Fear

To quote Robert California from the hit TV show The Office, “Fear plays an interesting role in our lives. How dare we let it motivate us. How dare we let it into our decision making, into our livelihoods, into our relationships."

I know that I want to be the kind of person who is encouraging. I want to be the kind of person that people want on their team. Thankfully, through Christ, I can be that person.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. ¹⁷ This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 1 John 16-18

I don't have to tell you that the news is usually pretty negative. A lot of people are looking at the world and fearing all sorts of economic and societal collapse. There are people who believe these are the end times. I see some Christians praying for things or against things out of fear.

This is so wrong. I refuse to live this way. I won't perpetuate fear. Some people are "realistic". But the only thing that comes out of their mouth is negativity. I have no time for this in my life.

I am reminded of the story of Israel trying to get into the promised land. They sent some scouts to survey the land. They came back and told everyone that there were giants living in the land and that if Israel attacked them they would lose. Two of the scouts had a different opinion.

Caleb interrupted, called for silence before Moses and said, "Let's go up and take the land—now. We can do it." Numbers 13:30

This world is unstable. Yea, it is. That is why God hasn't given you a spirit of fear. He has given you His son, who embodies perfect love. What do you think they people in your life need when they doubt themselves. They need you to come in and tell them, "we can do this!" In the little situations that seem big and the impossible situations that are actually small, God gives you the ability to overcome.

No Limits

I want to fully understand how far Jesus went for me. I understand that He went to the cross for me but I often forget where He came from. There is a parable Jesus told that gives me a clue.

⁴⁴ “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
⁴⁵ “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. ⁴⁶ When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Yes, Jesus purchased everything for us on the cross but He also first left everything in heaven for us. Philippians 2 tells us that He had equal status with God but set it aside and became like a slave. He then died a selfless death. We know that while were still sinners, Christ died for us. Not only that but while we were still sinners, He set aside His glorious life to be made like us. I know what it's like to be human. I wouldn't trade being a God for it.

Since He left all of this behind, don't you think He would make sure that He purchased everything for us? Don't you think He would go all the way? (Complete forgiveness and healing)
The parable says that He found a treasure. But He didn't just buy the treasure, He bought the whole field! What does this mean? Jesus has gone above and beyond what anyone else would have done for you. He left it all for you. So don't think he wants anything but the best for you.

How Awesome is this Place?!

I admit that I struggle and some days I do more than others. But on a daily basis I hear "it's ok" in my heart. This keeps me facing God and causes me not to run.
What am I talking about? Well, really everything I am about to say boils down to is this - "the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Phil 4:7

Look at this story about Jacob.
Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Harran. When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the LORD, and he said: “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”
When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:10-17)

There are a lot of observations you can make in from this.
1. When Jacob was shown grace, his only desire was to follow God.
2. God basically said, "I am going to be good to you and there is nothing you can do about it."
3. Jacob was in awe of this one place.

If you look closely though, God said, "I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go." But Jacob said, "How awesome is this place."

I am not saying Jacob was wrong for recognizing that something great just happened but he seemed to miss out on the fact that God was always with him.

A lot of people today are searching for God. People who confess that Jesus is their savior are searching for God. What do we believe about that Gospel? Isn't it that Christ lives in us (and more importantly, we live in him)?

I am learning to let Jesus guard my heart not just from "the world" or from the devil but also from myself. When I believe contrary to the truth and think I am no good, He reminds me that He has made all things new for me.

So now you and I can say, "How awesome is this place!" when we think of our hearts. It is there where we can trust His peace to care for us and to secure us in Him.

Jesus' Face

Here is a recent teaching I did at Oasis Granger.

What Makes A Dad Part Two

"God already knows what you need before you ask," Jesus tells us this in Matthew 6:8. I think a lot of people read this as "God knows what I really need", usually alluding to some hard life lesson. Maybe something like, "I needed a job and headed to my job interview but God made me miss the bus to show me something..."

This doesn't really line up with what Jesus says. After He tells us God knows what we need, He gives us a prayer after which we can pattern our lives.

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
¹⁰ your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
¹¹ Give us today our daily bread.
¹² And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
¹³ And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.

(Matthew 6:10-13)

Our Father knows what we need already. Now think about this - What does it mean for God's Kingdom to come and for His will to be done on Earth as it is in heaven?

Well, what is heaven like?

Are people sick?

