Year: 2023

If you died today, where would you go? If you’re an atheist, your answer would be fairly simple, “In the ground”. If you are an agnostic, then it is a little more complicated, you’re aren’t really sure. If you are a Christian, that is a believer in Christ Jesus, you are certain of your destiny, it is eternity with Christ in Heaven.
“For we know that if our earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made by hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed, in this tent we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven, since in fact after putting it on, we will not be found naked. For indeed, we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life.”
‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:1-4‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/2692/2co.5.4.NASB2020

“Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord— for we walk by faith, not by sight— but we are of good courage and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord.”
‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:6-8‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/2692/2co.5.6-8.NASB2020

“For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that those who live would no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose on their behalf.”
‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:14-15‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/2692/2co.5.14-15.NASB2020

“Therefore from now on we recognize no one by the flesh; even though we have known Christ by the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their wrongdoings against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.”
‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:16-19‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/2692/2co.5.16-19.NASB2020

“Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin in our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5:20-21‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/2692/2co.5.20-21.NASB2020

Have you ever felt a desire to help others, make a difference in society, stand up for Truth, or participate in a particular part of ministry? Many times, that is one of the first signs that God is calling us to step forward and be the one that helps. One of the greatest responses to God’s call, is feeling inadequate for the job. Remember, God isn’t looking for people that have all the answers, He is looking for people who are obedient. It will succeed through His powered not ours. We can see in the Bible that God used unqualified people all the time!

“Now it came about in those days, when Moses had grown up, that he went out to his fellow Hebrews and looked at their hard labors; and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his fellow Hebrews. So he looked this way and that, and when he saw that there was no one around, he struck and killed the Egyptian, and hid his body in the sand. Now he went out the next day, and behold, two Hebrews were fighting with each other; and he said to the offender, “Why are you striking your companion?” But he said, “Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid and said, “Surely the matter has become known!””
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭2:11-14‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/2692/exo.2.11-14.NASB2020

“Then Moses said, “What if they will not believe me or listen to what I say? For they may say, ‘The Lord has not appeared to you.’ ” The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?” And he said, “A staff.” Then He said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it turned into a serpent; and Moses fled from it. But the Lord said to Moses, “Reach out with your hand and grasp it by its tail”—so he reached out with his hand and caught it, and it turned into a staff in his hand— “so that they may believe that the Lord, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.” The Lord furthermore said to him, “Now put your hand inside the fold of your robe.” So he put his hand inside the fold, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous like snow. Then He said, “Put your hand inside the fold of your robe again.” So he put his hand into the fold again, and when he took it out of the fold, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh. “So if they will not believe you nor pay attention to the evidence of the first sign, they may believe the evidence of the last sign. But if they will not believe even these two signs nor pay attention to what you say, then you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground; and the water which you take from the Nile will turn into blood on the dry ground.” Then Moses said to the Lord, “Please, Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither recently nor in time past, nor since You have spoken to Your servant; for I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” But the Lord said to him, “Who has made the human mouth? Or who makes anyone unable to speak or deaf, or able to see or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now then go, and I Myself will be with your mouth, and instruct you in what you are to say.” But he said, “Please, Lord, now send the message by whomever You will.””
‭‭Exodus‬ ‭4:1-13‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/2692/exo.4.1-13.NASB2020

“Then Gideon said to God, “If You are going to save Israel through me, as You have spoken, behold, I am putting a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I will know that You will save Israel through me, as You have spoken.” And it was so. When he got up early the next morning and wrung out the fleece, he wrung the dew from the fleece, a bowl full of water. Then Gideon said to God, “Do not let Your anger burn against me, so that I may speak only one more time; please let me put You to the test only one more time with the fleece: let it now be dry only on the fleece, and let there be dew on all the ground.” And God did so that night; for it was dry only on the fleece, and dew was on all the ground.”
‭‭Judges‬ ‭6:36-40‬ ‭NASB2020‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/2692/jdg.6.36-40.NASB2020

