Category Archives: Inspiration

2021, Christianity, Faith, Inspiration

Where is Our Faith?

I want to forewarn you that this is a heavy word concerning faith. Please understand I do not wish to condemn or spread hate, my goal is to speak the truth so that a slumbering church will awaken to truth and righteousness I do not care what your doctrine is because if God’s Word says it then it is true, it does not matter what your denomination says. 

James 2:14 (NKJV) poses an important question, “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?”. We see the answer in the 26th verse, “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.”. Where is the faith today among believers? For too many, we have operated under fear with this man-made “pandemic”. Let me be clear we should always exercise common sense, there is a difference between Biblical boldness and foolishness. This is why we must get the Word of God into our hearts, not just our heads. If you only get the Word of God into your head and lack getting it into your heart you will not receive the fullness of the power of the Word of God. Faith comes by hearing, and by hearing the Word of God (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Right now, is a test of faith for all believers. Will we put our faith and trust in the Word of God that never fails or in a vaccine funded by wicked men that has zero studies on long-term health effects? This specific vaccine is a false light! The wicked men of the world will point the world to a false light, but the church needs to take a stand and point the world to the True Light of Life! True faith is not just a matter of reading the Word of God and gaining a bunch of head knowledge. True faith is not reading a bunch of commentaries. True faith is reading the Word of God, soaking it into your heart, and living your life like it is so.

Jesus said in Luke 10:19 (AMP), “Listen carefully: I have given you authority [that you now possess] to tread on serpents and scorpions, and [the ability to exercise authority] over all the power of the enemy (Satan); and nothing will [in any way] harm you.”. Jesus said this to His Disciples before He went to the Cross. Today we are under the New Covenant, and as New Covenant believers this same authority has been given to us, the church. Ephesians 2:6 (AMP) tells us, “And He raised us up together with Him [when we believed], and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, [because we are] in Christ Jesus”. We are already seated with Christ Jesus as born again; blood-bought believers. This verse is not saying we will be seated, it says we were seated with Him in heavenly places.

Dear believer, you are being given two choices right now. You can go with the flow and put yourself in alignment with man’s agenda right now, or you can humble yourself and put yourself in agreement with God’s Word. The true church, when she takes her stand during this wicked spiritual attack in America, will see a revival as there has never been seen before. It is time we place our trust in someone that never fails, and that someone is God, and He is the God who never changes and will not lie to you!

2021, Christianity, Faith, Inspiration, Old Testament

He is Risen

A few days ago, many of us remembered the day in which Christ was crucified, today we are reminded of the fact that He is Risen, and He is alive! Luke 24:6-7 (ESV) tells us, “He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.”.

Today the people of the world will continue on with their pagan rooted traditions but let us mediate on the fact that our Savior is alive! Many people will argue the validity of the Bible and even the death and resurrection of Jesus. Anyone who studies the New Testament and Old Testament will see the many prophecies that Jesus fulfilled.

Hosea 6:1-2 (ESV) tells us, “Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him.”. In the context of these verses Hosea is talking about Israel, but at the same time this is also alluding to what Jesus Christ will accomplish because He is the only hope for an unrepentant Israel and every other person.

Hosea 6:1-2 is related to what Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 (ESV), “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures,  that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.”. 

Christ died for our sins so that we may get a free ticket to Heaven, right? Sadly, this is the mentality that many people who are in the church seem to have. The finished work of Jesus Christ has such a greater significance than just getting a hell insurance card.

Exodus 34:7 (ESV) tells us, “keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.”. This verse shows us the two attributes of God that often get out of balance in the modern church. We see the love of God in this verse, at the same time we see the wrath of God in this verse.

Exodus 34:7 tells us that God will by no means clear the guilty, God cannot ignore sin. Every sin must be punished. Isaiah 53:4-6 (ESV) tells us, “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”.

We must realize that Christ took our place to save us from the wrath of God. Jesus did not just suffer from the Romans beating Him up, He more importantly suffered the wrath of God the Father. This was the only way for our sins to be atoned for. There is nothing you can do yourself to save yourself from the wrath of God, there is nothing in our own strength we can do to overcome the sin in our lives.

If you ever told a lie, even a white one you are destined to the lake of fire according to Revelation 21:8. But there is Good News! No matter what sin you committed whether you are a liar, an adulterer, homosexual, thief, or drug addict, God provided a Way for us to be saved from His wrath against sin and iniquity.

