The Power of God unto Salvation

Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth: to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

The power of God to everyone that believeth.

Are you such a one?

Do you evidence this power of God in your life?

For this power unto salvation is spiritual reality.

“For He shall save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21)

This means Jesus Christ delivers us from them. In Hebrews it is said, “to the uttermost”

Hebrews 7:25 “Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them.”

This is not just a wiping away of the past sins, although that is true.

It is the saving of the sins of today: that is, He saves us from doing them….and yes, He saves us from wanting to do them, as well.

This is what it means by “to the uttermost”.

Our Salvation is four-fold:

From the love of sin….this is not complete,….but it is a real change in you, where your sin is concerned.

It becomes a burden….and you feel it’s weight against you, and you want to be saved from it.

From the guilt of sin…by being born again: receiving Christ Jesus into your heart and life.

Romans 10:9 “And if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

Romans 8:1 “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”

We are not condemned, but at liberty to walk with God!

From the power of sin…by obedience to His Will…by yielding to the Holy Spirit within.

Romans 6:16 “Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whither of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?”

Here we get the power of God for our everyday lives….against sin and the world.

(We are “under new management”). For God empowers obedience,….

Philippians 2:13 “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.”

…..and the Holy Spirit within gives us a growing love for Christ.

From the presence of sin.

Taken into His glorious Presence in Heaven…whether by Rapture, or when we die, to be with Him forever.

Ephesians 1:3-4. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love:”

He has a purpose for all He has saved. And all this was set in motion for us….you and me…before times eternal.

Think of it! God Almighty has a purpose for me. Though I rebelled against Him and His Will, yet He set His love upon me, and drew me to Himself:

John 6:37, 44 “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.

No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.”

In the scriptures, the purpose God called me to, is spoken of as: “good works”, or “bringing forth fruit”

John 14:12 “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto My Father.”

(And His works were prayer, preaching, calling others to the Kingdom of God, feeding, healing, and manifesting the words and works of His Father God.

All this He did before He laid down His life for us.)

John 15:16 “Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit and that your fruit should remain; that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in My name, He may give it you.”

Ephesians 2:10 “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”

Colossians 3:16-17 “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him.”

Titus 2:14, 3:8 “Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”

This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto all men.”

Our purpose, is to pray—for ourselves, and others; to witness of the light of God in our own life; to preach, teach, be a soul winner, as we are called.

We are to seek the good of all men (and there is no good, without God in it).

These are the obediences which are given to us to do, for the glory of Christ. Big or small in the world’s eyes….they are of great value to Jesus.

Everyone has their place in His purpose.

And it is as we are in our place, walking with Him everyday, that we fulfill our purpose.

God’s salvation is full of power. Power to save us to “the uttermost”, and power to save others.

What greatness dwells in Him….and He is, by the Holy Spirit, in us.

Let us draw out His grace for our life.

Don’t come short, when it comes to God’s Promises

Hebrews 4:1 “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.”

Have you ever tried to reach up or out to something and it is just out of reach?

This is the way many of us think about the promises of God. They are great and we want them;…..but they seem just out of reach.

But God never intends His Word to be seen, and not used. He intends us to have what He promises us.

Faith reaches out and gets what God has for us.

Every promise in the Word, and every promise given to you personally, is nothing until entered into by faith.

And there can never be completed faith, without obedience.

Promises are only promises, until we have them.

First, we apprehend them by faith.

That is, you see that God has this for you, personally, and you reach out in belief to His Word.

When you do, you should have the hope (remember hope is the confident expectation that God will do what He says) of these promises by the assurance of the Holy Spirit within.

Second, you apprehend these promises, by obedience. You live them.

Sometimes there are conditions to the promises the Lord gives, like the seed on the ground:

one, a hard walking path—no receiving there.

Others on rocks and thorns, which received by faith, but never put it to use.

The last, the good ground, which was tilled and received it by faith, (it says it “keeps” it) and also put it to use. Some thirty-fold, some sixty-fold, some an hundred-fold.

(Mark 14:14-20)

Without the element of faith, there is nothing.

For faith is that which makes the things of God, real to us, so that we can apprehend them.

Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

It is a true substance. It exists within you by the Holy Spirit.

It gives us the proof within us, to use the word God gives us. In other words, you know it.

