Thoughts of Hope worth sharing

Most of the time I feel that I have little to share because who am I but a mere mortal stumbling along trying to keep my eyes on Christ. Todays comments will be a sharing of wise council from a godly man I receive daily devotionals from, Dr. Henry Morris's son.
Talk about hope, real hope, read on. Speaking of Christ's death on the cross....
"And as He completed His sacrifice, He cried out "with a loud voice" (Luke 23:46). the awesome victory cry. "It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost"
But death does not end the story, for the grave could not hold the Creator of life. He rose in victory over death and the grave, thereby conquering sin, its power and penalty forever, for " when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high" Hebreews 1:3) Hallelujah, what a Saviour! JDM (John D. Morris of ICR)
The following day he shares another awesome truth....
"Furthermore, we are powerless to change our situation. Our sins demand the death penaly, "and without shedding of blood is no remission" Heb9:22. Either the guilty party must die to pay sin's penalty, or a guiltless party must substitute and pay the penalty instead. And so, "when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly....God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinner, Christ died for us" Rom 5:6-8.
This transaction removes our sin from us. We stand before a Holy God just as if we had never sinned, and just as if we had always done right, "justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" Rom3:24
"And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement" Rom 5:11
What more is their to say except, Amen

Hope Available

"For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope." Romans 15:4

Read the Book. Our only hope in a confusing world is between its covers and in acquaintence with God the Holy Spirit who inspired it.

In Christ the final battle is already won

I daily receive a short devotional from the Institute for Creation Research-ICR. Todays devotional was too good not to share. So, here goes.
In Jesus' Conquering NameOctober 8, 2009 "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us." (Romans 8:37) The first verse of the well-loved hymn "Faith Is the Victory" describes preparation for the battle between the forces of light and darkness. The second verse tells of marching into battle, and the third, of the actual attack. For the soldier of faith, empowered by love and obedience to the commandments of God, the victory is assumed. The last verse relates the rewards of victory and a commitment to wise governing, once the battle is over. To him that overcomes the foe, White raiment shall be giv'n;Before the angels he shall know, His name confessed in heav'n.Then onward from the hills of light, Our hearts with love aflame;We'll vanquish all the hosts of night, In Jesus' conq'ring name. Jesus, when the Apostle John saw Him in His present glorified, victorious state, made this promise to the churches: "He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels" (Revelation 3:5). Earlier, He had made a companion promise: "These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). In this life we will have battles to fight, but the ultimate victory has already been won. As He left this world following His resurrection, He said: "Go ye therefore . . . and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world" (Matthew 28:19-20). No wonder, then, as we see in our text, we are "more than conquerors" in every situation, as we battle in Jesus' conquering name. "Thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ" (2 Corinthians 2:14). JDM
What more to say, The battle is won in Christ.

Hope in the Valley

We all like to enjoy the sense of God's presence in our services and relish the sense of God's power and all sufficiency. But then, we have to go back to the daily grind and sometimes nosedive into despondency.
Oswald Chambers has this comment from his book My Utmost for His Highest -Oct 1.
"We are not built for the mountains and the dawns and aesthetic affinities, those are for moments of inspiration, that is all. We are built for the valley, for the ordinary stuff we are in, and that is where we have to prove our mettle. We feel we could talk like angels and live like angels, if only we could stay on the mount. The times of exaltation are exceptional, they have their meaning in our life with God, but we must beware lest our spiritual selfishness wants to make them the only time."
Oct 3rd Chambers shares this thought.
"Can I face things as they actually are in the light of the reality of Jesus Christ, or do things as they are efface altogether my faith in Him, and put me into a panic?"

OUCH

I think we often mistake our "faith" on the mountaintop for emotional elation. Faith can operate at all times in all places if we remember that "God can do anything" is true in the valley as well as the mountaintop. This faith has to grow, therefore I must show my faith by my works in all circumstances and be ready to see God at work everywhere and at all times. God help me to believe his word and trust his grace always.