Today if the Holy Spirit has revealed to you the sin in your life you can simply cry out to God and repent and put your faith and trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Not only this but the work of the Holy Spirit is so powerful that you will rise forth as a New Creation in Christ Jesus. As the 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us when we are born again, we have a new nature inside of us. We have a power source inside of us that if we fully rely upon the finished work of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives we can walk in righteousness. Sure, we will slip up from time to time, but the Holy Spirit will convict you and you will run to the Father in repentance.

You might think that it is impossible for God to forgive you because of all the wrong decisions you have made in your life. Simply look at the work God did with the finished work of Christ. Jesus not only died in the flesh, but He rose again. Look at how God delivered the Israelites in the Old Testament. I can assure you that if you truly repent and truly trust in Christ that God will  forgive you, deliver you, and give you the strength to walk the walk of faith. I cannot promise you ‘Your Best Life Now’, there will still be trials and tribulations in this life, but I can tell you that walking this walk of faith is worth it and that there is nothing else in this world that can compare to being put in right standing with God.

2021, Christianity, Faith, Inspiration, Wisdom

God’s Ways vs. Our Ways

So often as Christians we can get stuck looking at our circumstances with a worldly standard, rather than God’s standard. We might think a certain situation looks impossible, or that we might not be enough to do what God has called us individually to do. Isaiah 55:8-9 (NKJV) tells us, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.”. One of the problems in the American church is we are so brainwashed with the things of this world that the average Christian does not reach his or her full God-ordained destiny. Now before I go any further let me say that when God blesses us, it is to bring Him the glory and not us. God’s plan is to bring glory to His Name. If it is a plan that brings glory to self, then it is not of God. We must be careful not to lose focus.

Look at Jerimiah 1:4-10 (NKJV), “Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” Then said I: “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.” But the Lord said to me: “Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’ For you shall go to all to whom I send you, And whatever I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of their faces, For I am with you to deliver you,” says the Lord. Then the Lord put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the Lord said to me: “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, To root out and to pull down, To destroy and to throw down, To build and to plant.””.

In this very passage, we see God officially calling Jerimiah to be a prophet of God. We see right away that Jerimiah immediately looks at his self through a worldly view, rather than coming into alignment with God’s view. In the Old Testament, we see that God only anointed certain people to be used mightily by Him. Today we are under a New Covenant. When we become truly born again and filled with the Holy Spirit, we have everything we need to walk in the destiny God has called us to walk in for His Glory. However, too many believers have not gotten themselves filled with the Word of God enough to realize they must walk in the newness of life. Too many people think that the Christian walk is simply repeating a prayer, getting dunked in water, and becoming a member of a church. However, the true Christian walk is more than that. It is about a lifestyle of discipleship and living your life for the glory of God.

Jesus tells us in Acts 1:8 (AMP), “But you will receive power and ability when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be My witnesses [to tell people about Me] both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth.””. So many believers fail to realize the fullness of what was accomplished through the full complete work of Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:3 (NKJV) tells us, “as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue”. If only we could live according to Scripture instead of being given over to doubt and everything else involved in the world’s way of things.

If you have been struggling with first knowing what God has called you to do and carrying it out, I encourage you to get into the Word of God more. It is so vital we get into the Word of God. We must make sure our mindset and heart’s desires are in line with God’s Word.

As we spend time in prayer, worship, fasting, and in God’s Word we should see God increasing in our lives and less attention drawn to our self-desires. As you give yourself over to the true discipleship process you should also see the sinful desires in your life decreasing. As we go on in this year more, let us put ourselves in more alignment with God than the world.

2021, Faith, Inspiration, Wisdom

A Common Roadblock to Faith

I recently posted a teaching called “Faith – Seeing It Through”. The Lord instructed me to address an issue that many believers including myself struggle with. This is often a roadblock for all of us at some point as we walk by faith. The Bible tells us that we all have been given our own measure of faith, I believe the more we get into the Word and seek God diligently the greater our faith should become. However, many people have gotten in God’s Word and sought Him but still do not have a breakthrough. The reason for this lack of breakthrough is not because a person is not truly seeking God, it is because they have neglected to address this common roadblock. 

Let me first say this teaching is not meant to put people down, that is never my intention. I want believers to recognize this roadblock as it applies to their life and address it according to the Word of God. Many have said that 2021 is to be the year of faith, and I agree with that, but we must address this if we are going to walk in full faith this year as the Body of Christ. 