Faith is what is within us that reaches out to God in times of trouble, in praise, for help, for comfort, and for fellowship.

Hebrews 11:3,6 “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made by things which do appear.

But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.”

By faith we understand, or perceive truths which were mysteries before.

And again, we are to use our faith, and reach out to God in obedience, and get what He promises.

Hebrews 4:2 “For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.”

Let us not lose what He promises, by not believing Him.

But let us gain all that He has for us to have, through the Holy Spirit, and His promises, which He wants to give.

Let us apprehend His promises to us, and gain one hundred-fold for Christ Jesus,……..in believing obedience to His Word.

Stand ye in the Ways

Jeremiah 6:16 “Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.”

Jeremiah was called to a time, like ours, where much religion was going on; but very little obedience to God. They had all the outward trappings, but none of the devotion to God and His commandments.

Under King Josiah, who was a godly king; Jeremiah was given the job of going about Judah and instructing the people in the laws of God.

Many did not want to hear, for they had been influenced by the idolatrous nations round about them; and refused subjection to the Lord, although they went along with the outward ceremony.

Jeremiah 2:13 “For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living water, and hewed them our cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.”

Then he was told to go to Jerusalem and preach there…telling the people what God would do, if they would repent and turn back in obedience to Him.

He would forgive and help them:

Jeremiah 7:5-7″For if ye thoroughly amend your ways and your doings; if ye thoroughly execute judgment between a man and his neighbor;

If ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt:

Then will I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and ever.”

For what God wanted of His people was that they obey Him, from the heart.

“Stand ye in the ways”. In the Hebrew, means “Get up and do it”

Start actively seeking My ways.

If you just do this seeking, you are returning to your God and honoring Him.

This I will count,….and will honor you, in return.

Jeremiah 29:11-14 “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

Then shall ye call upon Me, and ye shall go and pray unto Me, and I will hearken unto you.

And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.

And I will be found of you, saith the Lord:….”

And ask for the old paths: The path of obedience to His Word,….which leads us to straighten out our lives before Him.

God has made a way to return to Him…..take it.

(How was it with those who came before us?

Those that martyred their lives for God and his gospel? From the apostles to our forefathers?

How did they attain to what they had?

Through the Holy Spirit’s enabling, and the Word of God to them.

We must seek out the truth of the Scriptures for ourselves: What does it say to us?

For now? For our calling and ministry? And yield to the Holy Spirit within!)

As Jeremiah said to Judah:

Jeremiah 7:23 “But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be My people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you.”

Obey My voice….and I will be your God….and ye shall be My people.

Jesus said the same thing when He was talking to His disciples, before He went to the cross.

John 15:10″ If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My love; even as I have kept My Father’s commandments, and abide in His love.”

Though there were failures,…….His disciples did, and they stirred the whole world, for Christ Jesus.

If we get our life in order before Him, and honor Him in this,……He will honor our obedience, in our everyday life.

God speaks through His Word: whether read, preached, or spoken by His inner Voice.

Hear Him, and return to the ways of peace,…..knowing His presence with you,……and for you,……everyday.

The Way of Holiness

Isaiah 35:8 “And a highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called the way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein.”

“Holiness” in scripture is defined two ways;….when it speaks of God, it means His sinlessness, and His perfection of Goodness.

When it speaks of us (Romans 12:1, Hebrews 12:14), it speaks of scantificaltion….setting ourselves aside to Him, for His use.

The Lord gave me this verse years ago,….stressing the gospel message…that if I preach it….He would give understanding to those who want to hear it.

A highway is a road built up from the fields and forests….build up and maintained….so that those that get on it, will see the sign posts and know how to go to their destination.

This “way of holiness”,……is also called “the Way of the Holy One”. For it is the Lord’s way, that will lead us back into a right relationship with God.

(Some say this is a prophesy of those who would be taken into captivity under Nebuchadnezzar, to return to Jerusalem.

Some say it is Christ opening up a way for the Church….to include all who will.

Some say this is a prophesy of Israel in the last days, when Christ shall return to the earth the second time, and deliver them, and bring them back into fellowship with Him.

And some say that it includes all of His people, at any time….those that do not know Him, and they, that have fallen away from Him.)

But here, is an announcement of “a way”, “a Way of Holiness”. (Trumpets! should be blown here)

But who can travel on this way?