Comment from Doctor Henry Morris of ICR

I receive an inspirational message from ICR -The Institute for Creation Research- each morning. Please read carefully what this godly man has to say.
"To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." (Colossians 1:27) The fact that Jesus Christ is actually in each believer is both a great mystery and rich in glory. In fact, it is our very hope and assurance of glory in the age to come. How Christ may be both seated at "the right hand of the Majesty on high" (Hebrews 1:3) and yet living in us is surely a mystery, yet it is fully true. He Himself told His disciples: "If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. . . . Abide in me, and I in you. . . . He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing" (John 14:23; 15:4-5). The apostle Paul also confirmed this great truth: "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me" (Galatians 2:20). One of his prayers for the Ephesians was "that Christ might dwell in their hearts by faith" (Ephesians 3:17). The mystery as to how this can be is resolved in yet another mystery--that of the tri-unity of the Godhead. Christ, the Second Person, is present in His people through the Holy Spirit, the Third Person. Christ said: "I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter. . . . Even the Spirit of truth; . . . for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you" (John 14:16-17). In fact, as our text says, His indwelling presence is our very hope of glory, for "if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his" (Romans 8:9). Thus, where we go, He goes; whatever we say, He hears; even what we think, He knows. Christ, by the Holy Spirit, is our ever-present comforter and guide and counselor. This is, indeed, a glorious mystery! HMM"
I won't further comment as this servant of Christ has said it well.

The God of Hope within

I have recently rediscovered the wisdom of Oswald Chambers in his book My Utmost for His Highest. September 20th's entry blends in with my previous posts as to the presence of the Holy Spirit becoming our motivating power to bring us into the obedience to Christ.
No person is a biblical Christian without Christ's spirit dwelling within them. How does He dwell in us? That's a bit of a mystery except when we step back and take a look at the full picture and realize who God is and what he is capable of. How He does it is somewhat mysterious to us but works out well in the reality of the every day. Like the wind, we can't see it, but we certainly feel its power exerted against what we can see. We have to be reminded every once in a while that He is our salvation, not our works or the works of any other man whether a religious leader or political figure. God is God alone. We only can know Him through His son.
Chambers says:
"God's life in us expresses itself as God's life, not as a human life trying to be godly. The secret of a Christian is that the supernatural is made natural in him by the grace of God, and the experience of this works out in the practical details of life."
The Spirit of Christ makes us godly, and that godliness is manifested in practical living. Although hampered by our faulty humanity that is subject to temptation and human reasoning, God chooses to dwell in us and try to reveal himself to the world.
Further exerpts from Chamber's September 21st entry:
"...The whole human race was created to glorify God and enjoy Him for ever...I am created for God, he made me. This realization of the election of God is the most joyful realization on earth, and we have to learn to rely on the tremendous creative purpose of God...The love of God, the very nature of God, is introduced into us, and the nature of Almighty God is focused in John 3:16__"God so loved the world..."...We have to maintain our soul open to the fact of God's creative purpose, and not muddle it with our own intentions.... Our Lord never enforces obedience; He does not take means to make me do what He wants. At certain times I wish God would master me and make me do the thing, but he will not, in other moods I wish He would leave me alone, but He does not.... He wants us in the relationship in which He is easily Master without our conscious knowledge of it, all we know is that we are His to obey."
Christ himself walked in humble obedience to the Father, and sought every opportunity to commune with God and to glorify Him in everything he said or did. What a wonderful plan. Many religious sects, including many Christian sects, force their people to adhere to a set of laws and give them sharp reprimands if they fail to obey. History records numbers of wars that were begun because of a religious group trying to enforce their beliefs on other nations. We face this today by some groups.
Christ appeals to our reason and heart, He does not force himself on anyone. He may bring strong conviction to convince us of our sins and our sinfulness, but he offers deliverance from sin IF we choose to accept His method of grace- "Christ in you, the hope of glory". The choice remains ours, we accept his means of grace and lifestyle, or we reject it and continue on in the hands of Satan living an ungodly life.
Many years ago a fellow parishoner of mine used to frequently testify in church as to the grace of God in his life. William Gallon lived a careful walk with God, and was faithful to give God the glory, his favorite ending to almost all of his testimonies was "It's Him". That has sunk into my soul like God's finger on stone when he gave the 10 commandments to Abraham.
Our only mission in life is to "Know Christ and Make Him Known". That quote is taken from the home church of my almamater Hobe Sound Bible College. It is simple and to the point and is our only calling. We make him known by our words and our godly life. Our humaniy gets in our way at times and we feel discouraged, but that should only cause us to further realize "It's Him". We can only live the Christian life by the help of the Spirit of God.
God help me, I see it, please help me to remember it and throw off everything that hinders my walk with the Holy and omnipotent God of all creation.