The roadblock to faith for almost every believer is not fully surrendering the carnal mind to the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us we are a three-person being, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23 NKJV). As many of you already know when we get born again it is our spirit man who is regenerated, however, we are still left with the flesh (our body and soul). Our soul is where our mind, will, and emotions lie.

Now, what is a carnal mind? A short summary would be it is a mindset that is set on any or all the lust of the flesh and not lined up with the walk of the spirit as we see in Galatians 5 where the Apostle Paul differentiates the walk of the flesh vs. the walk of the spirit.  We must all continually examine ourselves; we live in a world where the mainstream entertainment media will put propaganda before us that promotes sin. I pray that each person reading this begins to develop a habit of searching their heart daily and examining themselves.

Aside from the sinful lust of the flesh, there is another area of carnality that can become a roadblock to our faith. I really want you to pay attention closely to this one and hear what I am saying. I believe that standing for Biblical truth and sound doctrine is the duty of every believer for defending the faith. We must be careful of where our source of knowing God is coming from. There is a dangerous path one can fall privy to where they only rely on head knowledge and neglect being developed spiritually by the Holy Spirit.

Jesus said in John 6:63 (NKJV), “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.”. The teachings of Jesus cannot be properly understood by the human mind alone, no matter how good your academic skills are. When Jesus promised us the Holy Spirit he said in John 16:13 (NKJV), “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”.

Many people think they have sound doctrine because they have studied a bunch of Greek and Hebrew, maybe even learned to read the Bible in the original language. Now learning Greek and Hebrew for Biblical studies has its place. But we must be careful not to go academically overboard. If we go academically overboard, we will only know God based on head knowledge, rather than seeking Him intimately in the secret place. Psalm 1:2 (TPT) says, “His pleasure and passion is remaining true to the Word of “I Am,” meditating day and night in the true revelation of light.”.

The Apostle Paul did not sit in a Survey of the Old and New Testament course, he sought after God and received great revelation knowledge, and had a fruitful ministry as an apostle. You can have all the degrees you want in theology and apologetics you want, but still have zero intimacy with the King of Kings. Now I am not rebuking people who have gone to seminary who seek after God. There are many ministers out there that have gone to seminary, and sought God in the secret place, and sat in the classroom of Holy Spirit. I am sure there are schools that teach their students about keeping this area balanced. Head knowledge has its place with the Word of God, however, there is a whole other level when it comes to developing spiritually when you are continually walking in communion spirit to Spirit daily.  We must keep everything balanced and avoid going from one extreme to another.

Not only is being carnally minded about being given to the lust of the flesh, but it is also when one only operates in head knowledge of God, rather than truly personally coming to knowing God intimately. This can only be accomplished by daily prayer, worship, and meditating on the Word of God.

Romans 8:5-8 (MSG) tells us, “Those who think they can do it on their own end up obsessed with measuring their own moral muscle but never get around to exercising it in real life. Those who trust God’s action in them find that God’s Spirit is in them—living and breathing God! Obsession with self in these matters is a dead end; attention to God leads us out into the open, into a spacious, free life. Focusing on the self is the opposite of focusing on God. Anyone completely absorbed in self ignores God, ends up thinking more about self than God. That person ignores who God is and what he is doing. And God isn’t pleased at being ignored.”.

Have you been given over to one of these pitfalls of carnality? Or maybe both? I know I have from time to time. It is time for us as believers to truly submit our mind to the Lord, and take diligent time to meditate on His Word. We must begin to make it a priority to rely on the teaching of the Holy Spirit over our head knowledge. As I said academics has its place when it comes to theology, but we must be spiritually developed in God’s Word so that we have a firm foundation and do not get off balance.

2021, Faith, Inspiration

Faith – Seeing it Through

In this blog post, I want to talk about faith. The best definition of faith is found in Hebrews 11:1 (AMP), “Now faith is the assurance (title deed, confirmation) of things hoped for (divinely guaranteed), and the evidence of things not seen [the conviction of their reality—faith comprehends as fact what cannot be experienced by the physical senses].”. In this particular chapter of Hebrews, we see the great men of God and how they worked with faith in the Old Testament.

I want to focus on one great example of faith and that is the faith of Moses. In the book of Exodus, we see the deliverance of the Israelites from Pharaoh’s hand. God and Moses both knew Pharaoh was oppressing the people of Israel.  In Exodus chapter 3 Moses has a miraculous encounter with God at the sight of the burning bush. God told Moses in Exodus 3:9-10 (NKJV), “Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.”.  Right here Moses was commissioned to submit to God’s plan to be used to bring the children of Israel out of Egypt.

