God's Fruit Trees

 

Most of us have asked God for wisdom and knowledge at one time or another. We have also been asked for them by someone needing help. Whatever the circumstances, God's  wisdom & knowledge...never deviates from Christ's character and His actions when He was here on earth. Like anything else...anything...God wants our faith and gaze to always end up back on Christ Jesus. Why? 

 

 

 

 

 

Col. 2: 1I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church at Laodicea, and for many other believers who have never met me personally. 2I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ  Himself. 3In Him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

 

 

4I am telling you this so no one will deceive you with well-crafted arguments. 5For though I am far away from you, my heart is with you. And I rejoice that you are living as you should and that your faith in Christ is strong.6And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow Him. 7Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on Him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

 

8Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powersa of this world, rather than from Christ. 9For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body.b 10So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the Head over every ruler and authority.

 

 

 

We want to obey God...to emulate Christ...yet, we'll fail...or we'll be trying and trying in our own flesh...unless we learn to do it a different way. Not too long ago in our recent history the WWJD movement began. However, it faded, but why?  This article has an idea about that....

http://www.drurywriting.com/keith/wwjd.htm 

 

 

 

 

We cannot do anything 'God derived' in our flesh, so as to bear the kind of fruit that accomplishes His purposes. This is why it behooves us to stand back for a time and ask God to teach us to be fruit bearers, instead of 'trying' and exerting ourselves to bear fruit.

 

 

 

Then even when we do bear fruit by own efforts, what comes of it? Is it lasting fruit? This is the question that the believers before us perhaps did not understand...which is why the movement that had good intentions, sunk into near nothingness ~ like a house built on sand...or wine skin that burst ~ because it had old wine put into it.

 

 

 

Evil wars against the human body that is already weak, then fights to sway our mind away from Christ so it can't cooperate with the things of the Spirit. ~ Who will give us the victory over these things...so our body and mind can be used for God, instead of against Him?  

 

 

 1 John 5:4 For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.

 

 

Faith in what or whom? In ourselves? In our own abilities? In our own actions? In our own common sense? In our own knowledge and wisdom? In our own feelings? In our own ways? In our own talents? In our own intellect? In our own interpersonal skills?

 

 

 

OR

 

 

 

Faith in Christ Jesus? In His abilities? In His actions? In His common sense? In His knowledge and wisdom? In His feelings? In His ways? In His talents? In His intellect? and In His interpersonal skills?

 

 

 

Which source do you have faith in so as to be a  'happy tree'? A fruit bearer who is living it's purpose and shares in the blessings??

 

 

 

 

You who have been born of God...so you have been planted IN Him...and your roots have complete access to the Source...to Christ Jesus. He has given you a new nature, He is inside and with and around you....as well as His written word is before you...He has hemed you in on everyside!  Psalm 139:5 "You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand of blessing upon me". Jesus is your everything...including your teacher.

 

 

John 13: 12When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. 13“You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am.

 

 

 

14Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

 

 

 

He wants to be our example. He desires to teach us, and then His Holy Spirit remind us, how to live. Our spirit, which has been made new, is very willing, ready and able! However, our body is weak, and is used to doing things the old way. Jesus said in Matt. 26:41 "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak."

 

 

Then Paul, who emulated Christ, is saying the same thing Jesus said here in  Rom. 7: "21So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!"

 

 

The disciples walked with Jesus and learned from Him...so we can also walk with Christ through the gospels and learn from Him there as well. John 2: 20“What!” they exclaimed. “It has taken forty-six years to build this Temple, and you can rebuild it in three days?” 21But when Jesus said “this temple,” he meant his own body. 22After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered he had said this, and they believed both the Scriptures and what Jesus had said.

 

Paul also learned from and emulated Jesus (1 Cor. 11:1), and so when we go there and read his letters and learn from him...this is also learning from Christ.  Phil. 4:9 'Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me--everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you."

 

 

We must remember as we are in this process, that God has not left us clueless at all!! He has shown us in His written word all the specifics...so you and I can become more familiar with what comes from His Spirit and what doesn't. Perhaps the WWJD movement didn't last because the fruit trees were expected to keep on growing and producing God's fruit even when the things not of God began coming out of the same trees?

 

 

 

James 3: 9-18 "With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. 11Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

 

 

Light and dark can not exist together...and even a little leaven leavens the whole lump. Or perhaps Christ grew into a mere idea, instead of a real Person who was God in the flesh and Who's every word and every action represented God exactly.

 

 

 

13Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. 16For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

 

17But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peaceable, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of impartiality and hypocrisy. 18Peacemakers who sow seeds of peace raise a harvest of righteousness."

