We are Created in Christ Jesus

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.”

There are two creations: the natural creation, and the spiritual creation.
We were created in Adam; naturally he was the father of all people.
We were created in Christ Jesus; spiritually, when we were born again.

1 Corinthians 1:30 “But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:”

This states our provision as a New Creation in Christ Jesus.
First there is Wisdom:
Wisdom is that sudden light from above which illuminates our lives.
We were afraid: wisdom came, and suddenly the thing we were afraid of, is seen against the background of God.
We were without understanding: wisdom came, and suddenly the “muddle of our minds” disappears, and we know.
And with the knowledge, that wisdom gives power to do.

Second, there is Righteousness:
There is the imputed righteousness of Christ which is given to us. But this righteousness spoken of here, is the righteous acts of obedience which we do for His sake.
When we see what He wants us to do, and realize that with that wisdom is power, then, we will with Him to do those acts of obedience to please Him.

Third, there is Sanctification:
Sanctification is the setting yourself aside for sacred use. To be used by God, for His glory and honor.
This sanctification is as we are in Christ Jesus:
It is by our Heavenly Father that we are sanctified.
Jude 1: “Jude the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:”

It is by the Lord Jesus Christ that we are sanctified.
1 Corinthians 1:2 ” Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:”

It is by the Holy Spirit we are sanctified.
1 Peter 1:2 “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ : grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.”

Fourth, there is Redemption.
Redemption is two-fold. The ransom for our lives was paid in full by Jesus Christ. And by it we are given deliverance from our old life.
Or, simply put, it is the power to be saved from our sin and self.

Now all these things we have in Christ Jesus. If we will, we can have all in abundant measure.
He is willing to give us what we need. But that is like feeding us with bread and water; it will keep us alive, but not healthy.

But He will give abundant life: pressed down and running over with His life in your life, if you will to go on with Him.
John 10:10 “The thief cometh not, but to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

It is “might have”, for Jesus Christ bids us to will with His will for us, and receive all the glorious promises He has for us.

1 Corinthians 1:31 “That according as it is written, he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.”
As we go along with the Lord in our walk, our life in Him becomes stronger, and more to His honor, and praise.

The Woman taken in Adultery

Jesus is sitting in the Temple, teaching to all the people, when some scribes and Pharisees bring a woman in, and put her in the midst of His teaching session.
John 8:4-5 “They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.
Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?”

Here is a historical fact: Adultery in Israel was to be punished by stoning.

Here is the lesson: God’s forgiveness overrules sin’s punishment.

Here are several men, older and younger who find a woman who is “taken in adultery”; or committing it at the time the men walked in.
There were no thoughts that this was a mistake….”No, I did not do what they are accusing me of. I’m innocent.” No, she did it.

What these men were doing there, is not said; except that they did it to trick Jesus, so they could accuse Him.

But, Jesus, knowing the reason in their hearts for this question, simply ignores them….or so it would seem.
He begins to write in the sand with His finger. What He wrote, is not known. They gathered around Him as vultures; more than the woman, they were supposed to be questioning about.
(I, personally, think Jesus was writing dates; maybe when they had been with this woman…they all knew where to find her. Or other names of the women they had used.)
Whatever He wrote; and it does say “wrote”; when He had wrote enough, He stood up, looked at them, and said:
John 8:7 “So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.”

The Law was God’s Word. It was right. Yet the judges were wrong.
So again, Jesus stoops down and writes on the ground. He had answered their question; with a question to their conscience.

John 8:9 “And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and woman standing in the midst.”

Here is power, not on their hearts, but on the conscience. Our conscience is the part of us that believes there is a judgement somewhere, somehow; whether by God, or not. That all our actions, have a reaction back at us.

Their conscience convicted; they simply left. Retreat was the best defense.

But the woman stayed.
This is an amazing thing, I believe.    She could have tried to leave when they were leaving, or afterwards; but she stayed to hear Jesus judgement.
And because she did….Halleluia….we have the lesson of forgiveness.