Moses responds in Exodus 3:11 (NKJV),  “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”. Right here Moses begins by expressing his doubt to God. How often do we know God has commissioned us to do something or called us to something, and yet let our minds get filled with doubt? It happens all the time, even to the best of us.

God responds to Moses in the next verse, “I will certainly be with you. And this shall be a sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”. We see throughout the deliverance of Israel that Moses keeps going back and forth with God. As each sign is performed Pharaoh’s heart is hardened more. Moses saw what was going on in front of him, each sign that he performed through Gods anointing Pharaoh’s heart got hardened. It was not after the first plague that the children of Israel were delivered, it took ten plagues.

Moses could have given up after the first two plagues. But both he and his prophet Aaron kept their focus on God’s promise for deliverance. God promised deliverance for the children of Israel. Too often we focus on what is going on before our eyes, rather than what God is doing. We won’t know how it will always play out, but we do know what God’s promises are according to His Word.

Hebrews 11:23-29 (NKJV) tells us, “By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s command. By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,  choosing rather suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. By faith, he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them. By faith, they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned.”.

We see here how Moses put his faith in God alone. Moses trusted God to be with him, to strengthen him, and to empower him to be used to carry out the deliverance of the children of Israel. It was not because of Moses’ own strength that the children of Israel were delivered, it is because he put his faith in God alone, they were delivered. Aaron and Moses were completely dependent on God during the 10 plagues with Pharaoh.

If we are going to stand on the promises in God’s Word, we must not get focused on what we see before us, but what God’s Word says. Isaiah 40:31 (NKJV) tells us, “But those who wait on the Lord Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”. We need to realize what the Word of God promises us rather than depending on the things of this world to fix our problems.

It is time that we as believers learn to stand up and proclaim the promises in God’s Word.  We must fully put our trust in God’s sovereign Will, and we can know His Will for our lives if we read His Word. We need to be spending time day and night in God’s Word, in prayer, and in worship. The more we have meditated on the Word of God and feed upon it the greater our faith in His promises will be. You can be a master in the academics associated with God’s Word, however, it is not just head knowledge that matters it is let the Word of God get into your spirit-man and letting your spirit-man dominate the soul and flesh.

2020 Posts, Fruit of Spirit, Inspiration

Thankful for the Gospel that We Need

As we celebrate Thanksgiving today, I thought I would write a short post with a different approach. I could make a post about how I am thankful for finances, health, family, faith, and much more. This year we are celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas under very unusual circumstances. Our world has been turned upside down. Many countries have gone through shutdowns over this pandemic, and there has been much economic devastation. People have died because of this pandemic. There is much talk about a vaccine as the light to the end of this COVID-19 tunnel of darkness. I do not care how effective any vaccine or pill is, it will never surpass the power of the true Light of the World, who has the power to save lost sinners.

How Blessed We Really Are

Many of us take time to reflect on how we are thankful for our family, friends, health, finances, possessions, and much more. I believe these things have a place in our lives. So many people do not realize how blessed they are daily. I believe part of the issue for genuine Christians at least is we do not have a real sense of why we should be thankful and joyful each day.

Be Thankful Always

We can be thankful for the many earthly blessings in our lives. However, at any minute, a loved one could pass, we could lose our job, or we could receive a bad report from the doctor, and then our life gets flipped upside down. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (ESV) tells us, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”. I believe what these verses instruct us to do is difficult for most of us, and even myself at times. This is because the church at large in America has dipped the American dream into the Gospel.

The Americanized Gospel

The American dream is all about prosperity and success, I have nothing wrong with that. However, it becomes a problem when our culture influences the core of our preaching. Much of today’s popular Christian preaching is all about self-improvement, it always focuses on what we can do to make us a better person. This is dangerous; in fact, might I say it is idolatry.

The Self-Improvement Gospel

Most preaching today has taught people that you can fix yourself, and then a burden is put on us to do all this work to maintain an image that we are a good person. Let me say something, you cannot by any means put yourself in right standing with God. Paul makes it clear in Romans 3:10 (NKJV), “As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one.”. No one is a good person, and there is nothing you can do in your power to change that. Romans 3:23 (ESV) tells us, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. If we have fallen to sin, then what is the result? Romans 6:23 tells us that the wages for sin are death. It is important to note that this is not talking about physical death, but rather spiritual death. We will all either die physically or be caught up at the return of Jesus Christ.