 

 

 

 

 

Gal. 5: 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

 

The Three Truths I

The truth that sets you free!

 

 

Do you love truth? It is not up to us to decide what truth is...it is up to God, since He gives it. It is a powerful gift from above. So, I am not talking about reading something in a magazine that rings true for you and loving IT. NO. I am asking if you love truth so much that you won't accept any substitute.

 

 

So whatever it turns out to be you will accept it...and you have the humble attitude that even when you think you've found it you hold on to it with an open hand - and not inside a tight fist as though you've attained and now have all the light you need! NO. Because when the truth has done what it was sent to do, it is then you will have found the truth!

 

 

Because as you closely follow Jesus and what He taught...then the truth that you find there will do more than just sit in your head...Jesus said that it will set you free! So, essentially, you can be saved...and still not be free. However, Jesus wants to be more than your Savior, so He bids you come closer, follow His teachings and therefore be exposed to the truths you will not find out there trying to make sense of things on your own! He wants you to abide (live, cling, remain) in Him!

 

 

John 8:31-32 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, "You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

Isaiah 55:10-11 "For just as the rain and snow come down from heaven, and do not return there without watering the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, yielding seed for the sower and bread for eating, so will my message be that goes out of my mouth— it won't return to me empty. Instead, it will accomplish what I desire, and achieve the purpose for which I sent it."

 

 

Heb. 4:12 For the word of God is living, and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and quick to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and the truth laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

 

 

Barnes Notes on The Bible: That truth has power to show what man is, and is like a penetrating sword that lays open the whole man; compare Isaiah 49:2. The phrase "the Word of God" here may be applied as the "truth" of God, however made known to the mind. In some way it will bring out the real feelings, and show what man is.

 

 

1 Cor. 4: 1People should think of us as servants of Christ and managers who are entrusted with God's mysteries. 2Managers are required to be trustworthy. 3It means very little to me that you or any human court should cross-examine me. I don't even ask myself questions. 4I have a clear conscience, but that doesn't mean I have God's approval.

 

 

 It is the Lord who cross-examines me. 5Therefore, don't judge anything before the appointed time. Wait until the Lord comes. He will also bring to light what is hidden in the dark and reveal people's motives. Then each person will receive praise from God.

 

 

6Brothers and sisters, I have applied this to Apollos and myself for your sake. You should learn from us not to go beyond what is written in Scripture. Then you won't arrogantly place one of us in opposition to the other. 7Who says that you are any better than other people? What do you have that wasn't given to you? If you were given what you have, why are you bragging as if it weren't a gift?

 

 

 

 

The truth that saves you!

 

 

A number of years ago some representatives of a cult came to our door, and during our conversation I asked them how they helped people know God. I actually asked this several times because each time their answer was pretty much the same...- they would do bible studies with them,  invite them to church and give them literature about God and so on.

 

 

So, in their mind learning about God by trying to gain specific 'truths' would save them. Altho, years later I asked one of their followers if he knew he was going to heaven. His answer was slow in coming...but then he said, 'No, I guess I really don't'.

 

 

 

Because how would we know, that we know or practice enough 'truth' in order to be saved??? This is sad, because God made it pretty simple to find that one truth that saves us!

 

2 Thess. 2:10 He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love the truth that would save them.

 

 

 

 John 14:6 Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father, but by me.

 

 

 

Acts 4:12 There is no salvation by anyone else, for there is no other name under heaven given among people by which we must be saved."

 

 

The truth that IS you!

 

 

Everyone has a story. Yes, because everyone has a personal history of living and being. Your story is your truth. Only you and God fully know it. Your truth only belongs to you and God, no matter who you are. Your truth consists of ~ You! So, this means you and no one else has any right to your body but you and God. If I ever talk about rights, this is it! You and I have a right to be on earth just merely via the fact that we were born and we ARE here! 

 

 

 

 

Therefore, we are also allowed to live and thrive, have a private life and make the decisions to follow God (or not) without manipulation, because God made it this way...and this is no matter the mistakes we have done, or what we believe, or what we look like...there is no one righteous, no not one...so, we are all in the same boat so to speak. 

 

 

 

 The only way someone else has a right to take any charge of my life is if I have deliberately #caused harm to someone else's rights...this includes gossip, slander, shunning, raging against, meddling and of course manipulation to just name a few.   

 

 

 

 

#Side note here. I am not talking about experiencing inconveniences, or the ofttimes need to be flexible and getting toes stepped on, no...because this happens merely by living around other people.  

 

 

 

 

2 Tim. 1:12 For this reason I suffer as I do. However, I'm not ashamed. I know whom I trust. I'm convinced that he is able to protect what I have entrusted to Him until that day.

