“But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.”

Matthew 13:20-21

This is the story of the sower and the seed.

Jesus is the sower and the seed is planted in people of different circumstances. The seed is the gift of salvation.

We are discussing today the seed that is sown in stony places. Jesus is referring to people who have a shallow understanding of Jesus and lack a strong root in the divine presence.

They receive the gift of salvation with joy but it fades away. They stumble when tribulation or persecution arises because of the Word of God.

We live in the End Times and the coming tribulation and persecution will cause many people to turn away from God. The Christ follower will face a world filled with darkness and the evil leaders will attempt to convert all believers to worship a false god or face death.

We need to prepare for the tribulation by developing a strong root in Jesus. This happens through vigilant prayer, reading the Bible to build our lives on the precepts of Jesus and listening for the voice of Jesus.

Jesus desires for a believer to live for Him above all else. We must let go and turn our lives over to Jesus. This is the act of giving up our independence and personal desires to seek the good, acceptable and perfect will of Jesus.

Most importantly, the believer must have a strong and personal relationship with the Living Christ. Most believers have a superficial presence with Jesus.

This will only happen to those who meet the Living Christ and experience His greatness and glory. This takes place when you make a decision “Not my will but Yours be done” and walk with Jesus under the authority of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit will reveal the compulsive behaviors and attitudes blocking the power of God in your life. He sees everything in your impoverished personality and desires to refine you into the character of Jesus.

Jesus will reveal and convict a believer of his natural desire to live for self and defy the ways of God. The believer must confess His sins and seek repentance through the blood of Jesus. He should have an open and willing heart to change. 

Stumbling with Jesus happens because we act impulsively without inquiring of the Holy Spirit. Commit your works each day to Jesus and walk in oneness with Him anchored to the Holy Spirit.

Jesus is your only hope in this world!

“No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is from Me.” Isaiah 54:17

How can this powerful promise of Jesus come into the reality of a believer? We live in the End Times and face a world of evil and darkness.

The believer must take Jesus seriously and devote every moment of His life to the Most High. 

He does this through prayer seeking the will of God, studying the Bible, and listening for the voice of God.

The believer must be in oneness with Jesus and living by unshakable faith. He must be zealously seeking the will of Jesus for his life.

The Living Christ comes to those who submit to the authority of the Holy Spirit. He is sealed in all believers and desires to give a believer omniscient wisdom and protection.

Commit your works each day to Jesus and walk in obedience to His instructions.

It is impossible to get the protection of Jesus unless you are clean with Him through the blood of Jesus. We are human beings with an inner nature to live for self and defy the ways of God.

Jesus reminded me today incongruity is the downfall of believers. This is defined as being out of place with God and happens to all believers. The check against this behavior is the Holy Spirit.

Pray for Jesus to reveal anything you are thinking or doing that grieves the Holy Spirit. Confess your sins and seek repentance.

This is a discipline that should be a daily endeavor. Jesus just wants a believer to have a willing heart open to change.

The role of a Christ follower is to live in a personal and endearing relationship with Jesus. 

Jesus is not looking for works or religion. He wants a believer to have a deep and intimate friendship with Him. 

The protection of Jesus is a gift to those who make Jesus the centerpiece of their life!

“My cup runneth over” Psalm 23:5

The Holy Spirit spoke to me last night about a chalice related to this verse in Psalm 23.

“My cup runneth over” is about the abundance Jesus gives to His people.

The chalice is a large goblet typically used for drinking wine. There are Christian traditions that the chalice was the vessel Jesus used at the Last Supper to share his blood. 

Jesus is generous and desires to give a believer more than he asks or thinks.

The walk with Jesus has different seasons. Your cup may be overflowing or almost empty. The love, peace and joy of Jesus is  always abundant in your cup.

The Bible teaches that hope deferred makes the heart sick but the longing is fulfilled from the tree of life. We have to live in divine hope and unshakable faith until the tree of life fills our cup.

God controls your cup. He tests believers by engineering troubles and adversity. This is to strengthen your faith and teach a believer to wait upon God.

Many believers utilize worldly actions to fill their cup but the results will be short term and create anxiety and unrest. In addition, the believer will have to face the judgements of God.

As Christ followers we walk by faith trusting in the promises of Jesus and not what we see with our eyes. 

Jesus promises to deliver a believer in His perfect timing. 

“But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.” Jonah 1:3

The Holy Spirit told me today that a recalcitrant spirit blocks the fullness of Jesus and will lead to the punishment of God.

