Spiritual Warfare: Our thought Life.

Our thought life is important. We often just think that what we do is important, and it is. But what we think, and what we allow ourselves to think on, is important to God.

2 Corinthians 10:3 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: ”

Our flesh is our natural self life. It is what we have become over the years as Adam’s children. It is our habits, our desires, our plans, and our way of thinking; all of which make us do, and say, and act, the way we do.
This is the flesh.

When we become born again, and Christ’s life is within us by the Holy Spirit, then our flesh fights against the new life; so that it will not have to obey Christ, but can continue to do what it pleases.

A warfare takes place within us:
Galatians 5:17 “For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: these are contrary the one to the other, so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.”

“The things that ye would”, are those things that Christ leads you in, for you are born again, and want to serve Him.
But, because there is warfare within, it hinders the joy of service, and often the service is marred.

What to do? Can we eradicate the flesh?
No, we can not get rid of the flesh, it will always be with us; but we can win the battles to bring it into subjection to our King, Christ Jesus.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;)
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”

What are these “strongholds”? They are those thoughts that take hold in our minds and do not let go.
They could be presented by strong argument or reason; or by the emotions flowing and giving sympathy to a motive. In the Spirit, we may know it is not right, though we can not tell how; but how ever it comes; if it is not dealt with, it builds a fortress in our thoughts.

It could be about the value of a certain thing. Simple in itself; but given power over the thought life by the flesh, in reason or emotion; and then built upon again and again, because every time you go to get rid of it; and don’t, it’s value becomes stronger.
(I once knew a Christian who became convinced that there was no hell. He, of course, did not want to think about some of the people he knew who would go to hell, because they were not born again. It became a big snare in his life; and dulled his sense of urgency where dealing with the lost was concerned.)

If you refuse, once, to deal with it; then the Adversary inflates the object with all sorts of affections, or opinions to keep it.

“Casting down imaginations”. Our imagination is a faculty which brings to view in pictures, the things we are dealing with.
It can be a big snare; when it is not kept under control of the Holy Spirit.
We can let our thoughts “go”, and pretty soon, we are in a world of our own making; no reality; where the truth is what we want it to be. Dangerous, because the truth then can be twisted to be what the Adversary wants it to be.
Casting down imaginations is tearing them down, to reveal the Truth that is in Jesus for this situation.
It can be a tough fight, if we have let our imaginations begin to rule us.

But again the fight is not with carnal or natural weapons, but mighty through God, by His Holy Spirit, to cast them down in our view and affection; so that we can be free from the influence of the Adversary through them.
In a world where “virtual reality” is accepted everywhere, we need to be especially careful, if we want to please the Lord Jesus Christ; Who is the Truth.

John 14:6 “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

Or we may end up like those Paul warned of:
2 Timothy 3:5 “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”

The power of God is mighty to pulling down strongholds with in our minds; and to cast down imaginations which have given a alternate view of Reality.
The power of God through the Holy Spirit.

“Every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God”.
God will tell you something; through His Word, the preaching and teaching of ministers, or personal communication. Then you hear, “You don’t really believe that do you?”
That is a high thing which is exalting itself against the knowledge of God.

God has said something to you, He is dealing with you about this situation; and the Devil would sent a doubt, and a hesitation, or a “very good reason, not to do what God said”.

What is it that we must do? Try and reason with the Devil? No! Eve tried that and sin was the result.
We can not reason in the flesh, or try and work up affections for God in the flesh; but we can yield to the Holy Spirit within us, and let Him lead us, in bringing every thought and affection, into captivity to the obedience of Christ.
When we do, we will be captives of God’s reasons, And captives of His love.

If ye love me, keep my commandments; Jesus said. (John 14:15). And when we do love Him, we will. This is where God’s power comes in.

His Power is given to us as we bring ourselves into captivity by the Holy Spirit to have His Life.
To have His Light, to see reality.
To have His love shed abroad in our hearts. (Romans 5:5).
To have His peace, shelter us.
To have His joy, make us strong.(Nehemiah 8:10)

We can make ourselves our own lord; and every time we refuse to yield to the clear command of God, that is what we are doing.
But that is bondage of the worst kind. Strongholds, Virtual Reality for Reality, and a form of godliness.

