“But this people has a defiant and rebellious heart; they have revolted and departed.” Jeremiah 5:23

The Holy Spirit spoke to me last night about defiance in the lives of believers. Defiance is defined as open resistance or disobedience to the truths of Jesus.

God explained this behavior is caused by those who have flawed thinking patterns. We are born with an inner nature to please self and we develop our own set of beliefs as we grow up. The beliefs are created from the influence of family, friends, and the world. 

Yesterday I was at church and during communion God showed me a vision of yellow construction tape posted around the communion table. So anyone coming up to take communion had to enter the construction zone to worship Jesus.

The Holy Spirit is continually at work constructing a new creature in Christ Jesus and this happens because of the Cross. Jesus died so we could be “born again” with a new identity.

Many reject the command of Jesus to die to self and live for Him. It is just too costly and threatening to a believer. So the believer accepts Jesus but resists letting go and abandoning himself entirely to Jesus.

This attitude causes a believer to live with flawed thinking patterns that are opposed to the precepts of Jesus. He is denied the fullness and powerful presence of Jesus. He lives with a minimum or reduced amount of the capacity of the Holy Spirit and stumbles through life.

Meet the Living Christ today and experience His reality and powerful presence. 

Surrender to Jesus and commit your works each day to Him. Invite the Holy Spirit to have authority over your life. This will give you the mind of Christ.

Jesus promises an abundant life filled with the goodness of God!

“But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:15-16

God spoke this Bible verse to me last night and emphasized the importance of separating from the world.

This is a very difficult command from Jesus to appropriate into our lives.

Jesus is perfect and without any sin. He does not think or act like a human being.

We are mere mortals born with an inner nature to live for self and rebel against the ways of God. We have big egos and are self driven people. Jesus has no ego. 

We cannot keep the commands of God through discipline, intellect, or will power. And, God is opposed to those who try to become religious and do good works to appease Him.

The biblical concept of holiness does not appear in the ways of the world.

The values of the world are seeking prosperity and satisfying self.

The decision to commit your life to Jesus will not bring holiness unless you take Jesus seriously and are willing to change. 

The holiness of Jesus will come to a believer who submits to the work of the Cross. And, this is not easy. You have to die to self and live for Jesus. 

The new creature in Christ is a “set apart” believer and severs all ties to the world. He lives in the world but he is not of the world. 

He seeks the will of God through prayer, reading the Bible, and listening for the voice of God. He distances himself from all darkness 

The Christ follower submits to the Holy Spirit. He is the life of Jesus and knows you better than you know yourself. He will transform your thoughts, motives and decision making into the character of God.

The blood of Christ is vital to a believer. The blood cleanses a believer of all sin and makes him acceptable to God. 

Commit your works each day to Jesus and pray for His counsel and protection.

Be holy for I am holy by walking in oneness with Jesus anchored to the Holy Spirit!

“Where your fathers tested Me, tried Me, and saw My works forty years.” Hebrews 3:9

There is a common thread through the Bible of people who are stubborn and have spiritual blindness.

The Israelites are a perfect example. They personally witnessed the greatness and power of God to deliver them out of slavery in Egypt. 

They turned away from God and complained about their circumstances. They worshipped false gods and their stubbornness caused every adult to die in the wilderness and denied the freedom to enter the Promised Land. 

We are stubborn people who test God with our attitudes and rebel against the authority of God. This behavior makes God angry and He punishes believers for their resistance to God’s will. 

This happens because believers have a mistaken concept about God. They believe life with Jesus should be good and protected from adversity. So when the trials come they fall into unbelief. 

Walking with Jesus will bring trials and troubles. They are inevitable and engineered by God. The purpose is to strengthen your faith, learn to be patient while waiting on God and transforming a believer into the character of God. 

The trials are designed for a believer to personally experience the life of Jesus and His death on the Cross.

The only way a believer can identify with the reality of the Living Christ is through trials.

The decision for Jesus is a commitment to live for Him above all else and seek His will for your life. The believer is agreeing with Jesus “Not my will but Yours be done.” The will of Jesus will bring trials and adversities. 

Walk in oneness with Jesus by faith and commit your works each day to Him. Submit to the authority of the Holy Spirit and listen for the voice of Jesus. 