The Old Testament

There are many lost people in the world and in the church today who do not realize their spiritual state. Often people have been told to pray a prayer and everything will go alright, and that they will make it to Heaven. Yet they hear nothing at all about their true spiritual state. What does the Bible tell us to do about our spiritual state? What is the solution to us being spiritually dead? If you look at the Old Testament there was an establishment of sacrifices that had to be made each time for sin. Study the different sacrifices in the Old Testament, had to be done very carefully by the priests in the Old Testament.

There is No Good Person

But we are under the New Testament Church Age, what is our solution? Jesus makes this clear in Mark 1:15 (ESV), “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”. What does it mean to repent? Repentance is when one not only recognizes their sins and feels horrible about them but turns away from them. 2 Corinthians 7:10-11 (ESV) says, “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what punishment! At every point, you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter.”. Godly sorrow is always a result of the Holy Spirits’ conviction (John 16:8).

Jesus Suffered the Wrath of God

Jesus Christ paid the price for our sins. We all deserve nothing but the wrath of God. However, because of God’s love, He sent His only Son, fully God and fully man, to this earth. Jesus Christ paid the penalty for our sins; He suffered the wrath of God on the Cross. The Cross not only shows us God’s love but His wrath. Should it not move us all that it took the death of God’s own Son to pay the price for our unrighteousness. Yet many people do not take this seriously, God will by no means leave the guilty go unpunished (Exodus 34:7). Hell is your destination if you have never truly repented and put your faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Romans 5:8-9 (ESV) tells us, “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.”.

No Greasy Grace

Earlier in this post, I stated that we cannot make ourselves a good person. Let me be clear, being a Christian does not give you a free pass to sin. True Salvation will have fruit. Jesus said in Mathew 7:17 (ESV), “So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit.”. If someone claims to be a Christian yet is sleeping with the devil every Friday and Saturday night, then they are not truly a Christian. The label Christian has become so loosely used in today’s culture, which is why I often like to put the words true or genuine in front of it.

The Greatest Miracle

Salvation is the greatest miracle that can take place in one’s life because we are spiritually healed when we are truly saved. The heart of man totally changes upon Salvation. Titus 2:11-12 (ESV) says, “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age”. Even better, God has sent His Holy Spirit to dwell inside of every single believer to empower us to do the work that we are all called to do for the Glory of God.

The Finished Work

So, what are we to be thankful for? We should be thankful for the finished work of Jesus Christ every single day. The finished work that saves us wretched sinners, the finished work that puts us in right standing with God. The resurrection of Jesus Christ conquered the grave. You might die of a disease, an accident, or just naturally by age, but that will not have the last word because for us true Christians, death has been defeated by Jesus Christ.  

Jesus is Enough

I challenge you to meditate on the Word of God daily. We need to settle in our hearts that Jesus Christ is truly enough. Colossians 2:9-10 (NASB) says, “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him, you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority.”. We have been made complete because of the finished work of Jesus Christ.

Meditate His Word Daily

I encourage you to spend some time to meditate on the Word of God and settle in your heart why we should be joyful and thankful at all times as believers. Philippians 1:6 (ESV) tells us, “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”. Yield to the Spirit of God, and He will complete His work in you. We are to grow as Christians in our walk with God daily. We need to seek greater manifestations of His power in our lives.

Fear of God

Proverbs 8:13 (ESV) instructs us, “The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.”. We have to talk about this walk seriously. God is love, but it is a holy love. We need to have reverence towards God. We need to be filled with the fear of God. Philippians 2:12 (ESV) tells us, “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.”. Our Salvation should not be taken lightly, the blood of Jesus Christ is so precious.

Rock Solid Faith

If we do not settle in our hearts that Jesus is enough, then when a cancer diagnosis, job loss, death of a loved one, or national crisis comes knocking on our door we will become unstable. We have to have a solid foundation on the Gospel of Jesus Christ and not the self-improvement gospel. A house that does not have a solid foundation will not stand the storm.

2020 Posts, Book of Acts Series 2019, Christianity, Fruit of Spirit, Inspiration

A Study on Acts Chapter 24

In this blog post I am going to pick up from where I left off in my series on the Book of Acts. Looking back at the previous chapter. The people conform a conspiracy that they will not eat until Paul is put to death and Paul is taken to Caesarea, and he is placed in Herods Praetorium while they wait for his accusers to arrive. We see that Paul is constantly facing persecution, yet through it all he finds his strength in Jesus Christ. Finding strength in Jesus Christ is not so we can live an abundant lifestyle, it is to simply bring glory to God.

