But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Matthew 1:20-21

I have been praying about the significance of Christmas as we enter into the holiday rush. How can you and I be enriched with the miracle of Christmas?

Christmas was born in heaven so to experience the reality of the holiday season you have to be born of the Water and Spirit. The Water creates a new person in Christ Jesus and the Spirit gives you the indwelling life of Jesus.

The spiritual person lives in the world but he is not of the world. He experiences Christmas through the eyes of Jesus. He understands the gift of God is eternal life and this life is filled with the abundance of God. This gift is more important than any present you will unwrap on Christmas morning because Jesus opens the kingdom of God to a believer.

Christmas is a time to celebrate the birth of Jesus and to accept by faith this miracle from Heaven. Christmas is alive with God. He lives so you can live and draw upon His strength, joy, and peace.

The reality of Christmas is Christ in you!

 

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” Matthew 4:1

The temptations of Christ are a microcosm of the conflict today between mankind and Satan. You and I have to face this dilemma every day of our lives.

This is a fascinating story that begins with the Spirit of God leading Jesus into the wilderness to be tested by Satan. To prepare for this encounter, Jesus fasted forty days to consecrate Himself before God.

The first temptation came at the point of need of Jesus. He was hungry and was tempted to turn stones into bread. This is where you can expect to find Satan at work in your life. He knows your needs and will entice you to do something evil, unethical or immoral to fulfill them.

Remember, Satan is very deceptive and wants to give you the impression his plans for you are okay with God and that most people bend the rules to meet their needs.

Jesus was very firm in dealing with Satan and told him man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. You have to build your life on the Word of God and live in communion with Him through the Holy Spirit. Resist all temptations from Satan and come to God by faith for your every need.

The second temptation was an attempt to get Jesus to test God. Satan told Jesus if He was really the Son of God then jump off the high pinnacle and God would save Him. Jesus responded you shall not tempt the Lord your God.

This is a warning not to take risks thinking God will protect you. God has to go before you in all your plans and actions and you follow in His footsteps. Pray each day the Lord will be a lamp unto your feet and a light unto your pathway.

The final temptation was an offer by Satan to give Jesus worldly glory and power if He would bow down and worship Satan.

Jesus responded you are to worship the Lord your God and Him only you shall serve. You have to live under the authority of God and refuse the ways of the world. You live in the world but you are not of the world. Live for God with a desire for Him to get all the glory.

Prepare yourself for the temptations of Satan through prayer and worship with your Creator. Let the Word of Christ dwell richly in you with all wisdom and understanding. Finally, live in oneness with God through the Holy Spirit.

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

And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.” Acts 1:7

The perfect timing of God does not function according to human thinking or the ways of the world. The purposes of God are eternal and are not bound by earthly timelines.

Jesus wants you to walk by faith not by sight and He tends to keep the future closed to your eyes. This is for your protection and to cause you to find your security in Him.

Jesus is also unpredictable! His ways are not your ways. He manages your life in spiritual ways to strengthen your faith and refine you with His virtue. Sometimes this makes no sense to you but is perfect with God.

God is never in a hurry and many times He arrives when you least expect Him.

With God one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like one day. Time is not of any real consequence to God. Jesus can look into your past or future in the blink of an eye.

Do not be concerned with God’s timelines or change of seasons. They fall under the authority of your Creator and will be revealed to you in His perfect timing.

Focus on today! Jesus has given you the power of the Holy Spirit and wants you to be a light for Him touching those living in darkness.

Jesus is calling you to live one day at a time and seek out His will and timing for today.

Tomorrow is a thousand years away in God’s mind. Today be anxious for nothing and offer up your praises to the High Priest of God

The definition of efficacy is the ability to produce a desired result. It relates to the idea of success, power, and potency.

The question is what will motivate the efficacy of Christ to help you accomplish your goals. Jesus has power and dominion over all things in heaven and earth and has the efficacy to give you whatever you ask of Him.