Or we can yield to the Holy Spirit, and have the power of God, which is mighty, working within us, to bring us into the captivity of the Life of God.

Which will we have?

Translated to Our Inheritance

Colossians 1:12-13 “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:”

Translated is a military term. When it suited the purpose of Rome, Rome would move one of those City States from one place to another.
They would take the whole state; people, government, and trades; and move it from one place to another.

Here Paul is saying that we, as Christians, are so translated: brought out of the Kingdom of Darkness, into the Kingdom of His Dear Son.

This is our inheritance, but we must avail ourselves of it, practically, in our everyday lives.
It is done by the Power of God for us; but we must implement it in our lives, practically.

Paul’s commission on the road to Damascus, as he testified of it before king Agrippa, was this:
Acts 26:15-18 “And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest,
But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;
Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee,
To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light , and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.”

Paul’s message was of this Power of God in the lives of those who were saved by faith in Christ Jesus.
“Of the saints in light”. Light is what we are given when born again. Light comes as the dawning light to our souls, which shines more and more unto the perfect day. (Proverbs 4:18)
That dawning light comes by the Holy Spirit, which is the earnest of our inheritance:

Ephesians 1:13-14 “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise,
Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”

An earnest is the down payment of all that will come in our inheritance.

And again what is our inheritance?

Ephesians 1:17-20 “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,”

Our inheritance is the power of God in our lives, by the Holy Spirit, through the means of light, wisdom, revelation, knowledge, etc.

Our task, then, if we are to have the Reality of which this sets forth, is to see that we are so translated.
To get everything we have out of the kingdom of Darkness; into Christ’s Kingdom, and under His control.
Anything left in the kingdom of Darkness, will cause an occasion to the Adversary of our souls, to use on us to trick us or tempt us.

And what does everything mean?
It means everything. Our lives are made up of our thoughts, our emotions, and our wills.
These all must be put under the control of Christ, by yielding to the Light from the Holy Spirit.

He works within us to do it:
Philippians 2:13 “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.”
But we are to will with Him in it.
He hath translated us. But now He calls for our willing cooperation with Him to work it out.

Philippians 2:12-13 “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.”

Our inheritance is the power of God in our lives, to bring us to the place where we have the power of choice. To be enabled to do what we ought.

How many times do we go to do the right thing; but fail to see it done?
How many times do we say, “We won’t do that again.”; but soon, do?
How many times have we gone where we know we shouldn’t?

The power of choice is the real Power of God in my life, to make freedom from sin and darkness a reality.
It is our inheritance; “hath translated” is the reality where God is concerned; and He is faithful.
But on our part, we need to enter into the glorious inheritance, by our wills, willing with the Holy Spirit.
He has the power, He will work within us. Will we let Him, by our willing obedience?

The Family Prayer

Matthew 6:9 “After this manner therefore pray ye:…”

Here Jesus is speaking in the Sermon on the Mount. He had just corrected the view of prayer, which was to stand on the street corner to be seen of men. Or the view of prayer, which says to repeat and repeat something over and over, as though God was hard of hearing.

Both of these were not what the Heavenly Father wanted.

Then he begins to teach them the right way to pray:

Matthew 6:9 “After this manner therefore pray ye:…”
Luke 11:2 “And he said unto them, When ye pray, say,…”

Jesus said that we should pray this prayer. (I believe, and we do pray this prayer in our Church services, for we want His kingdom to come within us, and through us, in all our lives)
(It is also a model of the prayers we should come to God about, as a reminder of what Jesus said was real prayer. It has all the elements, briefly stated, that we need to pray.)

Prayer is talking to God about His will; to know it, and to get the ability and means to do it. It is telling God our needs, confessing our sins, and asking for help against the many pitfalls and enemies in this world.

“Our Father which art in heaven,”
The first thing Jesus teaches, is that we need to come to God on the basis of relationship.
Our relationship to His Son. We are to believe and receive Christ Jesus as our Lord and Savior, and then His Father is our Father. (John 20:17)
And we can come to Him as “our Father which art in heaven”; He is in Heaven, far above every situation; and it charge of them.