It says “the unclean shall not pass over it”….but doesn’t that include everyone.

Yes, for we are as an unclean thing.

Isaiah 64:6 “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.”

So if we are all unclean, how can we travel on this highway?

Only by seeking cleansing, from the One Who maintains this Holy Way.

We can be cleansed by the precious blood of Christ:

Zech 13:1 “In that day there shall be a fountain open to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanliness.”

Eph. 5:25-26 “…..as Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it;

That He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word.”

1 Peter 1:18-19 “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;

But by the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb with out blemish and without spot.”

1 John 1:7 “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.”

And what about those, who come, hear God’s gospel and travel on their way?

Well, the Lord says, even if they are fools (those men who reguard not God or His government)…..they will not be able to make a mistake, in the call of Christ.

They will understand the simple gospel message…….and they may stay on this highway….or go their own way….but they will understand God’s claims on their lives……

….which are:

Come unto Me, Look and be saved, Believe on Me, Call upon Me.

“Come unto Me”…..

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come unto Me, O ye that labor and are heavy ladened, and I will give you rest.

Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.”

“Look and be saved”…..

Isaiah 45:22 “Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.”

“Believe on Me”…..

John 6:47 “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth on Me hath everlasting life.”

“Call upon Me”….

Acts 2:21 “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Romans 10:9-10, 13 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with mouth confession is made unto salvation.

For whosoever will call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

This Holy Way, this “highway” is clearly marked out…..and it is open to all who will hear the gospel message, believe it, and receive the Lord Jesus Christ into their lives, as Lord and Savior.

On this Way of Holiness,…..we have company……”the redeemed shall walk there:” (Isaiah 35:9)

And One other goes with us:

Luke 24:13, 15 “And, behold, two of them went the same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about threescore furlongs.

And it came to pass, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus Himself drew near, and went with them.”

These two believers were blessed on that road to Emmaus, with the company of the resurrected Lord of glory….Jesus Christ.

But so are we, who travel that Way of Holiness, to heaven. Jesus comes with us…..never leaving, nor forsaking us…..but with His Word, guiding us in this way of peace.

The Temptation of Jesus

Matthew 4:1 “Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.”

Jesus was “led up of the Spirit”. This temptation, then, was God’s Plan and Purpose for His Son.

He was in all points tempted, like as we are, the writer to the Hebrews revealed. (Hebrews 4:15)

So this temptation shows us how to act when we, too, are tempted.

First, notice that our hardest temptations come after we have gotten more Spiritual power and grace.

Jesus had just been baptized by John the Baptist, and the Holy Spirit had come down upon Him without measure, as He came up from the water.

A Voice had announced that Jesus was God’s Beloved Son! And that He was well pleasing in God’s sight!

But then He was tempted.

Matthew 4:2-4 “And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He was afterward an hungered.

And when the tempter came to Him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command these stones to be made bread.

But He answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”

Jesus was hungry. He had been fasting for forty days, and nights; so when He could, He wanted to break the fast by food.

But when tempted by the devil to change stones into bread, so He could satisfy His hunger,…….now,…..and prove that He was the Son of God;…..Jesus refused.

But He did not just say “No”, but rebuked the suggestion by quoting “It is written”.

What the Scriptures say, help us to live right, and know what to do.

The suggestion of the devil, was that because Jesus was the Son of God, He could do what ever He wanted, have whatever He wanted, whenever He wanted, by simply commanding it to be so.

Of course, Jesus had power to do that,…..but that was not why He became man.

He became man, to live a perfect life….so He could be a perfect sacrifice for sin, for us…..that we might live.

It was ever to do the Father’s Will, that He came, and that was what He lived for…..and would die by.

(So should we do the Father’s Will for us.

It puts us in the wonderful position of being able to stand back from temptations, and plans of the world and the devil………and seek God’s Will in everything.

That puts temptations in a new light.

It is not: “You want this,….it is not too awful,….why not do it?”

It is: “Is this what the Lord would have me to do, now?”)

Notice this first temptation of Jesus, was for bodily wants.

Matthew 4:5-7 “And the devil taketh Him up into the holy city, and setteth Him on a pinnacle of the temple.

And saith unto Him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear Thee up, lest at any time Thou dash Thy foot against a stone.

Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

Jesus had quoted Scripture,……so now the devil quotes it.

This scripture is a promise to Christ, for protection (Like When Harod sent soldiers to kill the baby; or when they were going to throw Him off the cliff at Nazareth)……..but not the presumption the devil suggested.

Notice the devil says again,……”If thou be the Son of God”.

Here the temptation is for public announcement, and fame.

Cast yourself down from the pinnacle of the temple.

What a better way to prove the fact that You are the Son of God!

For God would certainly do His promise,….and those that saw it, might have been awed into following Jesus for awhile, because of it…….

…….but that is not true believing.

But Jesus refused it, for it was not the Father’s Way of announcement.

His Way was for Jesus to go about preaching, “the kingdom of heaven is at hand”.

He was to do good to all. (Matthew 4:17)

Certainly it was not as exciting as angels catching Him……..but it was God’s Will.

The devil’s suggestion was just tempting God;……and Jesus refused it and quoted that Scripture: “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

(To tempt God is to make God prove Himself or His Word, by demanding that He do something for us, now. Do this, or we won’t trust You.)

This second temptation had been for Fame, and prestige.

How often we get trapped into “seeking” these.

Matthew 4:8-10 “Again, the devil taketh Him up unto an exceeding high mountain, and showeth Him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them:

And saith unto Him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.”

The temptation here is: Forget the path to the cross.

If You will fall down and worship me, You can have all the kingdoms and the power of them…now;……without the suffering and shameful death of the cross.

This was the devil’s attempt to destroy Who Jesus was: “I will give you all I have, to make God finally submit to me, in the person of His Son.”

Of course Jesus refused this:

But after this final suggestion, Jesus commands the devil to depart; quoting the verse, “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.”

Jesus would do all the Father’s Will.

And He was confident that those kingdoms would be His, God’s Way; and that was through the suffering of the cross,….onward to resurrection and glory.

The third temptation was for personal power, and glory;…….without suffering.

And the devil temps us in the same ways:

1. See to your needs first. Yes, your a Christian, but God has not “forbidden” you to do this, so He probably doesn’t care. Big temptation.

2. If you are going to have a ministry for God, make it flashy. People will remember you. They will admire you. They will think you are great! (There is a whole lot of “you” in that “ministry”)

3. If you will just go along with the world, you could skip a whole lot of trouble. Sure, you can look like a Christian, but you don’t have to walk in that “narrow”way.

In other words, “Go ahead, lose your Christ’s Life, to have your self life”. (Matthew 16:25)

These,……..and others like them,……are the things the devil tempts us with

(For he tempted our Lord the same way.)

Looking to the Father’s Will, Jesus went through these temptations, standing on the Word of God, His Father.

Jesus left the place of temptation, having the victory,……by placing Himself in the Father’s hands, under the authority of the Word of God.

He did all the work the Father had for Him, and finished it…..for us.

So we need to look to Jesus, and go through all He has purposed for us, with Him.

He will empower us, giving us our measure of our devotion and obedience, by the Holy Spirit,………to know and to do His Will.

Today!

Hebrew 3:15 “While it is said, Today if you will hear His voice, harden not your hearts as in the provocation.”

All our lives comes down to ‘Today’. Tomorrow is not yet. Yesterday, with its success and failures, is done.

But today we have. Today we have the opportunity to turn to God and do His Will.

We never know what a day will bring. We should, therefore, determine which direction our lives will go, while we have today.

So today, if you will hear His Voice.

We can hear God’s voice in nature; many have seen the changing seasons and heard God speak to them:

Psalms 74:17 “…Thou hast made summer and winter.”

If the seasons change, all over the world, surely that means that the sadness of today is not permanent; but will give way to rejoicing.

We can hear God through His Word. It is His revelation of Himself and His Ways to us. The Holy Spirit will help us understand it, when we ask Him.

And we can hear His Voice to us, by the guidance of the Holy Spirit within. He is Light, and will make known to us, HIs Will.

John 7:17 “If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine (teaching) whither it be of God, or whither I speak of myself.”

Jesus said, If we really want to know His Will, we can know.

God considers our “heart” the throne of our mind, emotions and will.

So when we hear Him, we are to “soften” our hearts by yielding to His Will.