Jesus keeps His promises and will let you experience the goodness of God in the land of the living.

“Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them.” Colossians 3:18

There is a worldly marriage without many stipulations or a marriage committed to Jesus. 

Worldly marriages don’t last very long because the partners do not submit to God or to each other. The easy way out is to get a divorce and start over.

The institution of marriage is to be a lifelong engagement between a man and a woman. The  marriage relationship should be patterned after Christ who sacrificed His life for the Body of Christ.

Jesus wants a marriage to be a rich and wholesome experience with each partner submitting to the other. 

“Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.” 1 Peter 3:7

There should be mutual respect for each other and decision making should be shared and agreed upon by both parties. 

Do not make decisions if one partner disagrees. This will bring conflict and adversity. Wait upon God.

The married couple should pray together every day and value the godly wisdom coming from your spouse. The marriage should be built on faith and the Word of God.

The favor of God comes into a marriage when there is mutual respect and each partner submits to the wisdom and correction of the Holy Spirit.

Marriage is a two way street. Each couple must value and cherish the other. 

“For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection” Romans 6:5

The sign of a Christ follower is united together with Jesus in His death and resurrection. He experiences the work of the Cross every day of his life. 

The believer lives the death of his natural life and is no longer bound by compulsive behaviors or the desires of the flesh. He has a new moral code built on the values of Jesus. He is free from the bondage of sin and walks in oneness with Jesus.

Jesus is a living reality and a strong presence in the life of a “born again” believer. He speaks to His people and desires to have a personal and transparent relationship built on faith and obedience.

The beginning of this relationship requires a man to yield his life to Jesus and make a decision to live for Him above all else.

This decision will initiate the work of the Cross and the believer will become a new creature in Christ Jesus. The Holy Spirit will begin the process of transforming a believer into the character of Jesus.

The Holy Spirit is sealed in a believer. He is the life of Jesus. We are instructed to give the Holy Spirit authority over every detail of our life. This will bring the reality of the Living Jesus into your thoughts and decision making. He will bring order and simplicity into your day.

The perception of Jesus will change from a storybook figure in the Bible to a living reality and your best friend. 

The word today from the Holy Spirit is intransigent which is defined as unwilling or refusing to change one’s views or to agree about something different.

We must respond by faith to the life changing nature created within a believer.

The journey with Jesus is about experiencing different seasons and accepting lifestyle changes. There is no predictably with Jesus. The Christ follower must be open to change and let go of the past. 

If a believer is set in his ways and not open to change he will not experience the fullness of Jesus or be able to live in the reality of the Living Christ.

Jesus asks a believer to follow in His footsteps. The wind (Holy Spirit) blows where it desires and we cannot tell where it is coming from or where it is going. This is the life of a “born again” believer. We walk by faith and trust the promises of Jesus and not what we see with our eyes.

The Holy Spirit gives a believer the mind of Christ and guides him into the perfect will of Jesus. 

Jesus died on the Cross for all humanity and believers are to follow the example of Jesus and live by this precept; “Not my will but Yours be done.”

Walk in oneness with Jesus anchored to the Holy Spirit. Commit your works each day to Jesus and pray for His omniscient wisdom.

Listen for the voice of God and respond with obedience to His instructions. Don’t allow your reluctance or stubbornness to stand in the way of obeying Jesus.

We are mere mortals and want security but Jesus wants our security to be in Him.

“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Romans 12:2

This begins with coming to God as a clean vessel and desiring to be a living sacrifice for Jesus. 

The blood of Jesus cleanses a believer of all sin and you become a living sacrifice by seeking the will of God above all else.

The sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross causes a believer to die to self and live for Jesus.

Seek the will of God through prayer, reading the Bible, and listening for the voice of God. 

Invite the Holy Spirit to have authority over your life and the reality of the Living Christ will be alive in your thoughts and decision making.

The Bible instructs believers not to conform to worldly values but to be transformed into the mind of Christ.

Commit your works each day to Jesus and walk in oneness with Him anchored to the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit will create order and simplicity in your life and you will find the good, acceptable and perfect will of Jesus.

Jesus is unpredictable and at times controversial. He despises religion. Expect the unexpected walking with Jesus.