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Praying for each other is a great gift that God has given us. Prayer is a direct conversation with God that we can do continually. Many times we worry about our family and friends who are going through life’s battles. We often feel helpless in these situations. As a true believer in Jesus Christ, God’s gift of prayer is more powerful than many of us have imagined. In all things, pray, trust God and follow His direction.
‘So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God. On the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands. And the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he *said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” And he went out and continued to follow, and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. When they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel departed from him. When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent forth His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.” And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. When he knocked at the door of the gate, a servant-girl named Rhoda came to answer. When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate. They said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. They kept saying, “It is his angel.” But Peter continued knocking; and when they had opened the door, they saw him and were amazed. But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to James and the brethren.” Then he left and went to another place. ‘

Acts 12:5-17
https://my.bible.com/bible/100/ACT.12.5-17

What is the free gift of Salvation?
God’s free gift of salvation is through Jesus Christ. That seems to be simple to understand, until we think about who it includes. Who can receive this free gift of salvation? What if a person has an extremely evil and wicked past, can that person still experience this gift of from God?
Free Gift of Salvation or Wrath of God?
The Bible tells us that “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). All of us have sinned against God, yet He loves us so much that He paid our debt for us. What was the debt? Death. Yet, Christ died in our place and giving is a second chance. Anyone who calls on the name of Jesus Christ will be saved. That is the best deal in the Universe. Does God have the right to turn from us, absolutely, we haven’t done anything to prove differently. Isn’t it great that God is a merciful God. Through His mercy, we do not receive what we deserve; death. Through His grace, we receive what we do not deserve; eternal life. Instead of turning from us, God rescued us. Instead of sending His wrath upon us, He gave us a free gift of salvation; eternal life!
Without any misunderstanding, God has provided the way for each of us to have eternal life, but it comes down to one simple decision… It’s about your response. It is us to each of us to make our own personal decision to turn to Jesus Christ or ignore His invitation. Your response determines your eternal destination – Heaven or Hell.

Romans 6:17-23 (NASB)
But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. 19 I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.

20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death. 22 But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Christians are called to live a different life than the rest of the world. Christ gave us a great example to live by, yet we see many Christians living their life extremely different than the one that Christ set before us. The Bible tells us that we become a new creation once we become followers of Jesus Christ, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come” (2 Corinthians 5:17, NASB). As Christians, we live a new life in Christ, much different from our life prior to Christ. Even our anger changes, it no longer turns evil and hateful. We begin to love on a different level, a love that we can only experience through Jesus Christ. The Bible says that we no longer live in darkness, a.k.a. sin; but rather, we live in Light a.k.a. righteousness. Like Christ. John actually writes that if we say we are following Christ, yet hate our brother, then we lie! That is pretty straight forward. We cannot continue to live a sinful life and be a Christian. I believe the term in the Bible describes it best…a hypocrite…a person pretending to be something they are not.

1) Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” (John 8:12, NASB)

2) So Jesus said to them, “For a little while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light.” These things Jesus spoke, and He went away and hid Himself from them. (John 12:35-36, NASB)

3) This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. (1 John 1:5-7, NASB)

4) The one who says he is in the Light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness until now. The one who loves his brother abides in the Light and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes. (1 John 2:9-11, NASB)

5) Be angry , and yet do not sin ; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity. (Ephesians 4:26-27, NASB)

Terry, his uncle Larry, and his cousin Ted are heading to a 4 thousand acre ranch to go turkey hunting. A fire (Oklahoma 2018) almost spoils their plans, but it is at least 50 miles away, so the expedition continues. Ande, Terry’s wife, is concerned about the fire and calls to make sure that the men are doing OK. Terry assures her it is all well just as the phone loses connection. He was able to send her a few pictures of the blue sky and the open ranch to confirm their safety. However, things change quickly as the fire heads straight for them in such a short time.

Bible Scriptures:
ACTS 1:8
…but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My
witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.

1 Corinthians 3:16
Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

Titus 3:3-6
For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior

John 16:5-11
But now I am going to Him who sent Me; and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.

We have all done something in our past that we regret. Many times it results in unbearable shame and guilt, especially when we have hurt someone else. As teenagers, many of us have said hateful things to our parents, that we often regret later on. Roberta had a disease that dis-formed her body and caused lots of pain. She blamed her mom most of her life and at her death bead, she tried to make amends and ask for forgiveness. Her moms response is shocking!

