Thankfulness Reflects Our Faith

 Thankfulness Reflects Our Faith

 Do we believe God provides?

 

 

 

“Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”— Phil 4:6-7

As we walk with God, having a relationship with Him; we will grow in spirit. Our own selves will become less and He will become more. We realize our own weaknesses and lean on Him more and more.

This is the growth of our faith. We start to transition from flesh to spirit.

Notice in this verse the first phrase. “Be careful for nothing.”

In our flesh we have fear, doubt, worries and concerns. We see with our fleshly eyes and we are impacted by it. Like when Peter walked on water and took his eyes of Christ, because He was distracted by the wind and the waves.

In essence, it is a lack of trust in God. Because if we saw God standing next to us in awesome power, would we be concerned about anything? No. But, the enemy and our flesh distracts us and causes us to doubt or worry.

God has not given us a spirit of fear. It’s from the devil. (2 Tim 1:7)

God gives us power, love and a sound mind through the Holy Spirit.

Through Him we have access to the throne. He intercedes for us. He translates our prayer into the proper format for power. His love is in us. His truth and wisdom gives us a sound mind.

When we pray we trust Him. We put our faith in Him. We believe that He hears us and will respond. We believe it.

The next phrase says, “But in everything”, That means everything. There is nothing too small for God. There is nothing we need to hide from God, even if we could. We can trust Him.

We can boldly come to His throne in prayer.

Jesus said, “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.”— (John 14:13-14)

We can believe Him. We can believe His Word.

We pray in His name, under His authority and righteousness. Not our own.

As we grow closer in relationship with Him. We learn His character and His will. We grow less concerned for frivolous things, and trying to put on a front.

So, our prayer takes on a different flavor. We pray what He desires, and we are happy with what He brings us.

Not saying that life is a bed of roses. But, we have God with us, and that is really all that matters in the end.

We pray and cry out to God. We make our requests, and we do it with thanksgiving.

Because if you thank God for what he is going to do in the future, you are manifesting faith in Him and His Word. We trust His promises, so we thank Him ahead of time. It’s the faith that fuels the prayer to the Lord. He responds to our faith.

This faith and thankfulness works to bring peace. Because we have to go back to the original consideration.

Do we really believe?

It’s not easy.

But, when we pray and trust God, and thank Him for what he is about to do, we are exercising faith in the Lord that He moves, and this knowledge brings us peace.

He brings us peace through His Holy Spirit.

That peace is an abiding peace.

I don’t want the devil to use what I’m saying as a tool to beat you. We will have concern in life. We will have fear. But, Jesus is with us and He has overcome. (John 16:33)

Don’t let the enemy think that because you have worries or concerns that God is not with you. Have faith and turn it around to wage war on the enemy, who seeks to distract you and keep you from serving and walking with the Lord.

Our sins are washed away in the Blood of Jesus, there is no reason to fear. God is with us, if you know Him. It is HIS peace. Not our peace. (John 14:27)

His peace, which defies all our fleshly understanding will keep us with Him forever.

And we praise Him, and thank Him. Because of who He is and what He has done, and what we know He will do, because He promises.

Not that we should expect anything from God. He is not required to do anything. But, His character and promises give us faith, that He will move. It is who He is, and when we know Him, we can see it.

Praise Jesus

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Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois.

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Who Is A Liar?

 Who Is A Liar?

It's not what you think. 

 

“He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”—Rev. 21:7-8

This is a haunting verse at the very end of the Bible.

Let’s rightly divide the word. (2 Tim. 2:15)

First, we must look at the first verse because it basically cancels out the rest. If you really turn to God because you hear His call and Confess Jesus as your Lord. You are saved.

“Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?”—1 John 5:5

That’s what it says.

After salvation, God will work in our lives to change us and sanctify us if we have really turned to Him. Our faith will grow, if we are really with Him.

But, “the fearful and unbelieving” in the verse are those who have been too afraid to give up their life and turn to Christ. People who are too afraid of what people might think. Afraid to lose business and friends or family.

The unbelieving are those who refuse to put their faith in the Lord. They hear the call and refused.

Next we see a list of sinful actions, all of which God warns us about in the Word. But, all of which are sins that keep us from turning to God.

“abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters,”

All these can be saved if they turn to God and confess Jesus as Lord. But, these sins make it extra hard for a person to break free.

An abominable lifestyle is hard to stop.

A murderer has refused to forgive. And instead chose to kill. Remember Jesus said, “ For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”—Matt. 6:14-15

This is talking about actual murder and murder in the heart. What we would call 1st degree murder. It’s also talking about people who have absolutely no regard for the lives of others at all.

A whoremonger is a pimp. A person who is a sex trafficker and exploits other people to survive, and for profit. It’s difficult to get out of this life. Like the Abominable there is a demonic presence in this type of thing.

The Sorcerer and Idolater have basically turned to other Gods for help and salvation. They have not turned to Christ. They have never had a relationship with Him.

That brings us to “Liars”.

This terrifies us because we have all lied. We have all told lies in our lives. Whether we want to admit it or not. We try to justify it. We try to make it “White Lies”. We lie because of fear. We lie to save ourselves and others. We share things we have not seen or proven.

We lie.

But, God clarifies in His Word who is a liar.

“Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.”—1 John 2:22

So again, God tells us that the only people who are liars are those who have rejected Christ.

Why?

Because if you have accepted Christ, then your sin is washed away and you are hid in Him.

You do not sin because your sins are no longer held to your account. It’s not about what you do, it’s about your position in Christ.

“Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.”— 1 John 3:9

In chapter one, John tells us to confess our sins. (1 John 1:8-10)

In chapter three, he tells us that those in Christ do not sin. These two ideas do not work together, unless he is talking about something else.

Clearly he is saying “We do not sin in the eyes of God. Because we are saved.” He is not saying we do not commit sins. That wouldn’t go with the need to confess our sins to God.

We are saved. We confess our sins to wash our feet.

John wrote Revelation and First John. When he says “All Liars” in Revelation 21:7-8 he is speaking of those who have rejected Christ. The Holy Spirit ties these together.

The only reason anyone is condemned is because they reject Christ. They have never been cleansed of Sin.

That’s it.

Jesus said, “ Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.” —Matt. 10:32-33

Do you know Him? Have you confessed Him?

Turn to the Lord and let Him save you and grow you.

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Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois

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Sin vs. Love

 Sin vs. Love

 We are set free, in order to serve.

 

The Bible plainly shows in Matthew 25, what Christ will ask when He returns.

He doesn’t ask, “Did you watch porn?”

He doesn’t ask “Did you have sex before marriage, or did you have an abortion”

He doesn’t ask “Did you vote right, or did you go to church or did you obey leaders and pay what you owe?”

Nope.

He asks if you visited prisoners? Did you help the poor? Did you clothe the naked? Did you give a cool drink to the thirsty? Did you love your neighbor? Did you love at all? Did you show kindness and compassion? Did you reconcile people to God? Did you use your gifts to save souls, spread the Kingdom and help others?

I can hear you squirming in your seat dying to say…”yeah…but”

No.

Jesus died for our sins and rose for our justification. If you are saved then you are in Him and are dead to sins.  It is not held against you. Do the dead sin? No. Paul explains this in Romans.

That means that you have power over it. But, it also means that it is irrelevant to your eternity. You are washed. You are hid in Christ.  Our focus is serving God and growing the Kingdom. Not, in worrying about whether we look like good Christians, but by being good Christians through service. (Col. 3:1-3)

You confess your sins and God forgives you, and works to help you overcome. This is foot washing. God cleanses us of all sin when we confess Him as Lord. But, we get dirty as we walk in this world. Like Jesus said, we have no need but to wash our feet. We do this by confessing our sins to Him. Likewise, when we confess our sins to each other and pray for each other, we wash each others feet. As James said. (1 John 1:1-10, John 13: 4-15, James 5:16, Rom. 10:9-10)

 We are saved, and washed and hid in Christ. Our sins are gone. They are washed away. We are white as snow.

But, the things we do can open doors to the enemy to destroy us and ruin our lives. We can let demonic forces have more access to our lives. Even though we are eternally saved and forgiven. Our life in this world can be miserable because we do not confess our sins and let God work in our lives. Those sins can grow until they destroy us, if we do not let God deal with them. They can become strongholds of demonic activity in our lives. Things that can impact those around us and generations down the road.

But remember, all things work together for our good. God can use that destruction or trouble to help us. God will use it to grow us. He is not trying to hurt us but give a hope and a future. We are saved. We are in Christ, if you know Him. He chastises those He loves. The destruction or rock bottom, works to wake us up and set us free. (Romans 8: 28, Jere 29:11, Heb. 12:6)

And we still are saved forever.

God deals with our sin so we can serve the Kingdom. Knowing God and serving Him is our purpose. That’s our focus. Not our life, but His.

We are being sanctified, and through the sanctification, we endure hardness as we serve. We endure temptation and overcome through the Holy Spirit and service to the Kingdom. (2 Tim. 2:3, James 1:12)

Our willingness to have a relationship with Christ and let the Holy Spirit, love through us is what we are called to do. (Eph 2:8-10)

Our service and our love is a reflection of our relationship with God.

When you read Matthew 25. It’s obvious that the people thought they were saved. But, they never knew the King, so they never did the compassionate loving things God desired. They never grew in faith as the Lord worked in them and on them. They never had a relationship with Him. They thought their works saved them, instead of being saved to do good works. They worried about sin, like pharisees, even though they were dead to sin. Satan will get us focused on quitting sinning and being moral, because that keeps us from getting people saved, or fighting the evil in this world. (Eph 2:8-10, Matt. 7:21-23)

They never knew Him.

It’s not about works. It’s about who you know and who you have a relationship with. And that relationship will get us to serve Him, as He sanctifies us.

Let God take care of your sins. Focus on serving and loving others. Focus on the relationship with God.

And you will find that those sins you worry about, get less and less. We grow. We build faith. We build our relationship with God. We overcome the sin that so easily besets us. By following the Holy Spirit and doing the service God calls us to do. Not by works, but by His power.

Love covers a multitude of sins. God is love, and He works to drive those things out of us through Love. As we love God, serving Him and having that relationship with Him, and serving others. Loving them. (1 Peter 4:7-8)

We find ourselves growing free, to match the spiritual truth that we are already free in Christ. 

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The Apostles and 70 A.D.

 The Apostles and 70 A.D.

What happened? 