The Case is Made Against Paul

In the first portion of Acts 24 we see five days after Paul arrives his accusers come. We see Ananias along with the other Jewish elders arrive to bring evidence to the governor against Paul. The lawyer bringing forth the case, Tertullus, first gives complements to the governor Felix for bringing peace to their land. In Acts 24:5-8 (ESV) we see the accusations against Paul , “For we have found this man a plague, one who stirs up riots among all the Jews throughout the world and is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes.  He even tried to profane the temple, but we seized him. By examining him yourself you will be able to find out from him about everything of which we accuse him.”. The accusations are that Paul is a plague, the Greek word for this is loimos which means a pest. Some translations write it as ‘a troublemaker’. They also accuse Paul of being a creator of conflict, a ringleader for the cult of the Nazarenes, and attempting to desecrate the temple.

Paul Pleads His Case

Paul defends himself from the accusations. Unlike Tertullus, Paul does not complement Felix, he simply pleads his case. Paul mentions how what they call a sect or cult, Paul refers to it as the Way. Paul also makes mention of the resurrection of the dead, which is something that is very controversial between different groups of the Jews. The resurrection of the dead is not only mentioned in the New Testament, but also in the Old Testament, Daniel 12:2 (ESV) says, “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.”.

More Discussion Between Paul and Felix

We see Paul also mentions about striving spiritually in verse 16. (AMP) “In view of this, I also do my best and strive always to have a clear conscience before God and before men.”. In the ESV this is written as “So I always take pains to have a clear conscience toward both God and man.”. We need to be striving spiritually. We need to be striving in our personal discipleship, we need to be striving towards a holy and sanctified lifestyle. John Piper says it best “the world does not need cool Christians who are culturally saturated. It needs exiles with the scent of heaven and the aroma of Christ.”. I would like to challenge every Christian to the question, are you culturally saturated right now, or do you have the aroma of Christ? With all that is going on in 2020, it is easy for us Christians to become culturally saturated. We have a particularly important election coming up in just a matter of weeks. Everyone of us has our own opinions that we are vocal about regarding what is going on. Christians should vote according to our Biblical convictions. However, what should our message be this time of year? Are we supposed to be trying to shove a particular candidate down people’s throats? Or are we to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ and make disciples? No politician will save this country! Yes, God can appoint people to carry out certain tasks, but no politician is this nations savior. One day every President in this nation whether genuinely saved or not will have to bow down to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

We see that while Felix waits for Lysias to come and testify that he becomes troubled when Paul discusses self-control righteousness, and the Last Judgement.  Felix sends Paul away but continually calls him back to have conversation with him. He does this to have favor with the Jews. We see that Festus takes over after and Paul will now have to testify for him. Self-control is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit. If we lack any of the fruits of the Spirit, then we need to spend time in prayer and lean on Christ in our weakness. We must fight the good fight of faith and fight against all the lusts of the flesh!

Sinful Desires

Romans 6:12, “Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires.”. With the sexual immorality that is in our ‘entertainment’ system it can become so easy for us to fall into the many traps of sin. When temptation comes our way, we must acknowledge it and respond Biblically. We need to be well-grounded in the Word of God. Jesus responded to the devil when tempted with Scripture. If you are being tempted realize it right away, pick up your Bible, begin to pray, put some worship music on. We need to make war when it comes to temptation. Not every sinful habit immediately falls off when we are born again, that is why we need to develop a good lifestyle of discipleship.

Temple of Holy Spirit

1 Corinthians 6:19 tells us our physical body is the temple of the Holy Spirit indwelling in us. When we are genuinely born again, the Holy Spirit enters us. We need to treat our bodies as temples. Imagine if you owned a million-dollar mansion, you would not let it turn into a dump, you would properly maintain it. We are to treat our bodies with care. That includes what we allow ourselves to see and hear, be incredibly careful of what you entertain yourself with. We also must take good care of our bodies in a physical sense. We must eat healthy and not let ourselves live an unhealthy lifestyle.

Righteousness

Paul also talked about righteousness. Romans 3:21-26 tells us how by using the Law we see how unrighteous and guilty we were. However, because of God loved us so much He laid our punishment out on Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son. Blood was shed for our sins; the wrath of God was poured out on Jesus Christ to pay the price for our sins. We must all repent of our sins and put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone. We are unable to be righteous by our own strength, it is not possible. Righteousness is only achievable through the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. You will not be more righteous because of doing good works or saying the Rosary. Genuine Salvation will of course bring forth good works as a result, Jesus tells us that they will know us by our fruits.