To “harden” our hearts is when we will not to do it; for whatever reason.

Zechariah 7:9-11 “Thus speaketh the Lord of Hosts, saying, Execute true judgement, and show mercy and compassions every man to his brother:

And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor, and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart.

But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.”

A hardened heart is not caused by circumstances, or birth;…….but a choice of will.

When Israel hardened their heart: they first refused to listen, for they did not want to be responsible. They thought that if they had not heard, God could not require His Word to be obeyed.

They pulled away from the work of “shouldering” the burdens of prayer, faithfulness, and love.

Finally they stopped their ears, or filled their ears with other voices, so they would not have to know God’s Voice in the circumstances.

Again, God considers our heart, the throne of our mind, emotions, and will.

But He can give us “hearts of flesh”; or tender hearts which return the love He gives us to Him.

Ezekiel 11:19-20 “And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stoney heart out of the flesh, and will give them a heart of flesh:

That they may walk in My statues, and keep Mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.”

The Holy Spirit, the third Person of the Godhead, is given to us in our hearts to make alive again, and guide. He rules and over rules in circumstances which affect His People.

Without Him we can do nothing.

But with His Almighty energy, the most extraordinary results can be produced.

Everything depends upon His manifesting or concealing His Power.

Are we anxious to obtain His help?

Are we watching so we will not provoke Him to be silent? Oh how much we need Him to speak to our inner man and give us courage!

The Holy Spirit is not a temporary gift; He abides with us.

He does not weary of us (Amazing Love!).

But He waits to be gracious at times, till we really see our need, and seek Him.

It is love which makes a hard heart into a softened heart, yielding to God’s Spirit.

It is God’s love given to our hearts,……and then returned to Him, by us.

In love, He speaks of “Today”, if…..you will hear His Voice.

Turn to Christ Jesus, and yield to HIs Spirit within.

Receive His love,….and return it to Him.

He wants to bless each heart given to Him,……let Him, “Today”.

Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice

Psalm 27:7 “Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me.”

Psalm 20:9 “Save, Lord: let the King hear us when we call.”

One of our great blessings, as Christians, is that God hears our prayers, and answers them.

1 John 5:14-15 “And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask anything according to His Will, He heareth us.

And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.”

They may be short like Peter walking on the sea: “Lord, save me”(Matthew 14:28-30).

Or they may be long petitions, laying out our troubles before Him (Psalm 142:1-2).

Psalm 86:7 “In the day of my trouble I will call upon Thee: for Thou wilt answer me.”

True prayer is finding out what God wants us to pray, and then praying in accordance with His Will…..for ourselves and others. Lifting up to Him, His Will; by our will and words.

Psalm 27:8 “When Thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto Thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.”

During the ministry of Isaiah, the Lord corrected His people….when after giving a wonderful promise to them, they did not ask Him to do it:

(The promise: “Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean…..a new heart also will I give you….and I will put my Spirit within you,…” Isaiah 36:25-27)

Isaiah 36:37 “Thus saith the Lord God; I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them;…”

They did not ask for what He promised them.

Do we take for granted His promises, and not ask, for what He wants to give?

Sometimes the Lord asks us what we want:

David, after his sin in numbering the people, was given a choice as to the correction he was to receive,……..and his answer was:

“let us now fall into the hand of the Lord; for His mercies are great:….” (2 Samuel 24:12-14)

And I ask all who know the Lord Jesus……..where else can we feel safe….but in His hand……..even, when we are being corrected?

One of the things the Lord requires, when we pray…..is to listen for His answer.

Isaiah 55:3 “Incline your ear, and come unto Me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.”

Isaiah 30:21 “And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.”

One of the great parables Jesus told about prayer is:

Luke 18:10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.”

I want to mention here, that both men went to the right place, to do the right thing: To pray…….both of them.

When men would go into the temple, they would look toward the mercy seat. It was hidden, in the Holy of Holies; behind the first curtain, the Holy Place (where only the priests ministered), and a second curtain.

It was where the blood of the sin offering was poured out for the sins of the nation. And to this mercy seat, all were to look, to pray. (Exodus 25:21-22)

The Lord tells of the Pharisee’s prayer first:

Luke 18:11-12 “The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank Thee that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.

I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.”

This man begins with praise to God…..but it is for himself, being so much better than so many others.