The overwhelming power of rivers

In my devotional time today I was reading from My Utmost For His Highest and discovered this little gem.
Oswald Chambers "A river is victoriously persistant, it overcomes all barriers. For a while it is baulked, but it soon makes a pathway round the obstacle. Or a river will drop out of sight for miles, and presently emerge again broader and grander than ever.... Keep paying attention to the Source (God), and God will either take you round the obstacle or remove it.....Never allow anything to come between yourself and Jesus Christ, no emotion, or experience: nothing must keep you from the one great sovereign Source."
The scripture lesson Chambers chose was John 7:38
"He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water"
Gleaning the overreaching thought of his writing was this awesome gem: Christ is the Source of the headwaters of the rivers of living water, staying connected to the source leads to an unending supply. We sometimes are so dissapointed with our own walk with God because we don't see how we are doing any great exploits for God. God wants us to simply to know him, stay connected by faith, and let his living water flow through us as he sees fit. If we do every action to please God, keep walking in faith, and follow his leadership the water will flow. As Chambers says the river may appear submerged or less apparent but it will flow unconquerable because God is the Source. If a river keeps getting filled with water from an overwhelming supply, something is going to move. If we begin to try to divert the flow to our little projects we may end up with a landlocked pond of putrid mire. Rivers have been diverted by military or excavaton teams to help them achieve an objective: we sometimes try to achieve our own ends by diverting our energies and "spirituality" to some pet project, but we grieve God and the water somehow just doesn't flow. We've got to let God choose the path and supply the living water.
I get two things from this lesson: keep connected to the Source and let the river flow whereever God decides it needs to. Christians are just to be channels through which living water can flow: the glory is in the living water supplied by God.
Lord help me to not block the flow, attempt to divert the flow, or disconnect from the Source.
If I hope to share God's hope with others, I've got to do it God's way: Christ in me.

To be like Him

I Peter
3 "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—

(We don't feel so imperishable or fadeless, and sometimes tempted to dispondency or even dispair, but God says as long as we walk in obedience to his Spirit we can not perish, spoil, or fade. Probably the reason we don't feel this way is because it is not US but Christ within us.)
　
8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls

(We are still human when Christ abides in us and we are tempted to trust in what we can see, measure, or "put in the bank", instead of believing God's word being fully potent and true.)

Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. 14As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."

(If we are to be like him, we must be holy. He makes us holy, not any devices of our own.)

Some mechanical things we buy have maintenance plans available. Some are not worth the paper they are written on, but not God's promises. He not only has a perfect plan of maintenance but gives us his Spirit as a constant "mechanic" to see that all works according to God's plan.

Can't get any better than that.