John 8:10-11 “When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? Hath no man condemned thee?
She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go and sin no more.”

She called Him, “Lord”; that is why she stayed, because she bowed to His Lordship.

This woman came in, a sinner, and left forgiven. The scribes and Pharisees came in self-righteousness, and left convicted.
The difference is in yielding to the Light of Jesus Christ.
She did. They refused.
John 8:12 “Then spake Jesus again to them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”

And remember He says: the light of life. He is light. He is life. Let us yield to Him and rejoice that our sins can be forgiven.

What is a Christian Life?

Our Christian life is one in which God leads us to trust Him in trouble.
Isaiah 26:3 ” Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.”

To wait on Him in anxiety, and fear.
Isaiah 41:10 “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
Hebrews 13:5-6 “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have; for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
So that we may boldly say, the Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.”

To praise Him for Himself, alone.
Psalms 34:1 “I will bless the Lord at all times: His praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
1 Thessalonians 5:18 “In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”

To look to Him in every situation.
1 Thessalonians 5:17 “Pray without ceasing.”
Psalms 34:6 “This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.”

To love Him in correction.
Psalms 119:67 “Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.”
Hebrews 12:5,11 “And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord nor faint when thou art rebuked of him.
Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless, afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.”

And mostly, to believe that He knows, and does best.
Psalms 34:7 “The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.”
Hebrews 13:20-21 “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant.
Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.”

Are You Listening?
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 sup with him, and he with me.”

To answer the call of Christ in this Laodicean Age requires not an answer of words, but an answer of a life open to, and receptive to Him.

What is sup in this verse? It means fellowship, which is the reaction of a love relationship. The Creator having fellowship with His creature.
We forget that God is God.
At the head of this church letter, He calls Himself the Amen.
And He is the only one who can say Amen, or so let it be, to any plan, or suggestion, or purpose.

Then He calls Himself the Faithful and True Witness.
He is Faithful, never letting the Purpose for which we were created, out of His sight.
And therefore, He truly tells us how we are, so that we can, if we will, bring ourselves to Him, so we can be made what He wants us to be.
He is a faithful and true witness to His church, as how they are.

Then He is The beginning of the creation of God.
When God created: Christ as the Man, Christ Jesus, was His first thought.
For He knew the world, by Adam’s sin, would be lost without providing a Savior.
So, before anything was created; God the Father, and God the Son entered into the Everlasting Covenant.
God promised Christ that if He would come, and die on the cross as the Perfect Man, then He would raise Him up from death, and give Him a people which would love and obey Him.

Christ Jesus tells us here; what we are…lukewarm, and about to be vomited out of Him; so we will be without His sustaining.
He also tells us how we are…we are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked. All of these things speak of a people, who are not letting Christ make them into what He has planned for them.
They think they are, but He says they are not.

Then He gives us very good advice.
Revelation 3:18 “I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thy eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.”

In Psalms the Lord tells us that His counsel will stand. We can count on it , because we can count on Him. That He gives us the best counsel for our situation.
Psalms 33:11-12 “The counsel of the Lord standeth forever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord; and the people whom he hath chosen for His own inheritance.”
He tells us that the best advice for the strengthening of our Christian lives: Buy of Me.
We are not to buy salvation, no. But we are to buy the things He has already purchased for us, for our Spiritual Health.

You may ask, Why do we buy, if He has already purchased them for us?

We buy them…..of Him. Again, we are not buying Salvation….that is a free gift for all who will come to Christ as Lord and Savior. Once He is our Savior, we are to come to Him in faith receiving all He has for us. But if we refuse? They are set aside, till we….”Wake up”; and want them.
Often, since we have refused them before; He will see how much we want them; and this is when He requires that we “buy them”.
We buy them by Obedience to what He says. If we will Obey Him in these things, we prove that we really want His life and gifts.