The perfect will of God will not conform to religion, keeping laws or doing works to appease God.

The will of God is not a life free of trials. The Christ follower might be in a devastating crisis and living in the perfect will of Jesus.

Jesus desires for a believer to develop a personal and embracing relationship with Him built on faith and obedience.

Jesus wants a believer to get to know His ways and consistently hear His voice. 

Jesus wants a believer to be obedient to His instructions regardless of the cost or lack of logic. 

We live in the world but we are not of the world. The Christ follower reflects the renown, praise and glory of God in all his actions!

“Have no other gods before Me.” Exodus 20:3

The Holy Spirit spoke to me last night about totalitarianism which is a government centralized and dictatorial and requires complete subservience to the state. 

This change is coming from Satan working through liberal and socialistic leaders. The election of the mayor in New York City is a step towards this new form of government.

Mr. Mamdani is a Muslim and worships a false god. He has strong ties to the enemies of Israel. He desires to turn New York into a socialist city by enacting new laws and raising taxes. He is the face of the devil.

This new totalitarian government will eventually take away all your freedoms and people will be subject to the strict authority of the leaders.

The next step will see the rise of the Antichrist who will be a ruthless dictator and act like God. He will persecute Christians and many will die.

What can believers do to survive this attack from the enemy?

Get right with God through repentance and turning away from darkness.

Pray the blood of Christ over all in your family. 

Read the Word every day. We can’t change the plans of God but we can fight off the evil through the armor of God.

Commit your works each day to God and submit to the authority of the Holy Spirit.

Listen for the voice of Jesus and respond with obedience to His instructions.

Pray for angels to be present in your home and place of work. I get up in the middle of the night to pray and there is always an angel nearby. I take my grandsons to school and an angel is in the back seat of the car next to the boys.

Pray for protection and that no weapon formed against you shall prosper. 

Pray for God to raise up strong spiritual men and women in our government.

Jesus has power and dominion over the heavens and earth. He will get the final victory over Satan!

Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. He never changes!

The Holy Spirit spoke to me today about the corruption in Christianity caused by heresies. 

Heresies are teachings that undermine the core beliefs of Jesus. They are deviations from the truths in the Bible. They are mostly caused by Satan working through religious leaders who wants to control believers through laws and works. They interpret scriptures with unclean motives.

The defining nature of a believer is not natural ability, knowledge, character, or experience. It is abject poverty.

The believer who thinks he can be of value to God is greatly mistaken and off track with Jesus. 

The fullness of Jesus is blocked by those who are pursuing their own goals and rely on self sufficiency. 

Walking with Jesus is to fulfill His purposes which are not disclosed to a believer until the perfect timing of God.

The Christ follower must be totally committed to seeking the will of God for his life.  

The priority is for a believer to build a personal and symbiotic relationship with Jesus built on faith and obedience. 

We are equipped by the Holy Spirit for the purposes of God. Your human nature is of no value to Jesus.

The demeanor of a believer is to reflect the renown, praise and glory of God.

Do not accept any deviation from the words of Jesus!

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.” Romans 8:1-2

This is a very bold promise from Jesus but is true and can be achieved by any human being living on the earth.

There is no condemnation from God for those who walk according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh which is the natural life at birth.

There are two spiritual laws at work in our universe and they are opposed to each other. 

The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus makes you free from the law of sin and death.

The law given to Moses from God was perfect but no human being could obey this law. The law could not overcome the weakness of the natural life and just brings condemnation upon anyone attempting to live with God by laws.

God knew this conflict from the beginning of creation but needed to prove the fallacy and inadequacy of man attempting to live with Him through laws.

God overcame the conflict between sin and righteousness by sending His own Son as a sacrifice for sin. Jesus came in the flesh but was without sin. 

Jesus died so the righteous nature of God could be fulfilled in all who walk according to the Spirit.

The defining quality of a Christ follower is that he sets His mind on the things of the Spirit and rejects the things of the flesh.

Living through the flesh brings death but living through the Spirit brings an abundant life and peace. 

The man living from the flesh is an enemy of God and is not subject to the precepts of Jesus. He cannot please God.

The Holy Spirit is sealed in all believers. He is the life of Jesus and will give life to a mortal body and raise him from death to live with Jesus forever.