 

 

 

After Jesus ascended alive into heaven the Apostles were emboldened, because they had seen Jesus die and rise from the dead. They knew He is the Messiah. They knew they could trust Him and God’s Word. They were filled with the Holy Spirit and went forth in power.

They began the work of building a ministry and spreading the Gospel as the Holy Spirit led them.

We can read about it in the Acts of The Apostles.

While they spread the Gospel, Satan raised up persecution upon them. Efforts from the religious leaders and the Roman government to stop this growing faith.

But, the apostles continued on, being beaten and killed for the Gospel’s sake.

Like Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.”— John 12:24-26

The persecution of the church pushed the apostles and other believers onward to spread the Gospel more. As the enemy tries to stop them, it just builds and grows. Because, they have seen the truth. They have the Holy Spirit. They are no longer lulled into the lie that the devil feeds those in this world.

God’s Word says, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” —Psa. 116:15

Because our death is a witness to those who are lost, as they seek to destroy us and stop us from spreading the Gospel. Our death shows the lost that we trust God, and are convinced of His promises. Our death brings us home to Paradise where we will be forever with Him.

The Father loves to see His children come home.

Death is separation. The Saints never die, we are never separated from the Lord.

We see prophecies of the creation of the Church and the apostles through God’s Word.

First we see the creation of the woman, in Genesis. When God causes Adam to fall into a deep sleep and removed a rib from his side and made a bride for the Man.

Likewise, Jesus died on the cross and He was pierced in the side. Out came blood and water, for the creation of the church. The Bride of Christ, born of the Blood of the Lamb and the baptism in water.

Again, we see Elijah the prophet being taken up alive into heaven, and he leaves his mantle behind to Elisha, who takes up Elijah’s position and does greater things. (1 Kings 19:19, 2 Kings Chapter 2, John 14:12)

Many use this verse of Elijah going alive into heaven as a verse to prove their doctrine of Rapture. But, it is really showing the Lord’s ascension and the Apostles being given His authority and power.

Again, The Apostles felt led to raise up a new Apostle in order to replace Judas.

They wanted to follow the prophecy in God’s Word.

“For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take.”—Acts 1:20

The Apostles cast lots and chose Matthias, to fill the position. But, then we hear nothing else from Matthias.

Why?

Because God fulfilled His own prophecy and chose Saul, who became Paul the Apostle as the successor for Judas Iscariot.

As the Apostles and other Saints followed the Holy Spirit the Gospel spread and the Church grew throughout the world.

But, the prophecy of Jesus was growing as time went on.

The Lord had prophesied over the city,

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. (Matt. 23:37-39)

“And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to shew him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said unto them, See ye not all these things? verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”— (Matt. 24:1-2)

This prophecy from our Lord before His death, tells us the fate of Jerusalem because of their choice to kill Jesus, while choosing Barabbas, the insurrectionist and murderer. The picture of Satan. The Anti-Christ.

In 70 A.D. The Roman General Titus, who would become Emperor, attacked and destroyed Jerusalem. He destroyed the second temple and plowed the city under. Just as Jesus had prophesied.

The city where He was killed. The city that refused to turn back to the Lord, was destroyed. The city who chose the devil, and probably it was this Barabbas who helped stir up the insurrections which eventually led to the destruction of the city.

Which caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to be sent to wander the Earth in what is called the Diaspora.

But, that was not the first prophecy of this event.

Notice how Jesus referred to Himself as “The Son Of Man”

Who is “Man”?

Man is Adam.

Jesus is referring to the story of Cain and Able.

He is calling Himself “Able”.

Able is a picture of Jesus.

Killed by his brethren for envy.

Then, the brother is sent to wander the Earth.

Like Cain.

Who eventually built a city of trade and learning.

Before the days of the Flood, creating a global empire.

And even today it is being built.

To prepare the world for the Anti-Christ to come, following the spirit of antichrist.

While the Apostles and saints follow the Holy Spirit to build God’s Kingdom.

It all moves quickly toward the last days, and the return of our Lord from the sky, in glory.

The battle has raged from the beginning till now, and will end soon.

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The Road To Emmaus

 The Road To Emmaus

 Our hearts burned within us

 

After Jesus rose from the dead, He spent 40 days on the Earth before He ascended to heaven. (Acts 1)

During that time he was seen by many people. Proving that He was alive.

He appeared to the disciples several times. Helping them to understand what had happened and building their faith for the work they needed to do. (John chapter 20 and 21, Matt. 28, Mark 16,)

One of those times was when 2 disciples were walking on the road to the village of Emmaus, and a man joined them as they walked. (Luke 24)

It was Jesus.

At first they did not recognize Him. On several occasions he was not recognized by appearance but was known. A possible explanation could be that the beating He took from the Romans might have swollen or bruised his face. The other possibility is that his resurrected body was so healed and perfect that he no longer showed signs of age or any physical blemishes. He might have looked years younger.

But often when he spoke or they saw him perform some act, He became obvious to them. Like when you meet someone you have not seen in years, but when they smile or say your name, you see them for who they are.

So, Jesus walked with them and listened to them recount the activities of the last few days. The crucifixion and resurrection.

They still doubted and had fear.

But, Jesus spoke to them.