Thinking through the mind of Christ for a few minutes, Jesus died for you and has given you the gift of eternal life. He also has placed the precious Holy Spirit within you. This gives you the ability to live in oneness with Jesus and share in His life. This is the greatest example of the efficacy of God. However, let’s explore this issue in more detail and look at how it relates to other aspects of your life.

The efficacy of Christ today is the ability to be filled with His Living Water at any time without restrictions. You can ask Jesus today for strength, wisdom, and joy. Or, any of the fruit of the Spirit.

Jesus will also forgive your sins and restore you to Himself at any time. 

Jesus died to give you an abundant life so why is this abundance not always visible in your life. This usually relates to things like prosperity and healing.

There really is no valid answer to this question except keep asking by faith and trust God for His perfect timing. 

The best course of action is to go before God and ask Him “What do I need to change in my life or do differently to please you?” Listen carefully for His voice and accept His wisdom and guidance. If you don’t hear anything from God, keep asking, and then praise Him for His faithfulness in answering your prayers.

Approach God by faith and through His Word. Jesus has laid out the game plan for a relationship with Him. “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these other things will be added to you.” 

Appropriate this promise from God into your life today. Seek Jesus through praise, prayer, and His Word and live in communion with Him through the Holy Spirit. 

Remember, it is not by might nor by power but by the Spirit of God!

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” Romans 3:23-24

The moral indictment against man came with the laws of God that were given to the Israelites through Moses. Prior to the law, man was mostly free to live as he pleased. The law introduced God’s precepts for living and the standards for holiness.

The law brought all mankind under the conviction of sin. The moral compass of God was now in place and all fell under condemnation.

The problem is no one can ever keep the laws and the harder you try will only bring more condemnation. The law created a catch twenty two with no way out.

This scenario still exists today. You will never be able to keep the laws of God regardless of how much you pray, read the Bible, or go to church. You live under sin with no way out. Never deceive yourself into thinking you can somehow earn the righteousness of God!

When you make a decision for Jesus, the Holy Spirit convicts you of your corrupt inner being and you see yourself through the eyes of Jesus. You immediately grasp the hopelessness of your condition and realize you can never achieve the standards of God.

This is the starting point of something very special for a believer. You understand deep in your heart that you can only be redeemed from sin through the blood of Christ. You live each day in the work of the cross and can now approach God with confidence and boldness.

Under the new covenant, the laws of God which were etched on the stone tablets now become engraved in your heart through the power of the Holy Spirit.

You are now able to live through the righteousness of God and lead a life pleasing to Him. This is not of your own doing so all the glory goes to God!

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

God is consistent and will never change. He functions according to the Word of God so you have to approach Him through His Word.  

Since God is perfect, you and I have to change if we want to live in the fullness of God.

We are genetically engineered to live for self in rebellion to God. To overcome this condition you have to submit your will to the will of God. This process creates death in your natural condition and a newness of life in Christ Jesus. 

God’s plan is to draw you into oneness with Jesus Christ. You can forget about sanctification, works, and religion. The priorities of God are for you to live in intimacy with your Creator, be a light touching others, and be obedient to His voice. 

You are called to live in the baptism of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. You give up the right to yourself and seek the will of God above all things. Your life in many ways will mirror the life of Jesus.

You will please God by your steadfast faith and never by your works. Faith triumphs over all else and opens the heart of God.

God wants you to commune with Him through the indwelling Holy Spirit and fill your life with praise, prayer, and His Living Word. 

The Holy Spirit will take what belongs to Jesus and share His life with you. Invite the Holy Spirit to have authority in every aspect of your life and you will live in the reality of God.

You can’t look at your circumstances when you walk with God. You have to live by faith trusting His Word!

“Work out your salvation with fear and trembling” Philippians 2:12

You have to wake up today with a deep feeling in your heart to please God with your thoughts, words, actions. Appreciate the greatness and glory of God and accept your destiny is in the hands of God.

Come before God with a fear and respect for who He is and what He has done for you on the cross. Don’t take God for granted or patronize Him. You cannot exploit God to fulfill your purposes. God chooses your path and you submit to Him.