There are many important points in Acts 24, I encourage you to study and meditate on this chapter in your own private time with the Lord. With all that is going on in the world right now, we must realize how important it is for us to be students of Gods Word. We must take time with it each and every single day. Before you read it each day, pray that God grants your spiritual knowledge and revelation, and also keep your mind clear and focused as your read His Word.

2020 Posts, Inspiration, Wisdom

The Core Issue

There has been much going on lately in this country and around the world. We are in the middle of a pandemic, and this has impacted every single one of us at some level. Whether you have tested positive for COVID, know someone who has had it, or even has died from it. Many people have been laid off, lost their jobs, lost their businesses, and so much more heartache this year. Much debate on the credibility of everything we are hearing, I am not going to debate that because it has nothing to do with the core of the issue in this country.

We have all witnessed extreme acts of violence all across this country. People are upset about social injustice, the leadership of this country, and so many issues. Are these issues important? Absolutely! Is dealing with COVID-19 important? Yes. Is the future of the Supreme Court important? Definitely, we need to be praying about all these issues and having civil discussions about them.

However, all these issues our country is trying to solve, will not be solved by a democratic or republican solution. Yes, legislation can be put in place to make circumstances better, but we still will always have racism if we look to our politicians to fix the problem. Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Nancy Pelosi, nor Mitch McConnell will be able to solve social injustice 100%. Neither will any of their successors.

The division is real in our country on so many levels, and it just has not started with this President, it has always been there. We are just living in a day in age when the division is at its final stage. It is like cancer that has remained hidden and got diagnosed at its late stage. We all want a cure for this cancer in our nation, but we look to our politicians as if they can fix it. None of them can! All they can do is offer bandages repeatedly and will fail every single time at solving the problem.

This country does not need another leader with good speech. This country needs the church to rise up and bring forth the True Full Gospel of Jesus Christ! The core issue here is SIN! When God created the world everything was perfect, yet when sin entered the world, everything drastically changed. And this is why we are in this situation today. God foreknew this would happen, that is why He sent His only Son, born of a virgin, fully man and fully God, to the world. His only Son did a brief earthly ministry and then was put under God’s wrath at the Cross, paying the penalty for each and every single one of our sins. All it takes is for us to truly repent and believe and trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ.

Yet people who are unbelievers walk around and say they are a good person because they volunteer their time at a soup kitchen. That is great, but the Bible says no one is good (Romans 3:10). People of this world and even hypocrites in the church have made a god of their own standards in their mind and fail to realize the sin they are in and the coming judgment. If you ever told a white lie, you have broken Gods Law and your final destination will be the Lake of Fire (Revelation 21:8-10). The only solution is to repent and believe (Acts 20:20-21). The repentance I am talking about is a God granted repentance meaning that your sin grieves you so much because you know it grieves God (Acts 5:31, Acts 11:18, 2 Timothy 2:25, Romans 2:4, 2 Peter 3:9). Many people claim to repent but it is a result of worldly sorrow, rather than a Godly sorrow.

The church in America needs to rise up for once and do what it is called to do! I am sick and tired of seeing Christian TV broadcast nothing but programs that ask you to send in large sums of money for a miracle, that is not the Gospel! (Jude 1:10-12) It sickens me that is what most people see when it comes to Christianity is people on the mainstream networks preaching the false prosperity Gospel. If the only preaching you have heard is from people like Benny Hinn, Joel Ostend, Rick Warren, and Kenneth Copeland, I am sorry you have been deceived by these wolves. These people offer a false gospel that looks attractive to the unconverted sinner, but in the end, their gospel does not save. These false teachers offer a gospel that says, ‘believe this message and everything will go well for you’. It is my prayer these people repent and in doing so shut down their ministry and sit down under the ministry of someone who preaches the True Gospel. We need to air the True Full Gospel on TV and on the radio.

Now let me say something here, me rebuking the prosperity gospel does not mean I believe God can’t heal. I believe God does heal. I am against these extremes that are off the deep end. You can go to an extreme one way or the other, we must stay balanced in Scripture.

The issue we are dealing with in life is like an iceberg. We can see the massive size of it above the water and from a spiritual perspective that is sickness, disease, poverty, and so on. However, what we do not see is far greater underneath the surface and that is sin.