Is there evil?

Is there hunger? Strife?

Toiling?

No. Heaven is a great place and Jesus wants us to see our world become more like it.

Notice how Jesus covers everything from being fed (physically) to be protected (physically) in this prayer.

Our Dad know what we need before we ask. So, let's word this in a more understandable way.

Dear Dad in Heaven,

You are awesome and great. Make my life & world perfect like heaven (no sickness and hurting). Thank you for providing for me & for forgiving me so that I can love others. Keep me away from trouble & protect me. Amen.

He does know what we need before we ask. And we can see through this prayer what a perfect Dad desires for His kids. Since we know what we really need now, we can believe that it will happen.

What Makes A Dad

I had a conversation with my friend, Brian, the other day. We started talking about kids and parenting since we have both been married to our wives for two years. As we talked, he said something that caught my attention.

"Any body can make a baby but it is all the other things that make you a dad."

I began to ponder this. My thoughts went immediately to my father. No, not my physical father. My spiritual Dad.

It make me sad to see people who don't see God as their Dad. Even a lot of Christians don't. They say things like "Our Heavenly Father". But saying isn't knowing or believing. God really is their Dad but they only see him as "Creator" (biologically). He doesn't provide for them. He becomes the distant, drunk, abusive guy or the strict man that they have to call father. He causes harm and heartache.

This isn't what a dad does. And no, the "he does it because he loves me" isn't an excuse. That is called battered woman/child syndrome. It's a lie.

So what does a real dad do? It's not that birthing of a child that's makes you a parent, it's how you care for the child.

“You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him." Matt 7:9-11

Isn't it true that God is good all the time? Why can we then justify that he does terrible things to people "for the greater good"?

I have news for you. Jesus died for the greater good so we could be saved from death. You aren't Jesus. You don't save. He does.

Yes, people are persecuted for the Gospel (not by God). After all, "no one ever hated his own body, but feeds it and cares for it, just as Christ does the Church - for we are members of His body." Eph 5:29-30

I never want to balance God's goodness by saying, "Sometimes God has to ______ in order to ______." He doesn't change. He won't lower His standards to anything less than being a perfect Dad.

So, do you look at God as just the Creator or do you see Dad. It is the good things he does for us to care for us that makes Him a Dad. Not because He has to but because He wants to.

Exodus - What Not To Do

The Israelites exodus from their slavery in Egypt can be found in detail in the book of Exodus. Though this took place thousand of years ago, there are some patterns we can see that we should not follow. Please view what I am saying under the light of the Gospel of Jesus: a Gospel of Grace.

The Israelites were in slavery to Egypt but God wanted to be their salvation and lead them to a promised land (promised to their ancestors) so that they could live a free life. So God sent Moses to lead them out.

At first, Egypt refused to let them go but when they saw God working miracles through Moses, they finally consented. As Israel was leaving, the Egyptians changed their minds and pursued them to kill them.

This is where the Israelites trouble really began.

They began to complain against God and doubt Him. They let their fear consume them and they became paralyzed. Of course, God is faithful and rescued them. He completely wiped out the Egyptian army and showed Israel how powerful He was. Unfortunately, this didn't stop Israel from complaining. Every time there was an issue the same feelings of resentment came up. They complained.

• Complaining or blaming God is a dangerous first step into unbelief. Allowing your heart to walk down this path is essentially walking into death and is exactly what the devil wants. Take Job, for instance. Satan robbed him and yet he blamed God.

Israel continued until they reached Mt. Sinai. Here they received the Law, but not before an interesting sequence of events. In a tone of arrogance, they claimed that (before God gave the Law) they could do anything he commanded. Then God put restrictions on them punishable by death.

• Do not think you can merit yourself before God. God loves to give freely (Romans 4:4-8). Under Christ we are blessed freely. Meriting what you do causes self-righteousness (self-reliance) and arrogance. This causes a disdain for Grace (Galatians 5:4).

After receiving the Law from God, Israel continued toward its destination. This place (the promised land) was supposed to be a comfortable place of rest. Unfortunately, the people of Israel came to a point of total unbelief. When they realized they had to first drive people out of the promised land, they were afraid because they thought they were too weak and again they complained. Because of this, God didn't allow them to enter. Instead they wandered for 40 years until all of those who doubted were dead.