 

 

 

 

1 Thess. 5:23 May the God who gives peace make you holy in every way. May he keep your whole being-spirit, soul, and body-blameless when our Lord Jesus Christ comes.

 

 

 

 

1 Pet. 4: 19 Therefore let them also who suffer according to the will of God in doing good, entrust their souls to him, as to a faithful Creator.

 

 

 

*That which I have entrust unto him-Greek, "my deposit"; the body, soul, and spirit, which I have deposited in God's safe keeping (1Th 5:23; 1Pe 4:19). So Christ Himself in dying (Lu 23:46). "God deposits with us His word; we deposit with God our spirit" [Grotius]. There is one deposit (His revelation) committed by God to us, which we ought to keep (2Ti 1:13, 14) and transmit to others (2Ti 2:2); there is another committed by God to us, which we should commit to His keeping, namely, ourselves and our heavenly portion.

 

 

 

Acts 17:28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain even of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

 

 

 

SO, what do we do with these three truths?? I submit these truths in your life and my life are so immensely valuable that we must treasure them...and to the point where we must be careful with whom we share them with and how. But this will be for next time...

 

 

The Three Truths II coming soon....

 

Pull Up A Chair For Storytime!

 

 

Once upon a time...

An atheist professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks one of his new students to stand.

'You're a Christian, aren't you, son?'

'Yes sir,' the student says.

'So you believe in God?'

'Absolutely. '

'Is God good?'

'Sure! God's good.'

'Is God all-powerful? Can God do anything?'

'Yes'

'Are you good or evil?'

'The Bible says I'm evil.'

 

The professor grins knowingly. 'Aha! The Bible! He considers for a moment. 'Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you can cure him. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try?'

 

 

'Yes sir, I would.'

'So you're good...!'

'I wouldn't say that.'

 

 

'But why not say that? You'd help a sick and maimed person if you could. Most of us would if we could. But God doesn't.'

 

 

The student does not answer, so the professor continues. 'He doesn't, does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer, even though he prayed to Jesus to heal him. How is this Jesus good? Can you answer that one?'

 

 

The student remains silent. 'No, you can't, can you?' the professor says. He takes a sip of water from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax. 'Let's start again, young fella. Is God good?'

 

 

'Er..yes,' the student says.

'Is Satan good?'

The student doesn't hesitate on this one. 'No.'

'Then where does Satan come from?'

The student falters. 'From God'

'That's right. God made Satan, didn't he? Tell me, son. Is there evil in this world?'

'Yes, sir..'

'Evil's everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything, correct?'

'Yes'

'So who created evil?' The professor continued, 'If God created everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to the principle that our works define who we are, then God is evil.'

 

 

Again, the student has no answer. 'Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things, do they exist in this world?'

 

 

The student squirms on his feet. 'Yes.'

'So who created them?'

The student does not answer again, so the professor repeats his question. 'Who created them?' There is still no answer. Suddenly the lecturer breaks away to pace in front of the classroom. The class is mesmerized. 'Tell me,' he continues onto another student. 'Do you believe in Jesus Christ, son?'

 

 

The student's voice betrays him and cracks. 'Yes, professor, I do.'

The old man stops pacing. 'Science says you have five senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen Jesus?'

'No sir. I've never seen Him.'

'Then tell us if you've ever heard your Jesus?'

'No, sir, I have not..'

'Have you ever felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or smelt your Jesus? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Jesus Christ, or God for that matter?'

'No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't.'

'Yet you still believe in him?'

'Yes'

'According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your God doesn't exist... What do you say to that, son?'

'Nothing,' the student replies.. 'I only have my faith.'

 

 

'Yes, faith,' the professor repeats. 'And that is the problem science has with God. There is no evidence, only faith.'

The student stands quietly for a moment, before asking a question of His own. 'Professor, is there such thing as heat? '

' Yes.

'And is there such a thing as cold?'

'Yes, son, there's cold too.'

'No sir, there isn't.'

The professor turns to face the student, obviously interested. The room suddenly become s very quiet. The student begins to explain. 'You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat, mega-heat, unlimited heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat, but we don't have anything called 'cold'. We can hit down to 458 degrees below zero, which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that.

 

 

 

There is no such thing as cold; otherwise we would be able to go colder than the lowest -458 degrees. Every body or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy.

 

 

 

Absolute zero (-458 F) is the total absence of heat. You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.'

 

 

Silence across the room. A pen drops somewhere in the classroom, sounding like a hammer.

'What about darkness, professor. Is there such a thing as darkness?'

'Yes,' the professor replies without hesitation.. 'What is night if it isn't darkness?'