He was not a gross sinner, and he thanks God for that….and goes on to tell God: that he was a good man….certain that God appreciated him,….and his good works.

“…for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.” (Luke 6:45)

This man’s heart was full of himself…..so the words spoken praised God,…..yet his heart came out….and showed that the only thing he was praising was himself.

Luke 18:13-14 “And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.”

This man was a tax collector: usually they were a cheat or thief….taking more than Rome demanded….for themselves.

But his prayer was of repentance: “God be merciful to me a sinner”.

Mercy is God’s kindness to sinners. There are temporal mercies: the sun, rain, harvests, etc., for all.

And there are spiritual mercies, which include sending His Son to save us, His faith and grace to help us, and His Holy Spirit to guide us.

Titus. 3:4-5 “But after that the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared,

Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Which He shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior;”

That is what this man wanted…..God’s mercy to him, spiritually, as a sinner…..one who had rebelled and offended God, and His Way.

He would not even look up….”would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven”.

Those that humble themselves under the hand of God, will be exalted in due time. (1 Peter 5:6)

“…for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble” (1 Peter 5:5)

This man wanted mercy for forgiveness, and grace for salvation……that was what this man wanted.

And he got it. “This man—the publican—went to his house justified.

Romans 5:1 “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:”

Real repentance does not go out and do the sin all over…..and that is what this man wanted….he wanted mercy for his sin, and salvation from it……and he got it.

Sadly, the Pharisee did not. He went home the same, as when he came….thinking he was in God’s favor…..but, he neither received mercy, nor justification.

(Frankly, he was stuck with himself, and his thoughts of God…a bad place to be in:

Matthew 16:25 “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for My sake shall find it.”)

Psalm 85:7-8 “Show us Thy mercy, O Lord, and grant us Thy salvation.

I will hear what God the Lord will speak: for He will speak peace unto His people, and to His saints: but let them not turn again to folly.”

The Faithful and True Witness

Revelation 3:14 “And unto the angel of the Laodiceans write; these things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God.”

This is Jesus Christ.

He is seen here as the Amen: the only One who can say “Let it be.”

He is also seen as the beginning of the creation of God: before the Godhead created the world; God the Father and God the Son made an Everlasting Covenant,

(For they saw all that would happen to their Creation in the rebellion and fall of the devil, and the fall of Adam.

That Everlasting Covenant was the agreement that the Son of God would come as man,……in the fullness of time (Galatians 4:4-5),…..and pay the full ransom price for those that would be saved, that God the Father promised Him.)

Jesus Christ is also seen as the Faithful and True witness; and this is what we are going to deal with here.

(It is interesting to note: that in these three names of the Lord Jesus, it is His Word that is stressed.

In Amen, it is future. In the faithful and true witness, it is present. And in the beginning of the creation of God, it is past. All are His Word, for He is The Word. John 1:1-3)

Now a witness states the facts; nothing more.

He tells what He sees and what He knows to be true.

So Jesus tells us what He sees in this church; the last of the church ages before it is raptured. (taken up to heaven. 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18)

And what does the Lord see in His last church?

Revelation 3:15-16 “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold or hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.

So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold or hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.”

He sees that we are lukewarm. Neither cold or hot, but just natural body temperature.

If we were cold, we would see and feel the deadness of our spiritual life and do something about it.

If we were hot, we would be what He wants: zealous from “zeto” or boiling hot, and He would bless us.

But we are just normal body temperature, or lukewarm. We feel no coldness, so think we are alright….after all we will make it to heaven, won’t we? That’s what matters,…right?

But to the Lord, who is outside of this church, it is not alright.

It is all wrong.

For our religion is a relationship to Jesus Christ: a love relationship.

Yes, we come as sinners to a Savior, to be born again.

But then, after being born again, we begin a great journey: with Christ.

It is a journey of our lives, through trouble and blessing……in a love relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

And here, as the Faithful and True witness, Jesus Christ says,,….

“You are acting toward me as you were in your natural state: indifferent,……neither seeking Me,…..nor outwardly rejecting Me,….just indifferent to My words, and My call.

It is as if, you do not need to hear Me.”

And why are we indifferent?