• A combination of self-merit and bitterness towards God led to unbelief, which is anti-faith. When we don't believe the Lord has done something for us, we won't have confidence. For instance, if I don't believe Jesus forgave all of my sins on the cross, I will continually think God is against me. Jesus has promised to never leave us. A lack of belief in His promise and finished work causes us to lose our peace (Hebrews 4:3).

People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the Lord. Proverbs 19:3

So, what not to do?

• Don't blame God. He is the one fighting for you.
• Stop trying to ear God's love. Self-effort causes a disdain for His free grace.
• Unbelief in God's goodness (in His Good News) will cause you to wander without any peace.

Hope big

The things that you hope for will be limited to the knowledge you have of the things that you can hope for and faith is the substance of things hoped for (Hebrews 11:1). In other words, if you don't know what you can hope for you will never have faith that those things will happen.

Many people are confused by the will of God because they don't have a firm foundation of the Gospel of Grace. They have just heard everyone else's opinion and have come to conclusions based on what they heard. A phrase commonly used is "We can never understand God or His will" or something along those lines.

While I believe God is amazingly big and awesome and mind blowing - I disagree.

You have heard this before -

no eye has seen,

no ear has heard,
and no human mind has conceived”

the things God has prepared for those who love him.

No one ever reads the following verses. Look at the Message translation for 1 Corinthians 2:9-13:

No one's ever seen or heard anything like this,

Never so much as imagined anything quite like it—
What God has arranged for those who love him.
But you've seen and heard it because God by his Spirit has brought it all out into the open before you.
The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along. Who ever knows what you're thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God—except that he not only knows what he's thinking, but he lets us in on it. God offers a full report on the gifts of life and salvation that he is giving us. We don't have to rely on the world's guesses and opinions. We didn't learn this by reading books or going to school; we learned it from God, who taught us person-to-person through Jesus, and we're passing it on to you in the same firsthand, personal way.
Wow.
This is all based on the knowledge that you have the Holy Spirit on the inside of you. He doesn't come and go. He is always there. Let me let you in on a little secret - the list of things you can hope for (an ultimately have faith will happen) is much bigger than you can conceive. But He will continually show you!
Here is a small list for starters -
Praise the LORD, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits—
who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. (Psalm 103)

Acts That Lead To Death

People often get caught up in defining sin and avoiding sin. Sin is dangerous. But the Bible paints a picture of something else that we need to avoid - Acts that lead to death.

You might be thinking, "Aren't these the same thing?" Interestingly no.

Hebrews 9:14 (Amplified Bible)

¹⁴How much more surely shall the blood of Christ, Who by virtue of [His] eternal Spirit [His own preexistent divine personality] has offered Himself as an unblemished sacrifice to God, purify our consciences from dead works and lifeless observances to serve the [ever] living God?
Some other translations say "Acts that lead to death" and also "Useless rituals".
All of these are describing participation in the Law. Most people don't realize the Law mentality they have. If you are constantly going to God for forgiveness, you might be allowing yourself to fall into this.
You see, the blood of Christ ensures total forgiveness. There is no longer a need to make sacrifices (constantly asking for forgiveness).

Hebrews 9:15 (Amplified Bible)

¹⁵[Christ, the Messiah] is therefore the Negotiator and Mediator of an [entirely] new agreement (testament, covenant), so that those who are called and offered it may receive the fulfillment of the promised everlasting inheritance--since a death has taken place which rescues and delivers and redeems them from the transgressions committed under the [old] first agreement.
How we relate to God shouldn't look anything like what you see in the Old Testament. Our agreement is totally new and is totally based on Jesus.
Useless rituals cause us to have a performance mentality. When we are always thinking about how we appear before God there is no time to meditate on Jesus. If we can't do this, we will never be able to serve God.

Holy Spirit

I have felt condemned before when people have quoted Paul in Corinthians and said, "Don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit?" The implication is that if it is too dirty He will leave. This is not true. God has promised to never leave us or forget about us.

Paul was trying the opposite of condemnation. He was reminding people that God always lives with them. His power is always present to free them.

But there are still some who think the Holy Spirit comes and goes. This mentality causes people to miss out.

Ephesians 1:3

May blessing (praise, laudation, and eulogy) be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah) Who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual (given by the Holy Spirit) blessing in the heavenly realm!

If the Holy Spirit is coming and going you will have a hard time every receiving. But thank God that Christ dwells in us!