'You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something; it is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light, but if you have no light constantly you have nothing and it's called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to define the word. In reality, darkness isn't. If it were, you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?'

 

 

1 John 1: 5 'This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in Him at all'. In darkness there is (in Gal. 5:20) 'the worship of idols, witchcraft, anger of man, hateds, contention, rivalry, rage, insolence, man instigated conflict, divisions and quarrels'.

 

 

The professor begins to smile at the student in front of him. This will be a good semester. 'So what point are you making, young man?'

'Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to start with, and so your conclusion must also be flawed.'

The professor's face cannot hide his surprise this time. 'Flawed? Can you explain how?'

'You are working on the premise of duality,' the student explains.. 'You argue that there is life and then there's death; a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a thought.'

 

 

 

'It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it.' 'Now tell me, professor.. Do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?'

 

 

'If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man, yes, of course I do.'

'Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?'

 

The professor begins to shake his head, still smiling, as he realizes where the argument is going. A very good semester, indeed.

 

'Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a preacher?'

 

The class is in uproar. The student remains silent until the commotion has subsided. 'To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student, let me give you an example of what I mean.' The student looks around the room. 'Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the professor's brain?' The class breaks out into laughter.

 

 

 

 'Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor's brain, felt the professor's brain, touched or smelt the professor's brain? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have no brain, with all due respect, sir.' 'So if science says you have no brain, how can we trust your lectures, sir?'

 

 

Now the room is silent. The professor just stares at the student, his face unreadable. Finally, after what seems an eternity, the old man answers. 'I Guess you'll have to take them on faith.'

 

 

'Now, you accept that there is faith, and, in fact, faith exists with life,' the student continues. 'Now, sir, is there such a thing as evil?'

Now uncertain, the professor responds, 'Of course, there is. We see it Everyday. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man. It is in The multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil.'

 

 

To this the student replied, 'Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there is no light.'

 

 

The professor sat down.

The student was Albert Einstein

 

Albert Einstein wrote a book titled God vs. Science in 1921.

 

 

Everything that can be counted does not necessarily count; everything that counts cannot necessarily be counted. (Law -vs- Law of Love)
Albert Einstein

Love's Challenge

 

 

There is an epidemic of loneliness , not just here in the USA, but everywhere. Please take a minute and read this short article; http://www.joshhunt.com/mail18.htm

 

However, God has an answer for this if we but heed His call. In fact that call comes in the form of a command...and that command is the answer not only to loneliness, but also to providing the very best way to spread the gospel - by actually reaching out a hand to whomever God puts in your path.

 

Scripture says that if we are not loving others, then we do not know God. (1 John 4:7-8) Why? Because God is love, and if He is truly in your heart then He will be pulling at your heart to reach out in some form or fashion. Have you thought about this? It appears many people give it very little thought...or the plague of loneliness and the lack of the gospel being spread in the way where people are anxious to respond, would not be as much of a concern as it is.

 

 

I'm sure you notice in scripture the multitude of times that love is indirectly or directly spoken about...and how direct God is about the part love plays in our walk...even to the point of making it a command. Yet, do we take it seriously? 

 

 

 

But some how I think that if we were loving as we are supposed to then the church would be getting the similar reaction as Christ got.

 

 

People followed Him in great numbers. They would sit and listen to Him for hours. However, how hard is it to get people to go to church with us? When we are with people, do they see something different in us...something that attracts them - instead of repelling them...or causing no reaction at all?

 

 

I believe that God's love, is a sacrificial, powerful love that does not show favoritism. It is not man's kind of love that has limits and distractions and usually only hangs around as long as the feelings do.

 

 

Philippians 2:5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

 

 



 

I submit that God's whole plan is based on His love...therefore every New Testament scripture either directly or indirectly is pointing at another way of looking at God's love...and it is His love that ties all scripture together. SO... each one is about what His love is, or what it's not...and how important it is to God for our lives. God beseeches us...

 

Ephesians 5:2 Live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

 

Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service of worship.

 

  

1 Thess. 4:9
But we don't need to write to you about the importance of loving each other, for God Himself has taught you to love one another.

 

 

 



God's Character II

~click on image to enlarge~

God's way of dealing with sin is in the same way that light deals with darkness...it just exists. The purpose of light is to expose whatever was in the darkness, and then to expel the darkness (without even trying)...with the end result being to bring about life - very much like what the sun does.  If one has actually thought about it and has endeavored to understand...God's way of dealing with sinners is to be around them like *Jesus was so that His light can do all the things that it does!