Let the church rise up and preach the Gospel. This land needs a real revival, not a circus put on for money! The Gospel of Christ is the solution, not politics. If you could get a dozen Senators genuinely saved, imagine the change that would take place!

2020 Posts, Inspiration

The Peace of God

We are certainly living in difficult and uncertain times right now. From the pandemic to the wildfires in California, to economic uncertainty, and even the unstableness of our leaders, it is easy for us to be given over to fear and anxiety.
For the true believer, we should know what the Bible says about fear. If you are living in fear right now you need to get into the Word of God and study it and meditate on it. We often find ourselves spending more time worrying about how to pay for an unexpected expense rather than about praying. We spend more time worrying about the results we got from the doctor’s office, rather than praying. Can you imagine how much different our lives would be if we would spend more time in prayer, than giving attention to all the worries that float around in our minds? We not only can pray for God to do the supernatural, but we can also pray for God to give us peace, wisdom, knowledge, and guidance as we deal with the worries of life.

2020 Posts, Christianity, Inspiration, Salvation, Wisdom

Tough Words – Our Heavenly Father

Today is Father’s Day, a day that we recognize our earthly fathers for all that they do for us. For some, this is a day to remember fathers who are no longer with us. I am thankful for a great God-fearing earthly father.

Today I want to talk about who our Heavenly Father is. I am convinced that many people today do not know who God truly is. Yet it is more troubling that many people in the church do not truly know who God is because there is a major distortion in the church. There are even many preachers who are not even truly saved. How do I know this? Because we are living in the days of the Great Falling Away. 1 Timothy 4:1 (ESV) warns us, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons”. The enemy has been setting up camp in churches through false teachers and philosophies of man. Any gospel that is not the True Gospel does not save.

Not only do people in churches not know who God truly is, but they also take him lightly. Modern Christianity has been dumbed down to a few bullet points with a prayer to join a social club.  We have a type of Christianity that accommodates to the way of this dark world. 1 John 1:5 (ESV) tells us, “This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.”. God is light and has no darkness. Why is this significant? Because it is one of God’s many attributes and we are in a world that is filled with darkness. There are many professing Christians who claim to be filled with the Holy Spirit, but there is no difference in their lifestyle from an unbeliever.

Truly coming to God for Salvation is giving up. We cannot save ourselves, only Christ can do that. When is the last time in private you cried out to God for help with the sin you still need to conquer? When is the last time you sought your Heavenly Father and waited until He showed up? In today’s fast-paced world, we want everything to happen right away. I can be guilty of this, I work in technology, and I have the mindset of things always being fast paced. But we all must learn to sit in the secret place and wait on God. Psalm 91:1 (ESV) tells us, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.”.  Additionally, Jesus told us in Matthew 6:6 (ESV), “But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”.

Jerimiah 29:13 (AMP) tells us, “Then [with a deep longing] you will seek Me and require Me [as a vital necessity] and [you will] find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”. We must seek our Heavenly Father with all our heart. Not only do we need to seek Him with our full heart, but we must also seek Him with the right motives. Are we seeking Him just for the benefits? Are we seeking Him to just have our ticket to Heaven stamped? These types of mindsets have become normal in much of Christianity because the me-centered gospel has become mainstream. We must realize that the Bible is not about us, it is about a God who is willing and able, sovereign, and the same yesterday, today and forever.

We need to have a higher view of our Savior Jesus Christ. So many people take the Cross lightly. Revelation 19:12-15 (ESV) tells us, “His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God.  And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.”. Let those words sink in and reflect on why the Blood of the Spotless Lamb is taken lightly and abused in the church today. I cannot think of the words He will say on the day of judgment to the leaders of the great falling away.

We must wake up to who God is. We must recognize who our Heavenly Father is according to His Word. Everything we need for this walk is found in His Word, and we have the Holy Spirit to teach us all things and to lead us into all truth. The best thing the church in America can do today on Father’s Day for our Heavenly Father is to take its trash out. Everything that is in the church that is not of God needs to be thrown out and burned. Everything that is of the world that has been allowed in the church, needs to be thrown out. Everything in our lives individually that does not line up with His commandments needs to be removed. Dear friends the end is near! Jesus is coming and there are going to be many pew warmers and even pastors who are going to be in shock when this day comes.

As we celebrate Father’s Day take time to reflect on what our Heavenly Father expects from us as both a church and individually.