Revelation 3:17 “Because thou saith, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:”

Perhaps we have forgotten, that the riches that we have, are in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 3:16)

When He gives us promises, or experiences of success,……it is so we may bring them back and lay them at His feet in praise and thankfulness.

It is not to hang on to them, and make ourselves “rich” in our own eyes, or in the eyes of others.

We get to thinking, “We have need of nothing more. We know enough. We pray enough. We praise enough. We do enough.”

But when we do this, the spirituality we were gaining, turns to natural pride, and selfishness;…….we quench the Holy Spirit of God……for we have forgotten the basic principal of following the Lord:

Luke 9:23 “And He (Jesus) said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.”

And that following, is from here…..to heaven.

But when we refuse to follow Him, by denying ourselves,….

We are actually becoming “wretched” before God…..in a dire state….sickly, and weak. And the saddest part: we do not know this is happening…..for we are looking to ourselves, not the Lord.

And when this happens,……then all the rest happens, as well.

Miserable (how can you be joyful, without God’s active Presence)

Poor (for your true riches are in Christ: In Him is our portion)

Blind (when we refuse to see, we are blind)

Naked (the only “garment” of righteousness that is acceptable to God is Christ’s righteousness applied to us, and then worked out through us in willing obedience.)

What to do?

First, turn your eyes back to Jesus. And ask for sight.

2 Corinthians 4:6-7 “For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.”

Isaiah 45:22 “Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.”

Second, look to yourselves, to repent (repent means to turn around. Since we are obviously going contrary to God, turn around and get in step with Him again.)

Revelation 3:19 “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.”

2 John 8 “Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.”

And all this begins with “hear My Voice”. (He is the Word! Halleluia, that He is still speaking to us!)

Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come into him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.”

This “door” that we open is the door of our lives. A life open to and receptive to Him.

Hear, and Live. Look to Him, and Live.

Our relationship to Jesus is our life as Christians.

How do we stand in it?

Thy Mercy, O Lord

Psalm 138:8 “The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O Lord, endureth forever: forsake not the works of thine own hands.”

His mercy is a wonderful character of God.

Mercy is the kindness of God to those who are sinners.

God shows mercy for mankind in general, which includes: light, heat, rain/water, food. The external mercies for life.

Matthew 5:45 “That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.”

But to His beloved Church,……His mercies are internal, and eternal, as well.

He brings them closer by His love and Care, by the mercy He gives. This mercy includes their Salvation:

Titus 3:5 “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost”

(The first time “merciful” is used is with Lot, [Genesis 19:16] who was saved from the destruction with the rest of the wicked in Sodom and Gomorrah. “The Lord being merciful unto him”.)

The mercy of God lifts up the trembling sinner, so they can see God, in the face of Jesus Christ.

And brings comfort and knowledge of the character of God, to those who are following after…….seeking a closer relationship to God.

James 3:17 “But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.”

God’s mercy completes (perfects) the work He has started within us;…….He will not desert us, because we fail Him;……..rather, in mercy, He sanctifies us……and preserves us by His Word, that we may be kept in the love of God.

Jude 20-21 “But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost,

Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.”

God’s grace holds us up,……in power.

God’s mercy puts His arm around us in love,…..and keeps us close to Him and His life for us.

We, who are called to follow Christ Jesus, are called to show mercy to others,……..because God has shown it to us:

Remember Jesus telling of the Good Samaritan?

Jesus was using this illustration to a lawyer who asked how he could have Eternal Life. (Luke 10:25).

He did this to “tempt Him”.

(Now, lawyers were those who were to know the scriptures, and interpret what they meant to the everyday life.)

When Jesus asked him,…….”What is written in the law?”

(This was often the way Jesus dealt with those that should have known God’s Word…..to take them back to what it really says.)

Quite confident in his answer; the lawyer said, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy souls, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.”

(Perhaps if he had left the last part out,…….he could have walked away in pride,……..but putting that last part in there, about his neighbor,……made him responsible in a way that had to be shown outwardly.

In other words, did this lawyer really believe the scriptures…..was this the way to eternal life? Then he should love God and treat his neighbor as he treated himself.)

And Jesus made this clear to him when He said, “….this do, and thou shalt live.”

Automatically the lawyer tried to defend himself against what Jesus had just told him.

“So who is my neighbor?”

Jesus then tells of the Good Samaritan.