“O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?” — Luke 24:25-26

Then, beginning at the writings of Moses, which is Genesis through Deuteronomy, and all the prophets, Jesus explained to them where He appeared in the scriptures. All the allegorical pictures of Him. The allusions to the coming Messiah and the prophecies of Him.

Jesus is the central point of the Bible. Virtually everything is a picture of Him.

From the point where God says, “Let there be Light” in Genesis, we know that Jesus is the Light of the World. To where God created the woman, and it is the story of the crucifixion.

God caused Adam to go into a deep sleep (Death)

And out of his side He took a rib and fashioned a Woman to be Adam’s Bride.

Likewise, after Jesus died a Roman soldier pierced His side with a spear and out flowed blood and water.

And the Church, who is the Bride of Christ, is created by the Blood of the Lamb, and the water of baptism.

It’s the same story.

We see in Genesis Chapter 3 where God makes reference to The Serpent’s head being crushed by the seed of the woman. A reference to Christ’s victory over Satan.

We can move forward to Noah, who was righteous because he believed the Word, God gave Him. He built an Ark to save as many as would believe. Just like Jesus saves us from the coming wrath if we put our faith in Him and get on board.

We see the story of the Exodus where the blood of the Lamb was painted on the door posts in order to save everyone in the house.

We see the law of Moses where the sacrifices and sanctuaries are pictures of the coming great sacrifice of Jesus, and that we are clean and hid in Him.

We can go on and on showing the hidden references to Christ throughout God’s Word.

And they were hidden in order to keep God’s plan a secret from Satan and His angels, until the day Jesus was killed and set us free.

They were mysteries from the foundation of the world, for the same reason that He spoke to them in Parables.

“He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.”—Matt. 13:11-15

God has set a method for salvation.

Hear His call and turn to Him. Believing Him and confessing Him as Lord. Asking Him to save you in Jesus name. (Romans 10:9-10, Acts 2:38, Acts 2:21)

And the Holy Spirit will reveal the truth to you and grow you in Christ. Working to build your faith.

Jesus is the Door.

If anyone tries another way they are a robber and a thief. (John 10)

If Satan has deceived them with a works based doctrine, they do not really know the Lord. They have never confessed Him as Lord. They have never received grace, because they are trying to save themselves. (1 Cor. 12:3, Rom 11:6)

 They are like the demons who know there is a God, but they reject Him. They do not confess Him as Lord. They are in rebellion and have never submitted to the Lord, and received grace. Those same demons work to keep us trapped in rebellion with them.  (James 2:19)

That is why the Gospel was hid and remains a difficult thing.

In order to prevent Satan and his minions in the war, and to get humans saved the proper way.

But, it is not difficult. It is the easiest thing in the world. Simply submit to the Lord. Turn to Him and confess Him as your Lord. He will do the rest.

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He Rose For Our Justification

 He Rose For Our Justification

 We are justified in Christ

 

 

There was only one law in the beginning.

Just one.

“But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”–Gen. 2:17

People want to act like God is some eternal killjoy, who is just hovering about ready to strike you down with furious wrath and bolts of lightning.

But, in the beginning there was only ONE law.

And Satan in his rebellion used a serpent, which by the way, was not a snake. It was a dragon, or as we like to call them, a dinosaur. (Rev. 12:9)

He used it to tempt the first couple, in order to get them to fall.

He tricked Eve into breaking the one law. But, Adam was not tricked. He knew exactly what he was doing. (1 Tim. 2:14)

He knew it was wrong and chose to listen to his wife instead of listening to God. (Gen. 3:17)

Adam was Satan’s target. Adam had the dominion of the Earth. He was the one who needed to fall. (Gen. 1: 26-28)

Why Adam chose to ignore God’s Law is not given to us. Adam probably explained it away, some how. I tend to think He loved Eve and did not want her to die alone. Or perhaps he did not want to be alone again, if she died after eating the fruit.

It’s hard to say, but when the first couple ate of the fruit they quickly discovered why God had warned them. God’s laws are typically designed to protect us.

Something changed in them. Their eyes were opened. God had created everything good. There was no death. But, now there was evil present. Death and evil, flooded into the world. (Gen 3:6-10)

Adam and Eve had fear, where none had existed before.

Evil was contained somewhere else, and now came upon the humans. It corrupted them and now corrupts all of humanity ever since.

This brought death. Death is separation. Remember, we are eternal beings. Death is not an end. We have no end. We are made in God’s image. We are eternal spirits. Death means separation. We die physically and are separated from our loved ones on Earth. We then die spiritually and are separated from God and our loved ones who are saved, forever.

Why?

In order to contain the evil. Hell/The Lake of Fire is a quarantine. It exists in order to keep evil from destroying all of eternity. It was created for Satan and his angels. It is a garbage dump outside the city of God, where all filthy things are thrown, in order to not corrupt Paradise. (Matt. 25:41, Rev.22:14-15)

Since Adam chose to follow Satan instead of God, He gave up the dominion. That is why Satan is the god of this world. You go into bondage under whoever overcomes you. If you give your authority to another, they own you. (2 Cor 4:4, 2 Pet. 2:19)

And that is the state we live in.

We are born into this world, totally corrupted. Filled with fear and evil, facing eternal separation from God and all things good.