The recalcitrant spirit is defined as having an obstinately uncooperative attitude toward authority or discipline.

Jonah was given specific instructions from God to go to Nineveh and Jonah fled from His presence. 

The King of Nineveh and the people were rebellious against God and led an amoral life.

Jonah did not want anything to do with the darkness of Ninevah. He wanted God to destroy Nineveh.

God made Jonah’s life miserable until he repented and agreed to go to Nineveh.

As Christians we tend to establish boundaries with God. We want the blessings of God but not the death of the Cross.

We refuse to do things that will disrupt our lives or cause any pain or suffering. 

It is impossible to live in the reality of the Living Christ unless we are obedient to His commands.

The authority of Jesus brings protection and peace to a believer.

We have to let go and submit to the good, acceptable and perfect will of Jesus!

“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

Romans 3:18

There are many unbelievers who do not acknowledge Jesus and are on a pathway to destruction. Satan, the most evil force in the world, even knows the power of Jesus.

This attitude of unbelief was created through the counsel of family or friends. Or, the unbeliever may have experienced tragedies or deep hurt that led to feelings that there is no God or He does not care about His people.

These anti Christ people do not want anything to prevent them from enjoying the desires of the flesh.

The Holy Spirit told me today the unbeliever is an incongruity and does not fit into God’s realm.

They cannot be reasoned through scripture or enticed to join a church. They are blinded to the truths of God.

Jesus desires to guide a believer in how to spiritually deal with the unruly mortals in the world. He does not want you to waste your time or energy on the wasteland.

The challenge is to let God guide you to the people that are important to Him. He will bring the names of people to your mind during prayer time or dreams.

The spiritual task is for the Christ follower to stand in the gap for a lost soul through intercession and prayer for their salvation. 

Jesus knows a mere mortal better than he knows himself and is the source of the perfect spiritual strategies to draw him to the Lord.

Intercession is allowing Jesus to work through the Holy Spirit dwelling inside of a believer to bring down strongholds and set people free. This is laborious and intense work for the kingdom of God.

We are living in the End Times and facing a very tumultuous future. Now is the time to wake up and come to Jesus. He is the only hope for your future.

The gift of salvation allows a believer to have a personal and embracing relationship with Jesus. Jesus speaks to His people and fills them with strength, wisdom and protection.

Jesus is a compelling presence in the life of a believer!

Jesus has personally been doing powerful missionary work in Iran and the Gaza Strip. He is speaking directly to unbelievers through dreams and visions and getting many decisions for salvation.

Make a decision for Jesus and He will be a conscious and living reality in the life of a Christ follower.

“The words of the Lord are pure words, Like silver tried in a furnace of earth, Purified seven times. You shall keep them, O Lord, You shall preserve them from this generation forever.” Psalm 12:6-7

The Holy Spirit reminded me today that Jesus is real and the world is trouble! Jesus is the only proven and unfailing source of strength, wisdom and protection.

The one thing we can trust in our life is the words of Jesus. They never change and are purified with the fires of God.

Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. The promises of Jesus will become reality for a faithful believer. Jesus keeps His words. 

The Bible instructs believers to trust the promises of Jesus and not what they see with their eyes. They are your hope and strength to meet the challenges of life.

We can be rooted in the unflappable and invincible nature of Jesus by letting go and walking in unshakable faith with Him.

Make a decision for Jesus and you will personally meet the Living Christ who has power and dominion over the heavens and earth. He awesome and forthright.

Jesus can give you a life you can never achieve on your own!

“And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace.” Romans 11:6

This is about the rejection of the Israelites and the confidence that God will bring the fallen back into His kingdom. 

God uses the example of the cries of Elijah and God’s response to explain there is a remnant of believers elected and preserved by the unconditional love of God.

The biblical truth is a human being cannot find or deserve the gift of Jesus. It comes by the love of God.

There is a goodness and severity in Jesus. The severity comes to those who fall away or reject Jesus and the goodness to those who stay centered on Jesus.

The earthly man is either elected by Jesus or blinded by Him. The unbeliever has a spirit of stupor and eyes that cannot see and ears that cannot hear.

The apostle Paul uses the analogy of a tree to illustrate Jesus drawing people to the tree.

The tree of life is the Body of Christ. God chooses to draft His people into the tree by faith whether they are of election or those who have walked away from Jesus and seek to return.

Jesus is the first fruit of God. He is perfect and a holy God. The root and branches of the tree are also holy. If Jesus breaks some of the branches off the tree because of immoral living He can also regraft them into the tree and the repentant believer can receive the goodness of God. 