Now I have heard people say, "Spiritual Blessings are just spiritual, not tangible." What does that even mean? And why would God waste his time with something that doesn't do anything for anyone?

The truth is God's blessings are always tangible in some shape or form. But if you want to know what God's blessings are like, the Bible does a pretty good job of giving us a list.

^{Psalm 103:2-5}

²Bless (affectionately, gratefully praise) the Lord, O my soul, and forget not [one of] all His benefits--

³Who forgives [every one of] all your iniquities, Who heals [each one of] all your diseases, ⁴Who redeems your life from the pit and corruption, Who beautifies, dignifies, and crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercy; ⁵Who satisfies your mouth [your necessity and desire at your personal age and situation] with good so that your youth, renewed, is like the eagle's [strong, overcoming, soaring]!
If God really does these things (these spiritual blessings), than there will certainly be tangible results. Jesus loves you. He is not ashamed of you. More than that, he is not ashamed to call you his family. He does not hold back any of His benefits from you!

Why are we begging?

I am under the impression that nothing in the Bible was written on accident. It is either the greatest hoax ever or it is truly inspired by God - His words.

I want to draw your attention to a story in Genesis 8. This is part of Noah's story with the ark and the flood. Most people have heard this story but Jesus reveals truth about Himself in all of the Law and Prophets (The Old Testament).

Let me summarize the part of the story I want to tell you about:

• Noah has already been on the boat for forty days.
• Noah sends out a dove to see if the water had begun to recede and it returns.
• He waits seven more days and sends it out and it returns with a freshly plucked olive leaf.
• He waits seven more days and sends it out and it doesn't return.

You might be thinking "What does this have to do with Jesus?" Let me tell you.

We know that the dove is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. (Mark 1:10-11) Noah in this story symbolizes God being in charge of creation and life.

1. In the old testament God would send His Spirit and presence places but only for a time. It would always return to heaven. It had no final resting place.
2. Then God sent His Spirit to Jesus and when Jesus' work was finished the Spirit brought Christ back to heaven. (Hence to fresh olive leaf in the beak of the dove. Olive oil was used to anoint or set people apart. Jesus was God's anointed son). But the spirit came back to heaven
3. Finally, on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2) God sent His Spirit into our hearts to find its final resting place. The dove left and didn't come back.

So what is the point of all of this? Well, I want to ask why people think the Holy Spirit comes and goes? Why do they still ask Him to come? Why are people still thirsty for more?

Before you call me a heretic let's look at the words of Jesus.

John 4:14 - "whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

And again:

John 7:37-39 - "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.

So where does this put us? Well, Christ has brought us into His family and has commissioned us to bring other people in as well. We have to trust the Holy Spirit in us to be streams of living water to people. The unfortunate thing is that many Christians don't understand that the Holy Spirit lives in them. They believe He comes and goes. If you don't believe you already have the Spirit, it will be hard for you to let Him work through you.

We also receive through the Holy Spirit. It is God's presence. If it is not with us, then neither is God. If you want wisdom, healing, and all of the other promises of God, you receive them through the Holy Spirit.

Why are we still begging? We haven't guarded our hearts from unbelief (Proverbs 4:13).

God has promised never to leave us. Let's believe Him.

The Wrong Question

Walking down the street, Jesus saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked, "Rabbi, who sinned: this man or his parents, causing him to be born blind?"

Jesus said, "You're asking the wrong question. You're looking for someone to blame. There is no such cause-effect here. Look instead for what God can do." John 9:1-5 Message

Jesus gives us an amazing model of how we should minister to people one on one. Most of the time we are searching for reasons why people are having a hard time or are sick or struggling. Honestly, there is a time and place for counseling but there is no time to point fingers.

Remember that Jesus healed everyone who asked and sometimes ones that didn't. This is grace in action. God wants us to be whole (mentally, physically, and spiritually). It isn't a question of "Is this person good enough?" The question is "Does God love them?" The answer is yes.

I Am Not Condemned

Being condemned of something is a horrible feeling. We all know this. Many people have been condemned in our legal system and have been put in jail. They are labeled as murders, rapists, thiefs, and so on.

Labels stick. When you are found guilty of something it often becomes your identity. That is why there are so many repeat offenders. Think about it. Sex offenders have to go to door, when they are released, and let everyone know that they are a sex offender.

Can you see what being condemned of something does to someone?