We cannot do right. No matter how hard we try. We are under the control of Satan and his demonic hordes who whisper into our minds and get us to do whatever evil deeds they want. Seeking to rob us, kill us and destroy us, because God loves us, and the demons hate God. They seek to hurt God by hurting us.

And Satan sits and accuses us, day and night (Rev. 12:10)

He accuses us to God.

“Look at these creatures you created. They are filthy. They don’t love you. If they loved you they would have stayed with you. They are scum. Destroy them. Kill them. Punish them. They do all manner of evil, and mock you. Destroy them.”

But God loves us, and He had a plan.

It was a plan started at the foundation of the world.

A plan that grew and spread and remained hidden from the enemy.

It started with Faith, in Abraham.

A way to be righteous. (Gen. 15:6, Rom. 4:3, Gal . 3:6, Jas 2:23)

Then, it moved to the Law, in Moses

In order to show us that we are sinners and cannot obey God. (Rom. 7)

A law that so happened to also allow for cleansing our disobedience through sacrifice.

Then, finally God himself came to Earth in the form of Jesus Christ to save His creation from Satan and the sins that keep us in bondage.

Satan thought that Jesus was here to teach us to obey. He thought Jesus was teaching us to follow the Law, which the enemy had already corrupted with human philosophy, traditions of men and doctrines of devils.

It would be a failed mission. Humans cannot obey. No matter how hard they try. Satan had made sure of that by corrupting us in the Garden. We are totally depraved.

Then, Satan and his demon princes killed Jesus. They used their human slaves in government and religion to do it.

He thought he won. He thought he had finally won.

He might have even accused us before God again. Just like he accused Job. (Job chapter 1 and 2))

“Look at those creatures. They murdered your Son. They obeyed me, not you and killed you. Why do you love them? They spit in your face.”

And God smiled.

Because through His death, He had saved us.

So, that anyone who desires it can be free from the bondage of Sin, Satan and Death.

All they have to do is turn to God and ask Him to save them in Jesus name. (Acts 2:21)

But, that wasn’t the end.

God was not finished.

Because Jesus, was the lamb without blemish. He was not tarnished by evil or sin. He was not worthy of death or separation. He was the perfect sacrifice.

And death could not hold Him.

God Himself died for us and rose from the dead to prove that we are saved and justified. (Rom. 4)

We do not have to answer to the accuser. We do not have to fear death or evil. We do not have to face wrath. We do not have to face Hell or The Lake of Fire or separation from God. We are clean, righteous and justified in Christ.

We are saved by God’s grace, through faith.

Because He, Himself came and set us free in His death and rose to prove it.

All we have to do is turn to Him by faith and ask.

And we are made righteous and justified forever.

We will be with Him in Paradise.

Where “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. (1 Cor 2:9)

He has restored that which was lost. And He will continue to restore all of it, back to what He originally created. (Matt. 18:11, Rev. 21, Rev. 22)

Praise Jesus

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Cover photo by pexels/Guillaume Hankenne

Transformed!

 Transformed!

 God works in our lives to change us.

 

 

We often forget that it is God who calls us to Himself.

All humans are utterly depraved. We are so wicked that we cannot even see how wicked we are. (Romans 3:10-18)

We were created good by God. We are flesh covered spiritual beings created to last forever. But, we are fallen. There is something wrong with us. Our minds, souls and spirits became corrupt. We fell in the Garden and Satan took over.

“ There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.”

No one seeks God. Therefore, if you are having thoughts of God. If you are feeling led to go to church or learn of spiritual things. If a sermon or the Gospel message of Christ is speaking to your heart. If you are reading this…

That is God calling you.

No one comes to Jesus to be saved unless God calls them. (John 6:44)

This is part of His Grace and part of why He saves us, not by our own efforts, but by His.

When we hear this call we turn to the Lord and ask Him to save us. That is what repentance is. It means “to turn”

Since God is the only way to be saved we obviously turn to Him. Then, He washes us in the blood of Jesus and cleanses us of all sin. We do not need to understand it. We just turn to Him and ask.

We confess Jesus is the Lord and make Him our Lord, believing He rose from the dead. (Romans 10:9-10)

Then the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us and work in our lives to help transform us and help us to serve God in building the Kingdom. (John 14:26)

When we first get saved, there are things God will remove from our lives. People will notice we are different. When we give ourselves to Jesus we are free from sin and the the things that hold us down. He has taken all of it upon His shoulders, and when we believe this, we are changed. We are transformed. We are a new creature.

This is believing God’s Word.

God’s Word tells us that He will save us and change us. It tells us He will take our sin and cast them away from us and wash us. When we believe this, we put our faith in Him and it works to change us.

We are saved by grace through faith not by works lest any man should boast. (Eph. 2:8-9)

God calls us. We hear His word, and believe Him. Then, we turn to Him to be saved.

God Himself came to Earth to die for us, to set us free from Sin and Satan, who took dominion when Adam fell. We are slaves to the enemy and the power of our own flesh. Our spirits are dead and our souls are trapped as we go through life being led by Satan and our worldly ways.

But, when we hear God call and turn to Him for salvation we are set free and we begin to transform.

The Holy Spirit comes into us and begins to change us and teach us. We study God’s Word and learn of His promises and His ways.