“Hallowed be thy Name.” This is to acknowledge His Holiness and give reverence to Him. His Name signifies all He is; so we are to reverence and to honor it, because it represents Him.

“Thy kingdom come.” This is to pray for His kingdom coming within our hearts, now. That we would be obedient subjects of our King Jesus; and show how wonderful being His servant is.
And we should pray for His kingdom to come to this world, which will come at His second coming.
(The world will know no peace, until Christ rules.)

“Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” We are to pray for His will to be done in our lives, “in earth”; that we would know it, and fulfill it. In heaven it is done joyfully, and speedily. So are we to pray for it to be done with in us, the same way; and seek to do it in the same manner: with joy.

“Give us this day our daily bread”. We are to ask for our daily needs to be met. This is not the luxuries; but the needs we have each day. This teaches us that today we may have plenty; and tomorrow we may be in want. Or the opposite. Our asking each day, brings us before His throne, with today’s needs. It gives us the opportunity to realize what He did for us yesterday; and in faith, believe Him for today.

“And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors”. We are asking that the trespasses we have committed against His Will, would be forgiven us. They are debts against His Holiness, and goodness. We are to seek forgiveness for them.
We are to also forgive others, as He forgives us; which has been in abundant mercy.

“And lead us not into temptation”. This is asking for the Holy Spirit’s protection against the things which tempt us everyday; and those, especially, which we are prone to.
We are asking Him to keep us out of harms way; and away from those things or people which lead us into harms way. (Of course, having prayed it, we need to heed the warning given by the Holy Spirit in each situation).

“But deliver us from evil”. Some believe it means the evil one, the devil. We have three enemies: the world, the flesh, and the devil.
So we ask for deliverance. When we have been tricked, and sinned; we ask that He will let us not fall any further; but deliver us from the sin, and the wiles of the devil concerning it.

“For Thine is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever.” Christ received His kingdom, and the power of it, and the glory He had with the Father before He left heaven and came to earth to save us; and further glory, for fulfilling the Father’s Will in everything. In this we are to acknowledge His authority and power; and praise Him for it.
Matthew 28:18-20″ And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

“Amen”. Let it be. This is to ask, that all the things we have prayed for will be brought to pass.

Jeremiah’s Call and Work

Jeremiah 1:4-5 “Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.”

Jeremiah was called to be God’s prophet to Judah; and to those nations which would deal with Judah.
A prophet is one called of God, to tell His people what is on His mind, for them; for now and sometimes, for in the future.

Yet he was a young man. He thought he would not be able to speak such an important message to the elders and people, because of his age.
Jeremiah 1:6-7 “Then said I, Ah, Lord God! Behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.
But the Lord said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.”

The Lord told him that his age would not matter, for he would go and speak as God wanted. It sounded like the Lord had a long work for him to do.

But then God dealt with the fear in Jeremiah’s heart.
Jeremiah 1:8-9 “Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.
Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.”

God not only spoke, but acted. He touched his mouth, promising deliverance from the enemies that these words would bring.

When we speak for God; preach His word, or give out the gospel; then all those who fight against God, will “fight” against us.

Jeremiah, who was of the priestly tribe, was chosen by the Godly king Josiah to go to the villages around his home town and teach the law, so that God would be honored again in Judah.
But the men of his town, including those of his own household, tried to kill him. (Jeremiah 11:19, 21-23)

He was sent by God to go to Jerusalem, and this is where his real calling began.
There he dealt with the priesthood, to get them to honor the word the Lord was giving.
Jeremiah 4:5-6, 14, 18; “Declare ye in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem; and say, Blow ye the trumpet in the land; cry, gather together, and say, Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the defensed cities.
Set up the standard toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction.
O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?
Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee; this is thy wickedness, because it is bitter, because it reacheth unto thine heart.”

Jeremiah 5:1, 4. “Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that execute the judgment, that seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it.
Therefore I said, Surely these are poor; they are foolish: for they know not the way of the Lord, nor the judgement of their God.