We have sinned and rebelled against God, yet His love unstoppable. He loves us more than any love we have ever experienced. His love is an AGAPE love, the strongest of all love (He will die for you type of love!). No matter what you have done in your past, no matter the guilt or shame you feel, He says that if you will turn to Him, He will remember the sin no more! He removes the shame and the guilt, makes you a new creation in Him, and gives you peace!

From the Bible:
Romans 8:37-39 (NASB)
But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

1 John 3:1 (NASB)
See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.

Isaiah 49:15 (NASB)
“Can a woman forget her nursing child And have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.

1 Kings 3:24-26 NASB
The king said, “Get me a sword.” So they brought a sword before the king. The king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other.” Then the woman whose child was the living one spoke to the king, for she was deeply stirred over her son and said, “Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him.” But the other said, “He shall be neither mine nor yours; divide him! ”

Matthew 15:22-28 (NASB)
And a Canaanite woman from that region came out and began to cry out, saying, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is cruelly demon-possessed.” But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and implored Him, saying, “Send her away, because she keeps shouting at us.” But He answered and said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But she came and began to bow down before Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” And He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” But she said, “Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” Then Jesus said to her, “O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at once.

Have you ever forgotten to pray before you eat a meal? There’s a Bible verse for that! It may not be what you are expecting though. God actually tells the people to go and enjoy the land that He has given them, eat the wonderful food that He has provided and then praise Him for what He has done.
Whew! Praying before or after a meal are both Biblical.
This Bible story goes beyond a meal however, it highlights that God provides us great miraculous things and we are not to take it for granted. He demands recognition and praise. There is also a warning to those who begin to give others (even themselves) the glory, instead of God.

From the Bible: Deuteronomy 8
“All the commandments that I am commanding you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the Lord swore to give to your forefathers. 2 You shall remember all the way which the Lord your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. 3 He humbled you and let you be hungry, and fed you with manna which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that He might make you understand that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord. 4 Your clothing did not wear out on you, nor did your foot swell these forty years. 5 Thus you are to know in your heart that the Lord your God was disciplining you just as a man disciplines his son. 6 Therefore, you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him. 7 For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing forth in valleys and hills; 8 a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive oil and honey; 9 a land where you will eat food without scarcity, in which you will not lack anything; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. 10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land which He has given you.

11 “Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments and His ordinances and His statutes which I am commanding you today; 12 otherwise, when you have eaten and are satisfied, and have built good houses and lived in them, 13 and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold multiply, and all that you have multiplies, 14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 15 He led you through the great and terrible wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water; He brought water for you out of the rock of flint. 16 In the wilderness He fed you manna which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might test you, to do good for you in the end. 17 Otherwise, you may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.’ 18 But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. 19 It shall come about if you ever forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I testify against you today that you will surely perish. 20 Like the nations that the Lord makes to perish before you, so you shall perish; because you would not listen to the voice of the Lord your God.

My wife and I went on a trip to an island that was known for where sea turtles would lay their eggs. In addition to seeing turtles lay their eggs, we also get to hand-release newly hatched turtles into the ocean for the first time. The survival rate of these turtles is fairly low and only the strong survive.
This is similar to new Christians. Jesus tells a parable of a farmer that scatters seed and how the seeds fall on different types of ground, some good, some no so good. He explains the parable, “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. 20 The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. 22 And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 23 And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty” (Matthew 13:19-23, NASB).
Christians must be spiritually healthy or Satan will destroy us. Paul says to the Galatians, “I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed” (Galatians 1:6-9, NASB)! He witnessed new believers falling away by false teachings.

James tells us that we are to persevere through tribulations and that it builds our faith, “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust” (James 1:12-14, NASB).

The world can lure the best of us back in to it’s sinfulness, but if we prepare ourselves for battle (spiritual battle), then we know that our strength will come from the Lord. Paul tells us just how to dress for the occasion, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth , and having put on the breastplate of righteousness , and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace ; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation , and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak” (Ephesians 6:10-20.)

Trust and depend on God, fellowship with other believers and always keep God’s Word close to your heart.