Even if they are able to shake the habits that go with with the title, they are still left with the guilt of what they have done. They have been condemned to live in that identity.

(I am not trying to criticize our legal system. I am just making observations about condemnation.)

As human beings we seem to have an awareness of what "right" and "wrong" are. As Christians we put a magnifying glass over what "right" and "wrong" are. Actually, a lot of Christians spend most of their lives trying to discern between the two. Since we have become so obsessed with our morality, we feel so guilty when we mess up the things we are trying to keep perfect.

Guilt and condemnation are the same thing. If you are guilty of something then you will be condemned. When you feel condemned you are bound to repeat the same mistakes over again. The truth is God doesn't use these as tools to relate to us.

We need to know God's heart and understand what He says about these things. God never wanted us to have the knowledge of good and evil. That is why He commanded Adam not to eat from the tree. When we try so hard to determine what sin is and isn't, that is all we will think about: sin! We will certainly fall under it.

The Lord hasn't called us to meditate on sin or determine what it is. He gives us this instruction- "whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." (Phil 4:8)

Sometimes it is hard to see things in this world that display any of these characteristics but we see Christ! As it says in Hebrews 3:1, "fix your thoughts of Jesus". He is all of those things. We are made to know Jesus and how awesome He is.

When we look to Jesus we will understand our freedom from condemnation and guilt. We have to know this or else we will stay trapped in a place we don't want to be. We are free!

In John 8, we find the story of the adulteress woman. She is brought before Jesus (Her accusers want to stone her) and He saves her! He then asks, "Has no one condemned you?" And he releases her with, "Then neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin."

This is simply amazing.

Jesus released her from her condemnation. When she was totally free from the guilt (experiencing true love for the first time) he told her to leave her life of sin. He let her know that "sin shall not have dominion over you...you are under grace." (Romans 6:14)

This is why the book of Romans boldly declares, "There is therefor now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." (8:1) We think that God is still looks at us as sinful worms, so we keep acting like sinful worms. But God has seen to it that we are totally forgiven (past, present, and future). He has made us His children.

Since the power over sin is grace, we should continue to look to Jesus (the person of grace) and the knowledge of his complete forgiveness.

Punishment and Forgiveness

This might challenge you...

How self-righteous do you have to be to think that God is punishing you for your sins? If God was punishing you then you could save yourself.

Think about it - Christ took the punishment for our sins and shed his blood for our forgiveness. His blood doesn't just cover our sins, it takes them away. So if you can survive the "punishment" you are undergoing, then you really don't need a savior. Jesus DIED when he was on the cross. If you are truly being punished for sins, there must be a death or shedding of blood (Hebrews 9:22).

So you must come to this conclusion: We are either totally forgiven (as we put our faith in Christ) or we are not forgiven at all. There is no in between.

Hebrews 7:25 says that Jesus "is able to save completely (or forever) those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them."

I think a lot of Christians don't understand what it means to be saved. Jesus saves you completely/forever from your sins. That means that you are saved from what your sins deserve - punishment. If Jesus has saved you, how can God be punishing you? Again, can you pay for your own salvation?

"Where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary." Hebrews 10:18

You can conclude that since they have been forgiven and sacrifice is no longer needed, there is also no more punishment for them. Christ appeared once for all to do away with sin. That means past, present, and future. All of your sins were in the future when he was on the cross. He doesn't suffer again and again for you. What Jesus did was so good the first time that God was eternally pleased with it.

The only sacrifice that has any value in God's eyes is Christ's. Since these sins are forgiven there is no more a need to try to have them forgiven. The only thing to do in regard to sin is to remind your self that Jesus has saved you completely and that he has broken (put to death) sin's power over you. Remember what God has promised -

"So now I have sworn not to be angry with you, never to rebuke you." (Isaiah 54:9)

"For no matter how many promises God has made, they are all "yes" in Christ." (2 Corinthians 1:20)

Count It All A Loss

I used to think that I had to give up every "worldly gain" (whatever that means) so that I could gain Christ. The basis for this thinking came from verses found in Philippians 3. Based on these verses, I thought I couldn't have money or video games and so on. Now I understand that, in comparison to Christ, these things really are nothing. But I believe Jesus wants us to know what it really is to "count it all a loss."

The context of Philippians 3 is basically Law vs Grace. When you understand that you can only pick one of these systems to live under (no mixture), the meaning of chapter 3 becomes incredibly clear.