We buy of Him the things that we have refused to use before.
Has He not offered the grace to grow and the power to do? Yet we have often prayed for these things, but not the way they come.
“Sorry, Lord, I’m going to refuse this gift, for now, because I don’t like the people I have to work with; no, no, I just couldn’t do it now”

If this is the way you treat your Savior; now you know why He says we are: “wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked–not clothed with the righteous acts whereby we manifest His Light to the world.

So He says, Buy of Me. If you finally are willing to Obey Me as your Lord, and Savior; buy these things that I have for you by obedience to My Will.
Get them, and I will manifest Myself unto you in a special way, for you have finally opened your life to Me, as you should.

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 is Fellowship with the Almighty Christ.
He knocks, and speaks to your heart.
Are you listening?

A gift of Memorial
Matthew 26:6-7 “Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper,
There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.”
Mark 14:3 “And being in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper, as he sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious: and she brake the box, and poured it on his head.”

In two days was the feast of the passover. Jesus was in a friend’s house with His disciples, when a woman (she is named as Mary, Lazarus’ sister in John 12:3) came and poured very costly ointment upon Jesus’ head, and feet, and wiped them with her hair.)

There were several reactions to this. (When anything happened concerning Jesus, there were always several reactions, depending on whether you were a believer or not.)
For Judas, the betrayer, the reaction was greed. Don’t pour the ointment on Jesus head; but sell it. The poor was the pretense, but the bag was the reality for him.
John 12:4-6 “Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, which should betray him,
Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor?
This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.”

In Mark the reaction was from “some”:
Mark 14:4-5 “And there were some that had indignation within themselves, and said, Why was this waste of the ointment made?
For it might have been sold for more than three hundred pence, and have been given to the poor. And they murmured against her.”
Indignation? For an offering of love to Jesus?
Yes, it was “within themselves”, but Jesus was worth so much more.
Judas had planted a thought that they took hold of. Shame on the “some”.

In Matthew, all the disciples, are indignant! Such is the power of suggestion!
Matthew 26:8-9 “But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste?
For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor.”
Indignant means anger over something unjust or mean.
And they were indignant over giving to Jesus?

Yes, the poor are to be seen to; but no comparison to Jesus.
Also, Jesus, Himself would have corrected the woman if it had been “unjust”.

How much we are influenced by the world’s attitudes, only the Holy Spirit can show us.
They had been with Jesus for a while, almost three years, yet thought this act of devotion and worship, “waste”.
It is plain that the idea came from Judas, voicing his anger at this woman giving Jesus this expensive gift; but the disciples should have realized their mistake.

Yet, let us hear what Jesus said about it:
Mark 14:6-9 “And Jesus said, Let her alone; why trouble ye her? She hath wrought a good work on me.
For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always.
She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying.
Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her.”

This was some honor, for a woman harassed by these men; wherever the Gospel shall be preached, she will be recognized for this act of devotion.

Jesus said plainly; “She hath done what she could.” It is something that I would like to hear from the Lord Jesus one day.
She hath done what she could. This was very expensive ointment, and she poured it all out on Jesus.
Our attitude toward what we, and others do for the Lord Jesus, needs to be like this:
That we will do what we can for Him.
How many can say that? I know I have failed many times, and been as the disciples here. Going along with the attitude of the world, where Jesus is concerned.

Maybe she did not even understand what He said.
But what a joy on Resurrection Day, when she realized that she was the only one who was able to anoint Him for burying!
Love knows no boundaries, except those set by the Lord.
Love excepts all.
How grateful we should be that the Lord excepts us, and our “ointment”.
Are we as this woman?
“She hath done what she could.”

Christ will Rule….Consider Judas
Luke 19:27 “But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me.”
“Which would not that I should reign over them”
Now just what does Christ Jesus seek from all of us? He came to save us, and now He seeks that we will make Him our King.
Matthew 6:10 “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven”

Of your own will , bowing to HIS Will that HE might rule and reign within us; in His Kingdom of Light and Love.