We know the story: The Samaritan was the only one, among three, who had stopped in a place where robbers were,…….to help a robbed and wounded man.

He also paid with his own money to keep him in the inn, and for care for him.

So, Jesus asks this lawyer: Which one was the neighbor to the man that fell among thieves?

In other words, ” Which man acted in God’s Way?”

Luke 10:37 “And he said, He that showed mercy on him. Then said Jesus, Go, and do thou likewise.”

The scriptures never say whether this lawyer got the message Jesus preached to him…..but we should. We should be merciful, for God is merciful to us.

And what a great and wonderful characteristic of God it is!

This is mercy: The kindness of God to us, who are sinners.

And this kindness, we should show to others,……as He did to us.

Psalm 138:8 “The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me: Thy mercy, O Lord, endureth forever: forsake not the works of Thine own hands.”

The Lord will complete my education in His school of life,

and bring me to have His likeness, by His mercy;

for His mercy endures, and lasts through my whole life experiences, and forever;

for He will never forsake His work in me.

To Learn Instruction

Proverbs 1:5 “A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding will attain unto wise counsels:”

Proverbs is a book where a father tells his son the best way to live…..get wisdom from God: live in reverence to the Lord.

Proverbs 4:11-12 “I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.

When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.”

Wisdom is that light from God that brings “fear” or reverence for the Lord to us.

For He is over all….

in knowledge (there is nothing that takes the Lord by surprise…for He sees the end from the beginning)…

in might (He is Almighty)….

In Purpose (for His purpose is from everlasting to everlasting….for us and everyone and everything)

God’s wisdom gives us His sight in the things we need….opening up for us the way to go, and encouraging us in His strength.

Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the Holy is understanding.”

And so in Proverbs, we are encouraged to seek this wisdom from God for our lives.

To live our lives in the knowledge of Who He is….and that He will enable us by His wisdom….teaching us, not just how to live…..but to live the best life we can!

Proverbs 24:30-31 “I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;

And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.”

A passerby noticed a field, and then a vineyard….both had good soil, and could have gotten a harvest.

But the lazy man who owned them…did not use the advantages that he had.

He did not care for the plants…instead there was thorns (a picture of corruption and the curse Hebrews 6:7-8).

The owner didn’t even keep the wall which surrounded them in repair….so even the wild animals would be kept out.

(In scripture, our souls are compared to a field (Luke 8), and a vineyard (John 15) that we are to keep,….and bring forth fruit, for the Lord.)

Proverbs 24:32-34 “Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.

Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:

So shall thy poverty come as one that traveleth; and thy want as an armed man.”

Notice the passerby did not accuse the owner, but rather saw these as a lesson for himself.

If we are “lazy”, because we want to pamper the flesh: “a little sleep”, “a little slumber”, “a little folding of the hands”……all of these are….”a little”.

“A little”….the flesh says—a “little” sin, a “little” putting off till tomorrow what should be done today, a “little” ignoring the Holy Spirit to pray…..

All are “a little” but it results in poverty of spirit….a numbing of our hearts which can turn to hardness.

And it leads to dissatisfaction……

We think that to give in “a little” to ourselves, will give us satisfaction…..a little rest, a little anger, a little hurt,……but it is the opposite….it leads to uneasiness, in our Christian life.

That is not satisfaction, and contentment……which the Lord has for us.

1 Timothy 6:6 “But godliness with contentment is great gain.”

But the lesson did not end there: Our souls, as these fields and vineyards, can be improved……by diligence:

The thorns and nettles can be taken away and burned.

The wall….repaired….to keep out anything which destroys the fruit meant for the Lord.

2 Peter 1:5-8 “And besides this giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue, knowledge;

And to knowledge, temperance;

And to temperance, patience;

And to patience, godliness;

And to godliness, brotherly kindness;

And to brotherly kindness, charity (love).

For if these things be in you and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Faith is given to us by God at new birth. To this, we add “virtue”, which is the “force” or power of the Holy Spirit within, by diligently yielding to Him.

If we are diligent in faith, the Holy Spirit empowers us for the rest……like the harvest of a field or vineyard.

James 1:5 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not (does not correct); and it shall be given him.”

The Lord will not correct you for not knowing….for He wants you to ask.

He gives willingly, and largely….will we ask for His wisdom?