Paul, the author, begins by comparing people who live by grace to people who live under the Law (who he calls "mutilators of the flesh").

"For we [Christians] are the true circumcision, who worship God in spirit and by the Spirit of God and exult and glory and pride ourselves in Jesus Christ, and put no confidence or dependence [on what we are] in the flesh and on outward privileges and physical advantages and external appearances" - Philippians 3:3 AMP

Paul lays the foundation that we are able to totally rely on Jesus Christ for everything and not our efforts. He then shows us what it is like to self-justify from his own experience.

"...and by the Law's standard of righteousness (supposed justice, uprightness, and right standing with God) I was proven to be blameless and no fault was found with me." Philippians 3:6 AMP

Now we come to verse 7.

"But whatever former things I had that might have been gains to me, I have come to consider as [one combined] loss for Christ's sake."

Do you see what he considers as a loss? His striving to be perfect by the Law. When you look to the Law to show yourself as Holy, you have fallen from grace (Galatians 5:4).

Paul continues in verse 9 by saying, "not having any [self-achieved] righteousness that can be called my own, based on my obedience to the Law's demands (ritualistic uprightness and supposed right standing with God thus acquired)"

The system we live under is totally by Grace. We don't earn anything from God by our good or bad behavior. People call this "cheap grace" or a "loose gospel" but it really isn't. Since it takes our works out of the equation, Jesus gets all the praise. It becomes about what He does and provides. It leaves no room for us to feel good about what we have earned. There is no self-justification. Since it is through grace, we cannot boast or compare ourselves to one another.

We are now totally dependent upon Christ for everything. We rely on His strength when we are weak. When we sin, we look to His punishment on the cross for us and thank God for His mercy.

The reason people don't fully rely on God is because they don't believe He is totally good. If you don't think He is good all the way through, you wont trust Him!

But look, no matter how many promises God has made, they are all yes in Christ! (2 Corinthians 1:20)

Also, God didn't ever spare His own son for us. How will He not also (in Christ) give us everything we need? (Romans 8:32).

Do you see how living under Grace causes Christ to be glorified? When we practice or faith and do good works under grace, Jesus is praised even more! But when you have to do good things (or not do bad things) to justify yourself before God, it becomes about YOU.

"...but possessing that [genuine righteousness] which comes through faith in Christ (the Anointed One), the [truly] right standing with God, which comes from God by [saving] faith." Philippians 3:9 AMP

Blessing - God Speaks Well of You

People use the word "bless" all the time. They bless food, ask for God's blessings, and bless people who sneeze. If you ask most people what they think "bless" means, they would probably say, "To do something nice for someone." If you look a little closer at the word you will find a different meaning though.

The Greek word used in the Bible that we translate into "bless" is eulogeo. (We derive our word "eulogy" from this.) In its simplest and truest definition it means to praise or speak well of. How does this change the way we view our relationship with God? Well, let's break down a couple of ideas.

1. God speaks. He spoke to create the world. (Genesis 1)
2. He did not labor with His hands to create.
3. Creation obeyed his voice and came into being.
4. When God speaks it has to be true. (Titus 1:2)

When God blesses you He starts by speaking well of you. Remember that God does not lie, so what He says about you must be true or it must come true. This reality ensures that the blessing will come to pass. Let's look at some examples.

In Genesis 12:2, the Lord says to Abram, "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; (and here is the blessing) I will make your name great and you will be a blessing."

The Lord spoke something about Abram and it was true because God does not lie. We know that physically speaking the nation of Israel, who came from Abram, did become very numerous and spiritually speaking we are in the same nation through faith in Christ.

Notice that God told him, "I will make YOU into a great nation." The he said, "I will bless You." Since Abram became the nation and we are apart of the nation through faith in Christ, we have the same blessing. God is speaking well of us.

Now let's look at a blessing that the Lord has promised us in Ezekiel 34:25-31 (Paraphrased):

"I will bless them (the land we will live in) and the places surrounding my hill (Zion). (Here comes the blessing) I will send down the showers in season; there will be a shower of blessing.

• Trees will yield fruit
• Fields will show crops
• We will be secure in our land
• God himself will break the bars that are holding us back and rescue us from slavery
• We will live in safety
• Our land will be renown for it's crops
• We will not be victims of famine
• We will know the Lord.