It is my conviction, that all who refuse this, place themselves as Enemies of Christ, and must yet hear this from Him. “But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither and slay them before me”
We think we can deal with GOD, and still keep options open in case we change our mind.
When we never really have the fullness of anything GOD gives us, until we are fully His.
Luke 16:11 “If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?”
God will not give you more than a taste of those “true riches” until you are One with Him.
Hebrews 6:4-6 “For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift , and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,
If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.”
You see they had experienced the reality of these things in their lives.
Because that is what “taste” means; to experience.

Have you ever thought of Judas?
His calling was never told. Why he followed Jesus, he never said. It soon came to light that he was a thief, but why he began to follow Jesus, it never says.
The first place you hear of Judas, was when Jesus called the men which followed him disciples, and gave them power to heal; and a commission to go and preach, “The kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Matthew 10:4 “Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.”
An interesting light is shown about our Lord’s time here, when Jesus called Himself the Bread of Life.
John 6:35 “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.”
Judas was there with the other disciples,(and at this time there were more than twelve). After Jesus says to them that they would have to “eat” his flesh, many of His disciples “went back”.
John 6:66 “From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.”
Jesus was talking of having Him in their lives, which would give them life, as bread does. But many refused His saying…not because they did not understand it, but because it was “a hard saying”.
John 6:60 “Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is a hard saying; who can hear it?”
Yet Judas stayed. Again, why?
John 6:64 “But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him.”
Notice, Jesus makes a difference between believing not, and betraying him.
If Judas had “believed not”, he would have left with the others who refused to believe that Jesus was going to give them life.

But Judas betrayed Jesus. He not only didn’t believe in Jesus; he sought occasion to steal from Him, and then to sell Him.
John 12:6 “This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.”
And Jesus knew.
His was an act so vile, because of the privilege he was given, when for three years he spent time with Jesus.
And because he could have walked away.
How much he would have seen in the time that he had spent with Jesus? Just how much Light he was sinning against?
Have you ever considered his repentance, and what came of it?

Matthew 27:1-5 “When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death:
And when they had bound him, they led him away to Pontius Pilate the governor. Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders,
Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? See thou to that.
And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.”
He was sorry for “innocent blood”; not for betraying God’s Son to death, for money.
But it was all too late. The Son of God/The Son of Man which he never believed in, or loved, was going to die.
He went to the wrong people, if he wanted forgiveness for his sin. If he thought they would do anything about it, he was wrong. He had seen Jesus being condemned, he could have spoken up for Him at the counsel.
But he didn’t.
He realized he had been duped, but that was all. It was all a self-centered cry of desperation; to try and change the judgement that he was feeling heavy upon himself.
And he realized, too late, that the money he loved so much, was useless now.

Judas killled himself, rather that seek forgiveness from the only One who could forgive sins.

But that did not stop God’s Purpose, nor can any.
Our Lord Jesus died, and rose again. He has all power and authority, and reigns in Heaven; and in the heart of everyone of His People here, who receive Him as their King.
And one day will come again, and reign as King here. Hasten the day, Lord.

The Whole Duty of Man.
Ecclesiastes 12:13 “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.”

God is Sovereign.
Man is Responsible.
Man the creature, before God the Creator.
We are responsible to use the prescribed means to bring about the Creator’s foreordained ends.

Sadly, all around us, people have lost the true view of God.
And the reason, I believe, is that we don’t see ourselves as creatures before the Creator.
As Christians, whose relationship is one of light and love to our God, we are still required to obey Him, as His creatures.
At the first, man’s only requirement to maintain Paradise, was to obey. This was Creator to creature.
Christ, our Redeemer, has redeemed us from the penalty of the Law….but not the essential duty of obedience to God’s commands.
God’s promises do not set aside His precepts; on the contrary, Jesus said plainly that we should “continue in His word”(John 8:31); and He came to do the Will of God.

John 6:38″For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.”