When some went to the rulers, they became aware of his message.
It was to submit to God’s chastening through the king of Babylon. If they would, God would let them remain in the city, and in the land.
They would be under the rule of a foreign nation; but in the land. It would be humiliating, but the only way to stay in the land; the only way to be blessed by God.

Jeremiah 5:5 “I will get me unto the great men, and will speak unto them; for they have known the way of the Lord, and the judgment of their God: but these have altogether broken the yoke, and burst the bonds.”

(God had promised this when Moses was warning the people before they came into Canaan: To obey God, or suffer under the dominion of other nations. Deuteronomy 28:47-48 “Because thou servest not the Lord thy God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, for the abundance of all things;
Therefore thou shalt serve thine enemies, which the Lord shall send against thee, and in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in the want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron upon thy neck, until he have destroyed thee.”)

But now the time had come to see the hand of God in all His dealings, and submit.

If they refused; they would be forced out of the land God had given them for their sin. Yet, it would not be forever; but seventy years.

When Jeremiah told the people this; the princes and rulers tried to kill him.
Jeremiah 5:11-12 “For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the Lord.
They have belied the Lord, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword nor famine:”
Hidden by friends( Jeremiah 36:16-19); then put in a deep pit with mire in it (Jeremiah 38:4-6); yet he proclaimed the truth. Warning again and again, the king of Judah, and the princes to yield to the king of Babylon, because it was really yielding to God.

But they refused; and the whole city suffered under starvation, thirst, and finally the enemy breaking through,and death. Thousands of men, women and children died because they refused to submit to God’s dealings with them. Thousands of others were taken away from the land as slaves.

How often are we dealt with by God? Things are happening, and we refuse to pray about them, or just say: I know this is just to try me. When God is really trying to awaken us to what needs to be changed.
Yes, our faith is tried; but when things come to us; we should seek the Lord’s face about them. If we are being tried, He will increase our faith, by the trial.
If we are being corrected, He will let us know; and it will be our blessing to submit to the correction.

But Jeremiah, too, was in the city. He was there when the city was taken, and the Temple destroyed.

But God saw to his servant; he was given bread and water through the siege, by the very king he tried to warn (though he refused the good warning).

When everything Jeremiah had warned them of, had come to pass; he walked out of the place the king had kept him, into a city destroyed and burning.
Still, when approached by the remaining people for good counsel, he prayed for them, to get it.

But when they heard what God wanted them to do? They refused and went their own way. (Jeremiah 42:1-6, 19; Jeremiah 43:1-7)
Often we are the same; we see the very thing God has warned us of, through preaching, teaching, and Bible study; yet we still do not heed God’s warning to us.
We think, God has to take care of us.
Yes, if saved, we can never be lost. But God can allow severe chastening in our lives, because we refuse His Word.
Which, when we yield to, life is given; His life and grace is given more abundantly.

When Jeremiah first started to preach to the people; God told him:

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

Cisterns are like a whole dug, and filled with rain water; like a reservoir. Cisterns are often dry, even when not broken.
To rely on anything other than our God, for our life, is to turn to cisterns.

But our God is like a fountain of living waters. Ever springing up, ever availing.
What will we do today, with God’s Word to us?

Manna, or the old corn of the Land.

Joshua 5:11-12 “And they did eat of the old corn of the land on the marrow after the Passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the self same day.
And the manna ceased on the marrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.”

On this day the manna stopped. They did not need it any more. It had been God’s miraculous food for His people, in the wilderness. But now there was the old corn that the Canaanite stored up from their harvest.
When they entered Canaan, the people had fled into Jericho, and had left this supply of food behind.
Now Israel had a supply, not from heaven each morning; but from their enemies.
Certainly, both supplies came from God.
One was directly from Him, each morning.
The other was from Him, because of the fear He placed in the hearts of the people of the land, when Israel came to cross the Jordan.

These supplies were also different in the way they were presented to feed Israel.

The manna was on the ground, right outside the tents of each Israelite. So he could walk on it if he so chose.