Do not boast about belonging to the tree and remember that you do not support the root but the root supports you. 

The branches were broken off the tree because of unbelief and can only be redrafted by faith in Jesus.

The warning is to not be prideful but fear God. He cut off the wild branches and can also strike down a believer.

God operates with severity to those who have fallen away and with goodness to those who are anchored in Jesus. God is merciful and will redraft those into the tree who reach out to Jesus with a repentant heart. (like the prodigal son)

The apostle Paul explains the blindness of Israel has happened to allow the Gentiles (unbelievers) to receive the gift of salvation. After this Israel will be restored to God.

The tree of life or Body of Christ is cherished by God. The elected have been given gifts and a calling from God that is irrevocable.

We cannot understand the depth of the riches of wisdom and knowledge of our God. His judgments are unsearchable. 

The natural man cannot think or act like God. He does not have the mind of Christ or the ability to question or counsel Him.

Salvation begins with the unconditional  love of God for a lost soul!

Jesus is more important today than ever before. He wants to be a fortress of strength and protection for a believer. The challenge is how do you find the reality of the Living Christ?

Jesus is alive and very approachable. He desires to be your best friend and very proactive in your life.

The myth of Christianity is the importance of belonging to an elite private community. Jesus says go and sin no more. He despises religion. 

Religion wants to control believers; Jesus wants to set believers free.

The downfall of Christianity is the white washing of biblical truth to attract new believers and appeal to the cultural changes of society.

The purpose of Jesus is to walk in oneness with Him anchored to the Holy Spirit.

Jesus wants a personal and inviting relationship with a believer. He wants to speak consistently to a believer, provide omniscient wisdom, and teach His values. 

Jesus asks a believer to have unshakable faith and respond with obedience to His instructions. 

Jesus wants a believer to confess his sins and seek repentance through the blood of Christ.

The Christ follower can never be perfect but he must have an open heart to change and seek the good, acceptable and perfect will of Jesus.

We live in the End Times. The future will be very dangerous and almost impossible to survive. The signs are here today with wars, economic upheaval, and the deaths of many people caused by the evil acts of Satan. 

Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. He is your only hope and protection for the future.

“But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to fulfill its lust.”

Romans 13:14

The Holy Spirit has consumed me all day with the importance of getting right with God through the blood of Jesus. There is no other way. 

The sacrifice of Jesus is how you can be protected. This is not scare tactics but the reality of the End Times. 

Christians tend to hide their special treasures for themselves. But they will all go up in smoke. 

The treasures of your heart reveal the priorities of your life. Jesus very clearly tells believers to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all the other things will be added.

We set boundaries in the worship of Jesus to preserve our desires and fleshly habits.

We reject the power of the Holy Spirit so we can pursue worldly treasures.

The heart of Jesus today is about repentance and getting right with the Lord.

If you ignore this warning it will be impossible to survive in the days ahead.

Come to Jesus and make a decision to live for Him above all else and seek His will for your life.

Take Jesus seriously and He will protect you and your family. He is a powerful God and desires to have a personal and embracing relationship with a believer.

If you deny Jesus He will deny you!

“Let us examine our ways and test them,
 and let us return to the Lord.
Let us lift up our hearts and our hands
 to God in heaven, and say:
We have sinned and rebelled
 and you have not forgiven.” Lamentations 3:40-42

“For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:30

Jesus invites all those who are burdened and have heavy troubles to come to Him. He offer rest to the downtrodden.

This rest comes from the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross. He died so you can have the fullness of His life.

Jesus instructs believers to cease from striving and enter His rest. He has overcome the world.

Jesus is alive and desires to have a personal and embracing relationship with a believer. He wants to share His life and fill a believer with His powerful attributes.

Jesus says to take my yoke and learn from Me. He desires to teach a believer His values and learn how to walk in oneness with Him. Jesus wants a believer to draw upon Him for strength, comfort and protection.

Jesus is very approachable. He is gentle, humble and offers rest from the burdens of the world.

The yoke of Jesus is easy. He is not asking for a believer to be burdened with works, keep laws and regulations or become immersed in religion.

The burden of Jesus is light by yielding to the authority of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the life of Jesus and is sealed inside all believers. He wants to speak with you, guide your footsteps and develop a personal relationship built on faith and obedience.

Jesus is a living reality and your only hope in a broken world. 

Come to Jesus today! He is waiting to hear from you!