When we have thoughts that are contrary to God’s Word, the Holy Spirit reveals it to us and we take those thoughts captive and tell Satan to be gone in Jesus name, then we choose to believe and follow God’s Word instead. This is the battle between the flesh and spirit. As we wage this battle we are transformed over time. (2 Cor. 10:5, Gal.5:17)

This is not salvation. We are already saved; if we confessed Him as Lord. But, we can prove our salvation to ourselves by the fact that we struggle with the enemy. Unsaved people do not struggle. This struggle is our sanctification. It is God working on us through His Holy Spirit to help change us and to help us in our lives.

We confess our sins and thoughts to the Lord, and He forgives us and starts working to transform us. (1John 1:8-10)

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”—Rom. 12:1-2

When we read this we might think that we are condemned because we fail and cannot do it. We might think we are such utter failures, and the preacher keeps beating us.

That is the Holy Spirit speaking to you. It is conviction.

The answer is to turn to God, and confess it to Him. Pray to Him about it and let Him get to work. Our salvation and sanctification is God’s work, not ours.

The fact that you desire to change and feel convicted is proof of your salvation. The Holy Spirit in you is calling you to work with God in your sanctification. This is the relationship we have.

We see changes in our lives and in our spirit, as we are renewed in our minds. Our spirit is alive in Him and we are transformed.

We are not perfect. We sin. We fail. But, we are perfect in Him. He holds our salvation in His hand.

When we think wicked thoughts of hate or revenge or fear or doubt or pride, we capture them and rebuke them in Jesus name. Because thoughts work to become actions. The more we do this the stronger we become.

We quote the Word out loud to ourselves, and it builds our faith and drives the demon out.

Because that is what is behind those thoughts. Demons whispering through the hedge of protection trying to get us to open the door. If we fail and listen to those thoughts. If we follow through with sin, we start working to open the door a little at a time. Eventually, the demons can come into our mind and life as often as they want. We have fallen back into bondage. But, through the Lord we can stand up and resist. We can shake them off. We confess it to Him and let Him cleanse us and work to change us.

We can struggle with these things in our flesh but it does nothing to our spirit until God Himself does it. This is why obeying rules does nothing spiritual. This is why no one is saved by the works of God’s Law.

It must be God making the changes and transforming us. Flesh cannot transform spirit. Only spirit can do that. God is a spirit, and those who worship Him must worship him in spirit and in truth. The truth is Jesus Christ. The truth is God’s Word, and Jesus is the living Word. (John 1, John 4:24)

We are transformed when we are saved. Then, we live lives of transformation as we continually turn to Him and abide in Him.

Going to church and obeying rule won’t do it.

It’s a relationship with Him.

It’s a spiritual battle with the enemy who attacks our mind, and life.

No matter what. Always turn to God. Do not let the enemy get you to think that you can’t trust God. Or you failed too much. Or that God is out to get you. Take those thoughts captive and say “begone Satan in Jesus name, God will never leave me nor forsake me. He is my helper.”

Draw closer to God. Praise Him. Read His Word and let the Holy Spirit teach you.

And watch Him transform you.

(cover image by pexels)

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Read these great books at Charisma House.

Checkout Bait of Satan

Checkout Health Zone

Checkout The Heart That Sees God

Fear Not

 Fear Not

God is with us 

 

“Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” –Luke 12:32

“For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”— 2 Tim. 1:7

“So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.”— Heb. 13:6

“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”— 1 John 4:18

“Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.”— Rev. 2:10

When we read these verses we can see that we are not supposed to fear anything. God is with us.

If we believe that God is right beside us, and even in us through His Holy Spirit, then why do we have fear? Our God is bigger than anything in this world, and anything the devil can throw at us.

These verses above indicate that there is a spirit of fear. A demonic entity which harasses us. It says in First John that we are tormented by fear.

Therefore battling fear is Spiritual Warfare. It’s something we can overcome.

The first thing needs to be faith and trust in God, His goodness and His Word.

Nothing else matters.

I harp on this idea of a relationship with God. When we know Him, we know where to turn. We can trust Him. Even when everything around us is terrible and we are in our darkest days we can trust Him. Even though the devil tries to get us to turn from God, and curse God, and doubt Him. We can trust Him. And that is power. For in our weakness we are strong when we turn to Him.

 God is not against us. It is His good pleasure to give us the Kingdom. He is for us.

Say it out loud. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.

“God is with me! He wants to give me the kingdom, He is not out to get me. He is my helper, I will not fear.”

Believe it.

We can overcome fear in His Power, His Love and His Wisdom.

We can pray and know He hears. He promises that if we ask anything in His name He will do it. —John 14:14

No doubts. Trust Him. He hears and is moving.

Fear be gone! God is with me!

Love casts out fear. Confront the fear in love.

Do the loving thing.

When faced with fear, love others. Do unto others as you would have done to you. Loving others takes your mind off of self, and onto other people. Use the fear to fuel love. Overcome evil with good.

Remember that God loves you. If we are saved, then we are perfect in God’s Love. Remember this. He loves through us. Let Him love you and love others through you.

The devil threw some of them into prison. They were told to fear not. So, what did they do? How did they overcome fear?

They loved. They prayed for the guards and other inmates. They preached the Gospel and spoke faith to the other prisoners. They comforted the sick in prison. They helped each other. They loved, in the midst of fear and hate, and temptations for anger. They turned prison into purpose. That is how you cast out fear.