What a blessing! God speaks well of His people and their situations. And God does not lie!

How do we receive? Here's the good news: We have received every spiritual blessing in Christ. (Ephesians 1:3) For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "yes" in Christ. (2 Corinthians 1:20)

Please know that God is speaking well of you and your situation! Now we should speak well about God. He is better than we think.

Giving Biblical Grace - Audio

Here is the teaching I did at Oasis Granger - 2-20-2011

How Do You Give Grace?

Jesus is amazing. Even in the midst of teaching and fulfilling the Law, he is able to show us the extent of God's love & favor (grace).

"He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends the rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." - Matt 5:45

This is a passage that has been used for many years to say, "Sometimes God sends good things and sometimes He sends bad things." But if you look at the context of this passage it really has nothing to do with that.

Think about the time period in which this was written. Agriculture (farming) was everything. They needed the sun and rain for their crops. They needed their crops to survive (read the story of Joseph and see the devastation of famine).

You see, the main thrust of the verses surrounding this passage is "Love your enemy." Consider who is speaking - Jesus. He is the exact representation of God (Hebrews 1:3). So whatever we see Jesus say and do is exactly what God would say and do.

This is God's attitude toward His "enemies" - "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." -Matt 5:44

God sends His blessings and provision (sun & rain) on the people who would be considered His enemies. This is truly giving grace. Grace is defined as unearned favor. When you favor someone, they are essentially your "favorite" and you treat them like they are special.

"If you love those who love you, what reward will you get?" - Matt 5:46

These aren't just instructions for us. God himself loves those who don't love Him. God isn't exempt from His Word. His word is who He is. He doesn't expect us to have a higher moral code than Him. He gives us favor and He extends the invitation to His "enemies".

Grace isn't being lenient with people. That is called mercy. This is how you give grace the way God does; giving people favor and blessing them when they don't deserve it.

Jesus in Context Part 2

In Matthew 5 - 7, Jesus preaches the most challenging sermon ever. It is harder than the 10 commandments and all of the rest of the Law. He says things like...

Don't say "you fool" or you are in danger of hell fire.

Don't even look at a woman lustfully.

Love your enemy.

Don't worry.

Don't judge.

Be perfect just as your Heavenly Father is perfect.

And many other things that people (even Christians) fail to do every day. In fact, some of the things He says cause people to have great fear.

"Not everyone who says to me 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven."

"I will tell them, 'I never knew you.'"

I have heard many people use this section to slam Charismatic Christians because it talks about prophesying and driving out demons. I have heard people use this to warn people who aren't "holy" enough. I have seen people use it to make themselves feel better, like they are elite in God's eyes.

But there are three things you need to understand about Matthew 5 - 7.

1. Jesus is talking to Jews in this Gospel. Matthew 5 - 7 is one sermon in all. Through this sermon, Jesus gives the intent of His ministry. "I have not come to abolish the Law but to fulfill it." Christ brought the Law back to an unobtainable standard.
2. Jesus gives the solution to life with God in this sermon. "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness..." God's righteousness comes by faith alone. It comes by faith in Christ.
3. Christ will say, "I never knew you" to those who didn't seek to be justified by faith. It's pretty simple.

There are people who blindly misquote the Bible and use passages like "God will judge each man according to his own work" or "impartially" to condemn people and make people afraid.

But we need to visit Gospel 101 before we quote passages and use them as universal truth. Everything happens in the context of the Gospel. We need to realize that if we accept Christ, we won't be judged according to our works but by Christ's righteousness. And why would we be judged according to what we do?

"God saved us not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace." 2 Timothy 1:9

and

"He saved us not because of the righteous things we have done but because of His mercy."

Titus 3:5

God already saved you apart from your good or bad behavior. The judgement has past. As Jesus would say, we have passed from judgement into life.

We are all walking testimonies of God's good work. When we are ministering to people we need to show them the truth of the Gospel. Use your words and actions to draw them to God. Don't scare them away.

A Working Man

How many guys like to say, "I'm a workin' man"? I think we all do. It is a pride thing. We earn our keep. I love how the Bible encourages this, "Whatever you do, do it for the Lord." (1 Cor 10:13, Col 3:17) On a more sobering note, "whoever doesn't work doesn't eat."(2 Thess 3:10)

But we need to make sure we understand the difference between our physical work and "spiritual work." We need to understand that we cannot "earn our keep" with God.