Respect the sovereignty of God and reach out to Him through praise, prayer, and the Living Word.

Work out your salvation through living the Christ centered life. This can only be accomplished by walking in oneness with God through the Holy Spirit. The life of Christ dwells in you and He wants to be in fellowship with you.

The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to take what belongs to Jesus and share it with you. The Spirit is the embodiment of Christ Jesus and offers all of Himself to you.

The Spirit desires to act as a lamp unto your feet and a light unto your pathway however you have to invite Him into your life.

God wants to give you more than you ask or think but this will only happen when you make Jesus the priority of your life.

He loves you!

 

But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one. For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:15-16

The spiritual man or woman has the mind of Christ and can be judged by no human being.

The mind of Christ lives in you through the Holy Spirit and He desires to speak to you and guide your footsteps.

To walk in oneness with God and hear His voice, you have to abandon yourself to God and make Him the centerpiece of your life. You also have to invite the Holy Spirit to live in every aspect of your life.

Commit your works each day to God and ask Him to fill you with His wisdom. And, you have to submit yourself before God and pray for repentance. Ask God to show you anything that is blocking the fullness of His Spirit.

The spiritual person appropriates this truth into their walk with God; “For in Him we live and move and have our being.”

Learn to be still and listen for the voice of God. Accept the thoughts of God by faith.

If you have any doubt, submit the thoughts before the obedience of Christ Jesus and ask for confirmation and assurance of the mind of Christ.

You can live with confidence and boldness because you have yielded your life to God and His voice is alive and at work in you and through you.

God wants to have a personal and intimate relationship with you. Make Jesus your best friend!

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” James 4:8

I woke up early today feeling desolation and this message came to me for all those with a heavy heart. And, I was aware of an angel of God near me while I composed this in bed.

When you can’t see any light at the end of the tunnel and have given up on the promises of God, this is the perfect time to reach out to your Creator. Regardless of how difficult your circumstances are;there is hope in God.

He knows you better than you know yourself and understands your every feeling. The eyes of God look down upon the righteousness and His ears are open to your cries. He is waiting at this very moment for you to turn to Him. You have to take the first step and reach out to Him. He won’t strive with a rebellious, angry, or bitter spirit.

God is the author and creator of life and your destiny is in His hands. God is so much bigger than your life and the events taking place around you. He lives above your life!

God has power and dominion over all things in the heavens and earth. He can shake the earth, turn the sun into darkness, and raise people from death back to life.

Reach out to God because He is your only hope and can never be defeated. He is perfect and His purposes are eternal.

Ask God to pour His precious blood over you and restore you to Himself. When you seek repentance, the blood of Jesus refreshes you and creates a feeling of newness with God. It is like staring all over with God.

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you! Reach out to Him with praise and prayer. Fill your heart with the Living Word and be still and know that He is God and wants to share Himself with you.

Draw upon the gift of eternal life today. God lives in you and through you and wants to fill you with His Living Water. He is a God of joy, hope, and strength. He lives so you can live with Him forever!

“That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You” John 17:21

The bedrock of Christianity is living in oneness with God. This is accomplished by abiding in the Spirit of God and inviting Him to have authority in every aspect of your life.

You have to be in contact with the Living God and walk by faith believing in the promises of God. This is the foundation to a relationship with Jesus.

You have to be willing to be baptized in the death and resurrected life of Jesus Christ. You give up the right to yourself and live for God.

You surrender your life to God to do with you as He pleases. You become a new creature in Christ Jesus and old things pass away and all things become new.

You live in communion with God through praise, prayer, and the Word of God.

You please God by your unyielding faith and not by your works or efforts to keep His laws. Jesus wants your obedience to His voice above all else and to be free from religion.

Do not be concerned with the purposes of God for your life or the outcomes of living with Jesus. Live with Jesus through the work of the cross and you will see the greatness and glory of God. He died so you can have an abundant life.

Please Jesus by following His example of obedience to his Father; “Not My will but Yours be done.”