So Christ when He came in His humiliation as the Man Christ Jesus, was presented in an earthly manner. (John 6:33-35 “For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.
Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread.
And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life; he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.”)
He came as one of them, presented Himself as the Son of God, and was despised and trampled on, as often the manna was to Israel. (John 6:41-42 “The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, I am bread which came down from heaven.
And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven?”)
As the manna was given directly from heaven, but placed upon the ground round their tents for them to honor and receive, or walk on; so Jesus Christ came to this earth to be received or rejected.

The old corn of the land was discovered, as they came to possess their possessions in the Promised Land.
And when discovered it, the manna ceased.

It was part of their inheritance, which this generation wanted, and so they received it with thanksgiving.
This is like Christ being presented as Lord and Savior to a lost and dying world; after He had ascended into heaven again, receiving all power, and set down at the right hand of God.
Matthew 28:18-20 “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and , lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
Christ Jesus was presented to the lost world, and where it was received, it was with thanksgiving.
Was their battles? Yes, in both cases: Israel in Canaan. And the Gospel of Christ to the world, yet Christ is our inheritance; let us give thanks for His Salvation, and all He has done for us.

Christ is still the Bread of Life. He is still being presented to the world.

Both supplies of food represent Christ; one sent from heaven to be presented to Israel.
One sent by heaven through the enemies they were to overcome.
Let us praise God for all the ways He sees to us, to His Gospel, and to the honor of His Son.

The Power of God and the Power of the Word of God

Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.”

John 1:1-3 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
The same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.”

Created: God made something out of nothing. He spoke and it was so.
Christ is the Word. And He spoke all things into being; and they were as He spoke.

Psalm 33:6-9 “By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and the hosts of them by the breath of his mouth.
He gathereth the waters of the sea together as a heap: and layeth up the depth in storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the Lord: let all the inhabitants of world stand in awe of him.
For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.”

The power of God is often displayed through His Word. What He says will be, will be.
Isaiah 14:24 “The Lord of Hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so it shall it come to pass; and as I have spoken, so it shall stand:”

When God created the heaven and the earth, He was well aware by His Omniscience (all seeing ability), that the earth that He spoke into being would be ruined by the fall of Lucifer (the Devil); And the fall of Adam.
Isaiah 14:12 “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!”
When Lucifer fell, it brought chaos to the beautiful earth God created.

Genesis 1:2 “And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.”

Yet God’s purpose would not be altered:
Isaiah 45:18 “For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else.”

So God’s Voice rang out in re-creation. Re-making what was.
Genesis 1:3 “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.”

God began to re-create with light; for darkness was upon the earth by Lucifer’s fall.

God is Light, and in His light we see light.

After re-creating the earth, forming man after His image:
Genesis 2:7 “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”

No other of His creatures are living souls. They have instincts, but no souls.
Man’s soul was the faculty God gave him alone, so that man could have fellowship with His Creator. He has a mind to think after God, to understand His Words. He has a heart to love God, and want to please Him. And he has a will, to will after God’s will.
But Adam sinned, disobeying God’s Word, making all man, sinners, and separated from God. God was not surprised. His Purpose saw this, and made provision for it, before times eternal.

For in His determination and purpose, Christ would come and save out a people for His Name’s sake.
God made the first promise of Christ right after the fall:
Genesis 3:15 “I will put enmity between thee (the devil) and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed (Christ); it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heal.”

Christ Jesus came and fulfilled the Father’s Will in everything. Jesus said:
John 12:45-46 “And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me
I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness”
As God spoke light to the re-creation; He sent His Son as the Light to the world, to all who would believe in Him.
John 12:49-50 “For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.
And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.”

Christ came to reveal the purpose, and determination of God: And to present the light of Salvation by receiving Him by faith.

Hebrews 1:1-3, 2:1,3. “God , who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the father’s by the prophets,
Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;”

“Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.
How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;”

God’s purpose and determination is that all that believe and receive Him should be saved.
Do you believe in Christ Jesus the Lord?
Do you have the salvation He bought for you?
Are you walking in the Light He has made available?

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.”

This is God’s power, for “cleanseth” is past, present and future tense. Cleanseth means forgives, and then gives power to get that sin out of our lives. For yesterday, today, and tomorrow; for every sin that comes up. Power for it!

This is the power of God and the power of His Word.

Are you Listening?