Love casts out fear.

Praise God. Loving Him and praising Him casts out fear. You cannot hold fear in your mind, while praising God at the same time.

We also overcome fear through a sound mind. We have a sound mind by knowing God’s Word. By seeking Him for wisdom and understanding and truth. By having faith in His Word. By prayer and His guidance.

We can look at how God has brought us through things in the past, and trust that He will again. We can go and seek out the truth. Study, ask, learn, seek answers. Fear thrives in the unknown.

We can ask ourselves, “What is the worst case scenario? Has God let the worst things happen to me? What if He does? He will be with me through it.”

Overcome and drive out fear through Power, Love and a Sound mind. We can drive it out through Him, and His Word, and Faith in Him and His Word. We trust that He is good and He is with us.

 Spirit of Fear be gone in Jesus name.

Say it out loud. Cast the spirit out.

Remember times when God was with you and saw you through. Trust Him.

Dark times are coming, according to prophecy.

We need to be able to wage spiritual warfare and cast out fear.

Remember during Covid, when the virus was everywhere and fear was running with it? Remember when the vaccine came out and they were forcing people to take it or lose their jobs?

That was a picture of what is coming.

They will say, take the Mark of the Beast or lose your job.

When you see saints being rounded up, and your own pastors turning you in for refusing to bow to the Anti-Christ.

Fear not.

Love not your life unto death. —Rev. 12:11

Fear keeps us down, and keeps us from acting in faith.

Drive out the fear, in Jesus name.

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Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger

Follow Him on Medium: https://chris-bunton.medium.com/

Follow Him on Free Life Blog: https://myfreelifeblog.com/

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Cover photo pexels/Мария Кашина

All Things

 All Things

All means all

 

 

Speak the truth of God’s Word into your life. Believe Him. Trust Him, learn of Him and know He is with you where ever you go. Make Him the focus of your life and grow in relationship with Him.

“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”—Phil. 4:13

Believe it. Speak it to yourself in faith.

When you are facing something that is causing you to fear, or doubt. Turn to God. Trust Him and speak the truth into your life. Tell yourself out loud.

“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

He is with you. He is working in you and through you if you know Him.

If you are trying to accomplish something; know that he is with you. Trust the Word.

Are you concerned with having your needs met? Trust God. Stand on the Word. Speak this verse to yourself and believe it.

“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.’—Phil. 4:19

What does it say? Does it say “Some”? No it says “All”. God will take care of you. Say it. and trust Him.

“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God”— Rom. 10:17

Speak the Word of God out loud to yourself and others. Believe it.

Say

“My God shall supply all my need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

Say it out loud and trust it. It is a fact.

Speaking the Word out loud builds faith.

Is something making you think you lost your salvation? Turn to God and ask Him to save you through Jesus Christ and speak these words over your fear.

 “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.:—John 6:37

If you know Jesus, He will not cast you out. You might stumble. You might drift away, but He is with you still. Just turn to Him and ask.

“I am in Christ, and He will not cast me out.” Say it and believe it.

“And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.”—John 6:39

If we know Him, we will be with Him on that day.

Are you confused? Are demons whispering into your mind trying to get you to think God is out to get you?

Trust God.

“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”—Rom. 8:28

Say it out loud.

“All things work together for my good. I love God and He has called me to Him and His purpose for my life. He is with me.”

Believe it. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. Your faith expands when you hear God’s truth and you trust Him.

It’s sort of like stirring yourself up, except that it is spirit. His words are spirit and truth. They impact your soul and spirit and the things beyond the veil. They build up faith, and when you see Him move, your faith grows as well.

Are you facing something you cannot overcome, like addiction or some task?

“Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”—Rom. 8:37

Say it.

“I am a conqueror in Jesus name. I will overcome through Him.”

Speak it and believe it.

Do not let the devil, beat you down with fear and doubt. Stand on God’s Word. Believe His promises and speak them into your life and the life of others.

The enemy comes to steal, kill and destroy.

But, Jesus came to give us life, and to give it more abundantly. (John 10:10)

“I have an abundant life in Jesus name. He has saved me and is blessing me.”

If the enemy can get you to stop trusting God, then you have no where to turn. You can believe the Word.

Even if God is causing you problems or allowing it. It is for your good, and you can trust Him. Pray the Word. Speak the promises.

Stand on it.

(Do you have prayer requests or praises? Tell me in the comments or message me.)

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Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger.

Follow Him on Medium: https://chris-bunton.medium.com/

Follow Him on Free Life Blog: https://myfreelifeblog.com/

Subscribe on Substack: https://substack.com/@chrisbunton

Read His Bible Studies on Blogger: https://chrisbunton.blogspot.com/

 Support the work for the cost of a Coffee

Support the work through Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=13514235&fan_landing=true&view_as=public

Photo by Pexels/Aigars Jansons

Heaping Teachers In These Last Days

 Heaping Teachers In These Last Days

We avoid deception when we are taught by the Holy Spirit 

 

 

"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears"--2 Timothy 4:3

The scriptures teach that in the last days we shall heap to ourselves teachers having itching ears, because we ignore sound doctrine and follow our fleshly desires.

This is referring to the believer and unbeliever alike.