"Now when a man works, his wages are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligation." (Romans 4:4)

This concept is crucial: God owes us nothing.

"However, to the man who does not work (spiritually) but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited (to him) as righteousness." (Romans 4:5)

David, the psalmist, got it right when he wrote this around 1,000 years before Jesus, "Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him." (Psalm 32)

You see, God loves giving. Actually, He loves giving freely. He loves giving more than the most spiritual person and yet, He owes us nothing. Even people who live "perfectly" don't earn God's favor. (Rom 5:13). But God gives generously to all who ask. (James 1:5)

So what will you choose to follow? What you do or what God does?

"...He saved us, not because of righteous (good) things we had done, but because of His mercy."

(Titus 3:5)

I find it interesting what Jesus says about "hired hands" or men working for their keep.

"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays his life down for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. The the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep." (John 10:11-13)

People who are concerned about earning God's favor or blessings (or whatever else people try to earn) have a hard time caring about people. They do not understand how to give because they do not realize how much God loves them and how perfectly Jesus has forgiven them.

These people preach rules and laws. You have to "do" to get blessings, but the Bible is clear that God does not give out of obligation. Only when a realization of God grace comes into your life will you understand that God gives life into your dead bones.

Preach Grace.

(I like this font better than the font on my previous posts.)

Elijah's Fire

What do we hear about God these days? Let me tell you, I don't hear very many good things. Even in Churches people are saying that God is good and yet blame God for all of their trial and temptations. They blame Him for leaving them to fend for themselves so that they can learn a lesson. They think that sometimes He is distance, not answering them.

Frankly, the rest of the world thinks that Christians are morons for serving such a lousy God.

We need to repent. No, not ask for forgiveness; we need to change our thinking.

Let me show you something awesome from the Word of God.

I want to tell you about a man in the Old Testament named Elijah. First of all you need to know what Elijah means. "My God is Jehovah" is literally what his name translates to. Jehovah is the most supreme name for God that Hebrews have. Jehovah means "The self-existing one." This name shows how God needs no one to create Him but in fact He is the one that creates.

So, on to Elijah. We pick up in 1 Kings 18. God had Elijah challenge the 450 prophets of Baal (a false god) to a sort of competition to see which god was the true God. This is what happend...

• Elijah had the prophets set up an alter to Baal and offer a bull as a sacrifice to him.
• From morning till noon they begged and begged for Baal to answer them.
• Elijah taunted them, "Shout louder! Surely he is god. Perhaps he is in deep thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and needs to be awakened."
• So they begged more and even cut and harmed their bodies to please him and to get him to answer. Of course nothing happened.
• Elijah took his turn.
• He built an alter out of 12 stones to represent the 12 tribes of Israel.
• He dug a trench around.
• He had water poured all over the the alter and his sacrifice until the water filled the trench.
• Then he asked God to show up and prove that He was the one true God.
• Fire fell from the sky and devoured the sacrifice, the alter, the water, and the soil on the ground.

Wow! What an awesome story. There are several things we can take away from this.

1. Why are we treating God like a false god. One who doesn't answer our prayers or who leaves us high and dry? Is it not clear in the Bible that God has said, "Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you..." or "The Lord your God is with you..."?
2. Why have we let our circumstances fool us into thinking they are truth. God's word is truth. Our circumstances don't dictate God's Word. If you allow it, God's Word will dictate your circumstances. God doesn't want you sick or poor.
3. We can see Elijah's Fire (or really God's Fire) as evidence of a loving and faithful God who is always ready to respond to His children. His love and power are tangible and create tangible results.

When we say, "God is good", we need to realize just how good He is. He who did not spare His own son (Jesus Christ) but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? (Rom 8:32) When you understand just how forgiven you are, you will realize that there is truly nothing separating you and God.

Personal testimony - My wife was in a car accident a couple months ago. Thankfully, she was ok but the car was a bit messed up. The one of the doors was bent and wouldn't seal all the way. We live in northern Indiana where snow and rain are pretty common. We knew we needed a good car but that we didn't have money for a brand new one. God had already made a way though. She works with a guy who just started a used car dealership and had a Honda Civic on his lot that he really wanted to sell. We got the car for a fair price and were able to pay cash for it.(No extra debt!) The Honda runs better than the car that was wrecked and is in better shape and should last for many more years. Thank God!