Proud Father

I was reading my wife's new NIV bible on our back deck this morning; after I had listened to a recording of Phillipians at biblegateway.com (a wonderful resource I use frequently) during my devotional time. I have read Phillipians hundreds of times but never had realized the inference of chapter 2:5-11.
"Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." NIV
In this appeal to christians to be like Christ, God inspires the writer to record God's opinion of his son- Proud Father.
I remember the process of my son growing up and tackling things new to him or projects that were very challenging, and still relish the pride I felt when he "did it". Many things took a lot of persistance, failings, and retrys, but he usually succeeded. He is only human and subject to error and imperfections. How proud God must have been and is even now of his son who was willing to humble himself and succeed in perfecting God's plan of redemption. Their is a tendency of christians to center the gospel in Christ and talk about him in highest praise, which is only right since God decided that He should be highly exalted. However the afore quoted scripture notes that we should honor Christ to the glory of God the Father. Christ's own life was a constant search to extol his father, and he strove to commune with him and seek his council in all he did.
Very little preaching I've heard in recent years have centered on the character and highly exalted position of God the Father. I think we need a refreshing look at who God is and what he is like. Jesus would be pleased with us if we did, for it's in his heart to Glorify the Father.
The first part of the quotation from Phillipians 2 leaves us with our explicit instructions. "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus".
"Oh, to be like thee, blessed redeemer, this is my constant longing and prayer", other things, experiences, and temptations scream for my attention, but God help me to keep you first and help me choose to be like Jesus Christ in all things.

Mystery Revealed

Collosians 1:27 and much of Ephesians chapter 3 record the revelation of the approximately 4,000 year old mystery that was withheld from all mankind until the assent of Christ. God had plans from the beginning of creation to deliver mankind from the control of satan and offer to man the Holy Spirit to become their strength and guide. The Holy Spirit could not come "unless I go away (Jesus), but if I go away I will send a comforter to you". With his spirit abiding in us "We can do all things through Christ...".
Take time to read Collosians and Ephesians completely and numbers of times until the words become clear to you. Dwell there for several days in your prayer time and learn where your HOPE is.
An important set of verses is Collosians 1:15-22. 15
"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
21Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. 22But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation."
If you stop and think about it, how can mankind not expect Jesus Christ to help conquer the sin problem? Jesus Christ was appointed by God the Father to create the universe and all that's in it, and that same creator humbled himself to become a very limited man in order to taste life as we live it. He was in all ways tempted as we are and yet without sin. OUR HOPE IS JESUS CHRIST.

Read Phillipians 2:1-11

Phillipians 2:13 "for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose."
and Collosians 1:27 "To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory".

The supreme mystery available to all mankind is Christ living in you working on your will and helping you to act according to God's purpose. The soft gentle nudgings to our common sense and gentle reminders of his written word to our minds is God working in us. We still have to choose to act on what he leads us to do and as long as we walk in obedience to his will we walk in fellowship with him.
Our sense of his presence in our hearts may seem weak at times, I feel like God has several reasons for allowing us to experience this. One of the main reasons is that we are human and make decisions based on what we see (show me). But the scriptures remind us that we walk by faith and not by sight. I believe this is one of the most important tests we face. God wants us to know that his word is supreme and potent, and that we can count on him to be true to his word and do what he says. Noah, Abram, and a few other persons in scripture were honored for their faith when circumstances looked impossible. Sometimes we have to just trust what God says when we are scared to death, and what we can see happening around us screams impossibility.
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Eph 2:8-10
So it is not a question of What I can HOPE in but WHO.
Our means of salvation therefore, is Christ abiding in us, and our continuing obedience to Him.
Keep Christ as your lord and master not just as a welcome guest. He wants to rule in our hearts because He knows what is best for us and wants to bless us with all spiritual blessing. He is good.

Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever. Amen

P.S. I'm beginnng to learn this lesson shaky at the knees but pressing toward the mark.

Question:Lost Your Moorings?

Are you adrift on a constantly violent and restless sea, choking on the seawater you've swallowed from friends and foes, swimming with all your might against the tide to stay on top?



Answer:Get On The Ship.

The captain not only knows how to navigate the seas but controls the weather.



Question:How do I get on board ship?