We are perishing for lack of knowledge. We know it deep in our hearts. We know it in our souls and spirits. Something is wrong and we seek to know what it is. We seek anything to fill that gaping hole that can only be filled by God. (Hosea 4:6)

At the same time, we are surrounded by people who want to be important. They think they are the smartest one in the room and they often make sense or are so charismatic, that they seem wise or command respect. 

So we gather around these people having itching ears and desiring to hear from God through them, or anyone who can give us a spark of insight. These people are shiny. They transform themselves into angels of light. They teach works, and their end will be according to their works. They are from Satan. (2 Cor. 11:12-15)

But, the scriptures teach that God Himself, has gifted teachers and given them to us. ( 1 Cor. 12:28, Eph.4:11.)

A teacher from God is not the same as a teacher from man; or Satan.  God uses the base things to confound the wise. (1 Cor. 1:15-31)

But we are so eager to fill a spot or chase after some preacher or teacher who might not be from God.That we miss the real teachers from the Lord. We want the pretty thing, not the rough thing. We want polished, not the beat up clunker.

I'm not talking about learning a trade from a tradesmen. Although, we should seek to be led by God into that as well.

I'm talking about spiritual things.

So, how do we avoid the false teaching?

Jesus said that the Holy Spirit teaches us and leads us into all truth. (John 16:13)

John said that we have no need for any to teach us but the anointing will do it.(1 John 2:27)

James said, if we desire wisdom we can ask of God and He will give it.(James 1:5)

So, how does this work? Well, first we turn to God and confess Jesus as our Lord and believe in Him. We must be saved, have the Holy Spirit and willing to believe what He teaches and what the Word says. (Romans 10:9-10, Romans 4:3, Gal. 3:6, James 2:23, Luke 11: 11-13, John 14:16-17)

Then, we ask the Lord to teach us and guide us. (Prov. 3:5-8)

He will open up the scriptures to you. He will open up your mind, heart and life to learn from Him.

You will see things around you and in your life that will grow you and change you and teach you.

God will lead you to the church and the teachers and preachers He wants you to have. Listen to His Spirit as He guides you.

In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your path.

But, this takes time. 

 

After being saved, Paul went into the desert of Arabia to hear from God. Then after 3 years he talked with Peter, to make sure what he heard was correct. Then, he continued to learn from the Spirit for 14 years as he served.  Even then, he still made sure of what he was teaching. He already had head knowledge from his years as a pharisee. But, he needed heart knowledge, he needed Spirit knowledge, he needed brokenness.  This takes time. (Gal.1:1-24-Gal 2:1-10)

God calls his teachers and preachers as He sees fit. It is a burden. A calling. It's not something you get from a few classes. It's not something you get because you are important in the community and able to attract listeners.

Jesus said "I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me. But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.  I and my Father are one."---(John 10:25-30)

With so many voices around us, is it any wonder that we can't hear from God anymore? Have you heard His voice? Would you know it? Jesus says you will if you are with Him. Believe it.

 
How do we hear from Him? We listen to the still small voice not the earthquake or raging fire full of fear. (1 Kings 19:11-12)

Jesus said " If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?" (John 3:12)

Do you believe the hard things in His Word? Do you believe the crazy things in the Bible? Do you believe in six days of creation and one day of rest? Can you believe in talking serpents and global floods? If you can't believe that,  then how can you believe that He rose from the dead? (Romans 10:9-10) 

 

How can you believe He is coming again? How can you believe He answers prayer or will never forsake you? How can you believe there is an enemy, and how can you believe there are false teachers? Maybe even the one who preaches to you about works every Sunday.

He has given us teachers. But are we listening to HIS teachers? 

 

Like the leaders of Israel ignored and killed the true prophets. Do religious leaders keep the people in darkness today as well? Do we heap to ourselves teachers today thinking we are so smart, or so spiritual?

 

If we trust the Holy Spirit and let Him teach us we will avoid the deceptions of these last days. We will know the truth. This is how the elect avoids deception, in these days of lies. (Matt. 24:24)

 

By letting the Holy Spirit teach us we grow in relationship with God and we avoid heaping teachers based upon our fleshly desires. Whether we mean to or not we have a tendency to want to hear from teachers who are agreeing with what we already know or believe.
 

This verse is not speaking of "desires" in the sense of lusts. No preacher is telling you to commit adultery or steal or kill, or be a drunkard. No one would follow this guy. But, the teacher is teaching based upon the desires of the fleshly mind, instead of the things of the spirit. Teaching a salvation by works, instead of grace. Teaching the religion of the Anti-Christ to come. A religion that twists and ignores the Word. Teachers serving Satan instead of God. A religion of deception and control, in order to lead the people into the Apostate Church to come.

Ask the Holy Spirit to teach you. Start listening to Him right now. We avoid false teachers by listening to the Holy Spirit. He will lead us into all truth and open the Word for us. He will renew our mind. He will change us.

Trust in the Lord.

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Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger.

Follow Him on Medium: https://chris-bunton.medium.com/

Follow Him on Free Life Blog: https://myfreelifeblog.com/

Subscribe on Substack: https://substack.com/@chrisbunton

Read His Bible Studies on Blogger: https://chrisbunton.blogspot.com/

Support the work for the cost of a Coffee

Support the work through Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=13514235&fan_landing=true&view_as=public

photo by the author.