 

 

 

 Using any kind of force by ostracizing (partiality or hatred) or publicly exposing their sin (unkindness) will not produce anything righteous. We cannot use the actions of the carnal nature to fight the carnal nature. We cannot be in sin as a way to fight sin! Only light can win over darkness. This is why Jesus ate with the worst sinners...because His light disarmed them just by being there. This is why we are commanded to love our enemies...for their sakes and so we stay in the light and learn to always fight from there.

 

 

If we act as though it is an inconvenience to have to deal with sinners...and how ungodly they are...and how they persecute us and get in the way of our rights...then WE had better do a humble re-evaluation of where we stand with God - more so, where we WANT to stand with God!

 

 

 

Because --
1 Tim. 1:15 "It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all"

 

 

 

St. Paul understood the whole purpose for Christ's coming was to reconcile the world to Himself....to bring all of us...as many as possible...back to God.

 

 

 

So, does it work to fight unkindness with unkindness? How about hatred with hatred? So many unbelievers, because they live in this fallen world too, have had many hurts which is why they have become angry and selfish. So, how does it help them stop sinning...or become believers...by giving them more of the same? It does not make any spiritual sense!

 

 

 And if you are going to be like them...as well as what they are used to...then how will they see the contrast - the difference in YOU that would make them want to be what you are!?

 

 

 

James 1:20
For human anger does not produce the righteousness of God.

 

* Jesus did rebuke sinners, but only after showing His love and power, and giving them a chance to repent.

 

Dear God, When Can I Just BE?

 

 

 

 

Everything has been met in Christ. Every requirement. Yes. Above are just some of the scriptures that tell us how Christ has satisfied and met the demands of each of the important areas of the Christian's life... 

 

 

 

 

Then because this is true, there is only one requirement...one thing God wants from Christians such as you and I. Because everything is already satisfied in Jesus, then wouldn't it make sense to begin following Him? Yes, I know that you have already accepted Christ as your Savior and even your Lord as far as trying to trust Him with the various areas of your life. But have you begun following Him in the true sense? Have you begun this journey of walking with Him? 

 

 

 

 

Following and walking with Him, and then after time you're walking like Him...and then in time you begin feeling right at home and find that you are not 'doing' anymore...no, you are being! You begin growing again, and even in how you see God. He has not only made His home in you, but you have in Him. 

 

 

Matthew 11:29
Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

 

 

 

He wants you to have an abundant life. He wants to teach you how to be a true "be-er" Christian...which is much much better than being a doer Christian.

 

 

1 John 2:6
Whoever claims to live in Him ought walk as Jesus did.

 

 

 

 

Ephesians 3:14-19

"14When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, 15the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. 16I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit. 17Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. 18And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God."

 

 

 

Can you understand how much God wants to be not just a part of your life...but to BE your life? Spiritually it has already happened if Christ is in you...but has it happened in how you live? You were created in His image, and this is why God wants you to mature in your walk...as you begin walking closely with Christ Who will help you to become much closer to who you were originally created to BE!!

 

 

 

 

1 Cor. 6:17
But the person who unites himself with the Lord becomes one spirit with Him.

 

 

 

If you notice up in the picture, under Gifts...that scripture tells us that the gifts and callings He has given each person cannot be withdrawn...or your bible might say, "without repentance". The gifts He has bestowed on you, you can't walk away from and then later ask forgiveness for doing something else instead. Why?

 

 

 

 

Because, when God created you He had a specific plan for your life that would fulfill you and make you you and make you whole...so you feel good in your own skin, and are vital and productive! But you will not "be made complete with all the fullness of life and power" until you make it your goal to actually begin taking steps to follow...putting His yoke upon you...and begin walking with Christ in all you do.

 

 

 

When you decide to walk closely along side Him, Jesus said in Matt. 11:30 that His yoke will be easy and His burden is light.  

 

 

 

Enjoy your relationship with Him as you spend time getting to know Him in a closer way...as you open up your heart to scripture and Christ's words in the gospels, and allow yourself unceasing communication (prayer throughout the day that should come more naturally then planned) and letting Christ guide your days...keeping in step with His Spirit. (Gal. 5:22-23) 

 

 

1 Thess. 5:17-18
Pray without ceasing. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.

 

 

 

Col. 2:3

Christ, In whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

 

 

 

He wants to spend time with you and teach you what it truly means to "be crucified with Christ and it is no longer you who live, but Christ that lives in you" (Gal. 2:20)...then in so doing you end up finding you! 

 

 

 

 

Eph. 5:2
Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.

 

 

 

 

1 Peter 4:2
As a result you may spend the rest of your earthly lives, governed not by human passions (Gal. 5:19-21), but by the will of God.

 

 

Blessings!!!

(If you have questions, let me know:)