak, ask God to fill you with His strength and wisdom.

Place every need in your life on the altar of God. Then walk by faith trusting in the promises of God. He will never leave you or forsake you.

Just be yourself and don’t come cross as a religious fanatic or isolate yourself from unbelievers.

Develop a sense of worshipping God in privacy and not trying to call attention to your beliefs.

Finally, walk with God by faith and fill yourself with His Word.

He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world!

 

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17

I’ve been giving a lot of thought to what it really means to become a Christian. Are my motives in line with God?

Your commitment to Jesus has to be built on the virtue of modesty. You come to Jesus as an empty, defeated and embattled soul. Jesus accepts you unconditionally and offers you the gift of eternal life.

Your relationship with Jesus is based on reciprocal rights. Jesus gives you His life and in return you give up your life.

The only valid reason to become a believer is to identify with Christ Jesus. You die to self and live for God. You have to let go of any ideas of how Jesus will use you in His kingdom or what your life will look like.

You cannot place any conditions on your decision for Jesus. You give up your individuality and right to yourself. Your life no longer belongs to you. It belongs to God.

Jesus wants you to live in oneness with Him in submission to the Holy Spirit.

You cannot place any restrictions on God. He can do with you as He pleases.

The goal of Christianity is to convince non believers to surrender to Jesus. The organization has no other real value to God.

The passion for following Christ is about obedience and is never concerned with outcomes.

You cannot use God to accomplish your goals. Jesus leads and you follow!

Jesus wants you to give all of yourself to Him. Abel and Cain both made offerings to God. Abel’s offering was accepted but Cain’s was rejected. Jesus does not want half hearted believers. He wants all of you!

 

“For in Him we live and move and have our being.” Acts 17:28

You’ve made a deal with Jesus so what is the reality of walking with your Creator?

The reality of the cross is giving up your life for the life of Jesus. When you make a decision for Jesus, you are inviting Him to have authority over your life. At this point, God can do with you as He pleases. Your life belongs to Him.

The Cross takes away your individuality and you lose all sense of your privacy. Your life is now an open book to God and to those people around you.

God is in control of your life and He wants you to live with Him without questioning the outcome or purpose of His actions.

The heartbreaks in life are to mold you into the likeness of Jesus and teach you to abide closely in Him. Your steadfast faith in the Living God will give you the ability to overcome the worst the world can send your way.

As a believer, the world fades away and your priority becomes to live for God. The challenges of life lose their intensity as you experience the nature of God. You understand in the depth of your heart “I can can do all things through Christ Jesus who gives me the strength.”

The process of sanctification is not for you. It is designed to transform you into a new person with a “Christ like” personality which will appeal to those around you. You have been created in His workmanship to do great things in the kingdom of God.

The purpose of God is to get you to the point where the only thing that really matters is to live in oneness with Christ Jesus.

If you choose to fight with God and resist His authority, He will engineer new challenges to get your attention and cause you to surrender to the work of the cross. Or, you will just drop to the bottom of God’s list and He will allow you to suffer through the trials of life.

The abundant life does not come to you out of your works; it comes to you out of your faith and obedience to God.

The ideal Christian life as defined by religion is a mockery to God. Jesus wants you to trust Him in every aspect of your life regardless of how many challenges he brings your way. This is how you can please God!

You cannot impress God because you are a “role model” Christian and do good deeds. The rewards from God are dispersed to you because you live by faith and build your life around the promises of Christ Jesus.

He alone is worthy of your praise!