Answer:Read the navigation laws and principles of His book, the Holy Bible, and read the historical record of his son, Jesus Christ. Through His word you'll get to know the Captain, and the more you know him the more you'll like him. His way is perfect, His judgement is just, His mercy lasts forever, and his main interest is You.



I've found that the best way to know Jesus Christ is to read his word over and over again. Though the words were not literally written by Him, yet He inspired the writers to share His thoughts. Let him talk through his words and let him reveal himself through the spirit of his son, Jesus Christ. No person, or no circumstance can keep you from knowing Him if you seek him honestly.



Man was born in sin, according to the Genesis record. The first man Adam sinned and passed on his sinful nature to every child born since his creation. The only way God will forgive us, according to His word, not mine, is through believing that the death and ressurection of Jesus Christ provides the death punnishment that we deserve to pay for with our life. Jesus gave his life for ours that we might have eternal life in Christ.

Eternal life is a mystery (see Collosians 1:27). Life is in the Son of God, Jesus Christ, and by His spirit dwelling in you eternal life is yours. God's spirit does some mighty powerful things, not always showy, but powerful. He gives believers power to live free from the guilt and control of sin. As long as mankind believes in Christ according to the scriptures and obeys his leadings and commands he can maintain a life of faith and freedom from sin. Temptations are real and will be still experienced by everyone but the Spirit of Christ gives the desire and ability to confront sin and win through His spirit's power within us. It's not our ability. It's Him. However, we must want His help and seek it. "Submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you". The power of satan is driven out by the all powerful grace of God through Jesus Christ.


Repent of your sins and trust his word and find this holy, all powerful Captain.



Get On The Ship. Get the Captain inside of you. Let his spirit dwell in you by faith.



He doesn't reject anyone.

Can I sin and please God at the same time

Question: Is it possible to sin against God and please him at the same time? Is it possible for me to sin with the Spirit of Christ living in me?

Answer:Read I John chapter 1 and see what Jesus Christ says through John.

Verse 5 "..... This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness we lie, and do not the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

So, according to what Christ Jesus says we can no longer walk in darkness of sin and please God. Sin separates us from God, and when we choose to sin we deny our faith and lose our proper relationship with him. There are many thoughts on this subject as to whether a person would go to heaven after choosing to commit sin. I don't have all the answers to those ideas, but it doesn't pay to take chances. If we go on to Chapter 2 of I John we see how God views our sin and how he offers a continuing solution, if we seek it.

"My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not, And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."

I'm not a great scholar, but it sounds to me that God has a means for us to stop sinning against him and if we do sin we need an advocate (someone to stand up and defend us before God) and need to confess that sin so that we can return to a clear relationship with Christ and please God. It also seems clear that we need the same advocate for our sins as anyone else in the world. God provides grace for returning to salvation in Christ and also grace for a sinner to find salvation through the same advocate, Jesus Christ, the son of the living God.

Sin is not consistant with the christian walk. God says so. God is compassionate however and realizes man's weaknesses and offers to us a way of HOPE and reconciliation. Jesus Christ is our hope. His sacrifice of death on calvary again covers our sins as we confess and renew our faith in Him.

ITS HIM

I John 2:6 "He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk, even as he walked."

Question: How are we to walk (live our lifestyle)?

Answer: Just like Jesus Christ. Read his word and find out for yourself how he lived.

Question: Can we be exactly like Christ?

Answer: No, not in every way, because he is divine we are just human. He may choose to use humanity to do some supernatural things (miracles), but that's his decision not ours. We should not seek to do miracles, let him decide who, when, and how he uses us. He has grace however to help us live a normal Christian life in the midst of a sinful world filled with temptation. Jesus himself spent time every day frequently talking to God his Father because he needed the Father's help. He's our example, seek the Father through prayer and the written word.

We may not ever attain all that God has planned for us to be, but pursuing Christ and glorifying God by walking in obedience to him will keep us headed in the right direction.

We have questions, God has answers and grace to bring us HOPE.