Luke 8:18 “Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken that which he seemeth to have.”

Take heed how ye hear.
Now this is not just good advice, but it is a saying of Jesus.
He warns all who will hear Him, to take notice of what they are hearing.
They are not just nice sounding words to lull you to sleep. Or assure you that everything is O.K., if it is not.
His Words are not just to enter our ears, but our hearts; and bring forth fruit to Eternal Life.

Jesus had just finished the parable of the sower. Four types of ground.
There was the wayside ground: hard and not tilled.
There was the rocky ground: which sprang up, but withered.
There was the thorny ground: which choked the word.
And then there was the good ground: which brought forth fruit.

What was the differences between these grounds? The preparation of the ground, itself.
The wayside had no preparation. The Word was “walked upon, and devoured by the Adversary.” (Luke 8:12)
The rocky ground had too many things which needed to be removed to be useful; and so the Word of Christ just died in the life.
The thorny ground had been tilled but without removing the roots of bitterness, which spring up again and again, to choke the Word in the life. (Hebrews 12:15)
And the good ground prepared to hear. Heard, and obeyed (took heed how they heard), and brought forth fruit to Christ’s glory, and honor.

How do you take heed?
You listen as if you Eternal Soul was dependent on just how you heard!

Is your life hardened to the Gospel? Have you trodden down Christ’s Words to you?
The Adversary is waiting, to remove those Words that are given you; and leave you hardened, and dead. Will you prepare your heart to hear?

The reality of these verses is told by Jesus when He says:
“From him shall be taken that which he seemeth to have”!
They looked good; They probably said the right answers, but their hearts separated themselves from the impact of Christ’s Words, so they would not have to obey.

This one had heard the call of Christ, and answered it with all the right words, but it has been just that, An answer of “words”.
So what he “seemeth to have, he does not.

Christ requires not an answer of words; But an answer of a Life, open to, and receptive to Him.

Remember, when Christ saves a life, He also claims that life.
From that time on that saved one is bought with a Price, and no longer their own.

Jesus says, “Take heed how ye hear”. Prepare your ears to hear, and your heart to receive.

Are you an Overcomer?

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.”

Before you can become the overcomer of Revelation 3:21; you must open the door of your life to Christ.
He will not knock down the door and come in; nor will He force His way in some other way.
He calls to the individual that hears His voice, to open to Him. It is a Life, open to and receptive to Him, that counts.

This is not sinless perfection; but the desire to have the fellowship offered by the Lord, here.
He will not force us to have this fellowship which is suggested in the, “sup with him, and he with me”.
It all rests with our “want to”. You will never have the Reality of the love relationship that He intends, until the Holy Spirit has created within you this want to.

We can know and claim His love to us. All His children can. But before you can really say “I love you” to Christ; you must give up loving yourself so much.
Again, it is the want to .

Revelation 3:21 “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.”

And what do we overcome?
Everything which stands in the way of God’s Will for our lives. This is what Christ did while He was on earth, so must we.
We overcome fear, by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, and trust.
We overcome ourselves in every way, by the power of the Holy Spirit, and deny ourselves, and be obedient to Christ.
We overcome circumstances, in the power of the Holy Spirit, joy for sorrow, peace for chaos, patience for worry, and anger. He empowers. He gives grace (the unmerited favor of power)

To overcome anything is to yield to Christ’s Word, and the Holy Spirit within; and come out of your self life, and into Christ’s life for you.

We must always bear in mind, WHO it is that speaks to us. And What He is able to do; even within the most rebellious, or lazy, or selfish thoughts within us.
Christ is able, and has sent His Holy Spirit to us, to enable us in the very place, time, and circumstances, we are in.

Have you heard His voice to you? Is He knocking again for entrance to your life?
It is fellowship that He desires, do you so desire this fellowship, too?

Are you an overcomer? Will you overcome everything which stands in the way of Christ’s life for you?

Are you experiencing the Fruit of the Spirit?

Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”

When we are born again, the Holy Spirit enters our spirit and gives us new life.
But He also brings us faith: the ability to believe God, trust Him, and follow Him.
It requires us to use what He gives, but it is in our life, if we so choose.

The method of this is to yield to the power of the Holy Spirit within us.
When He says to wait, we wait. Patience is given and we can wait as long as He wants.
When He says to love, not hate. That love is given by the Holy Spirit within, and as we yield to Him, we can experience that, in place of the anger and bitterness, which would come in certain circumstances.
When He says to quiet yourself in peace. His peace can take over the maddening shouts, the chaos, and the fear in your soul, and quiet restful peace reigns in any circumstances.

We must also say: If we yield, it is so.

If we hesitate, hold out for our own way, or give in to self expressions of anger, bitterness, fear, or self glorification: We quench the Holy Spirit, and His power is withheld.
Then we stand in the precarious position of facing the circumstances, without God’s power.

Galatians 5:25-26 “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.”

When Paul says “we live in the Spirit”, he means that we are born again, alive to the newness of Christ’s life within us.

So he says we should walk in the Spirit; or experience that life of Christ’s in our everyday walk.
This is by yielding to the Spirit of God, in every aspect of your life’s circumstances.

Paul says that we should not be desirous of vain glory. To look out for #1. That is to desire that you will be noticed, appreciated, respected above others.
Is that so bad?
When the heart is full of myself, My place in society, my goals, my attainments; we are not full of the Holy Spirit.

We are not to provoke one another. Simply seek the peaceable things to talk about. Try not to start a fight. (There is defending the faith, but that is not contentious, but:
2 Timothy 2:24-26 “And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient;
In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;
And that they may recover themselves out the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.”)

And Paul says we are not to envy one another. Envy is often thought light of in this day; but to envy in the Greek means to shrivel away, or pine for something someone else has. To place yourself in the position, that the Adversary of our souls can tempt you to think harshly of God’s Will and Way for you.

Are you yielding to the Spirit of God within you? You can have all He wants to give, if you will.

To Count the Cost
Luke 14:28 “For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?”

Luke 14:31 “Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?”

The Lord told His disciples that they were to count the cost of service, and following Him.
He gave two examples; and one of building, and one of warfare.
We are to do both.
If we follow Christ, we will be in a battle against the wiles of the Devil. The Adversary will seek to dissuade us, by fear. Or seek to destroy us, if we stand with Christ.

If we follow Christ, we are to build. First we are to build our house upon the Rock of Christ and His Word.
Then we are to add to the building of the Church. From the foundation to the roof, we are to build up His Church, by edification (teaching); exhortation (to wake up) and comfort.
1 Corinthians 3:10 “According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation, another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.”

We are to count the cost, because to stand with Jesus in this world, will cause you to be mocked, hated, ridiculed, and left out of, a lot of what the world has.

You sit down and count the cost. And He says to do it first.
To run after Christ emotionally, will play out. (Emotions do)
To run after Christ mentally, will lead you to reasons, and when reasons run out, so do you.
To run after Christ willfully, will lead you to count the cost for yourself, and choose.

Christ wants you to run after Him willfully; eyes wide open, to what is ahead.
He has a great life for all who follow Him; here: peace, and joy in Christ Jesus, even amid the trouble this life gives (and He always tells His disciples that there will be trouble). There: face to face with Christ; which makes heaven, heaven.
Luke 14:33 “So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.”
“Forsaketh” here means to bid adieu, to depart from, to leave.

We are to count the cost of giving up all that we have, for the life Christ has for us.

This is not saying that He will require all things; He certainly will require you to give up sin, and anything which leads to it.
But, you need to count the cost, as He says.
That way you know, if there is something in “your” life that you will refuse to give up, even for Christ’s sake.

That is what counting the cost means. Christ requires of His servants, that they should obey Him, and His words to Him. It costs everyone the same amount: everything.

Jesus did not seek to persuade men to follow Him with false promises.
He spoke plainly, that to follow Him was the most costly of decisions.

Luke 14:25-26 “And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them,
If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.”

Multitudes were following Christ, but instead of encouraging them, He put a hurtle in front of them.
“To follow Me means that the emotions you feel for everything else, even yourself, will be like hatred in comparison to the love you have to Me.”

Are you a disciple of Christ Jesus?          Have you counted the cost?