We just need to get obedient to the light we have. That light is shown by the Scriptures.
By One man’s Obedience, we are restored to God.
Romans 5:19″For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.”
That One, Who shall make many righteous, is the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul also says: Grace reigns through righteousness, not without it.
Romans 5:21 “That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Grace is the unmerited favor of power. Power from the Holy Spirit within any Christian, to be obedient.
We often think that doing good for man, is what God wants us to do.
Sometimes that is true…
John 13:35 “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”

Sometimes those ideas simply get in the way of what God really wants you to do.
Acts 16:6-7 “Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia,
After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not.”
Paul wanted to go into Asia, but could not. Then thought to go into what is now the upper part of Turkey, but was told not to by the Holy Spirit.

The Reality of the matter for each person, (and should be especially acknowledged by each Christian) is:
Revelation 4:11 “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.”
His “pleasure” here, is His determination. And His determination for all creation, is that His Son be glorified, and honored; and especially by those Christ has redeemed.

Ephesians 1:11-12 “In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
That we should be to the praise of his glory,…”
The whole duty of man is to love and obey God;
This should be a joyful duty, because it is to the One Who gave so much to save me.

The Joy of the Lord
Nehemiah 8:10 “And he said unto them, Go thy way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

In other words, as they experienced this joy, and yielded to this joy; they would be strengthened in His Might.
This is to “be strong in the Lord and the power of His Might.” (Ephesians 6:10)

The need was great for Israel. They were back in the land, but enemies had and would keep trying to destroy their unity, and commitment to God’s Worship.

But here they had just had a service where the Law and books of Prophesy were read, and interpreted to the people.
They were excited to learn, but also, but saddened by the memory of their sin, which had sent them out of the land.

Their is a time to repent; and a time to rejoice in the goodness of God.
Now was the time to rejoice in the goodness of God.

We are called, as Christians, to have Christ’s Kingdom come with in our hearts and lives, now.
Matthew 6:10 “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”

The inward Kingdom of Heaven is set up in the hearts of all who repent and believe the Gospel.
And that Kingdom is none other than:
Romans14:17 “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.”

Now joy is a choice instrument that God uses to work in a believing soul.

Joy and Peace are the true criteria to judge ourselves, spiritually.
When we are right with God, we have peace with God, and ourselves.
Joy follows.
Joy is a considerable help, not only to inward holiness, but also to outward holiness.
It strengthens our hands, to go on working in faith, and to labor in love.
It helps us to fight the good fight of faith; to lay hold on eternal life.

Joy is particularly designed by God to be a balance against the sufferings; inward and out; of our walk of faith.
It is meant to lift up the hands which hang down, and confirm the feeble knees (Hebrews 12:12).
There is a strengthening power in the joy of the Lord.

Therefore, whatever dampens our joy in the Lord, hinders our holiness.
The Devil would “throw water” on our joy, so that he would spoil our enjoyment of the things God gives…and if he could, the use of them too. When we get discouraged, or depressed, we begin to let down our shield of faith. The firey darts of the wicked one get through, when the shield is down.

When we get like that, we need to be exhorted to do, as Israel was told:
Nehemiah 8:10 “And he said unto them, Go thy way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

Joy and Happiness are not the same.
Each springs from a totally different source.

Happiness comes from the world around me. It is measured by what is happening to me. It is bound up in either the behavior of other people, to me; or the circumstances in which I will be, or am.

Joy comes directly from the Spirit of the Living God.
This joy springs from the Presence of God in my life. It is not dependent on people, places, or the situations in which I find myself; but rather from the Presence of God with me in any circumstances. (And don’t we find it so, that knowing that the Lord is with us, is a great blessing…always.)

Joy is one of the Attributes of God, which He shares with us. Joy runs like a sparkling river of great goodwill, through His make-up. He is the God of all Joy. He is alive. He is here.
That joy was the dynamic of the early Church.
And that can be the experience of all who truly allow God’s peace to rule in your hearts. When it does, joy follows.
Colossians 3:15 “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.”
Enthusiasm and deep delight in the Lord, are the characteristics of such a person.
There is direction in their duties, no matter how mundane or menial.
There is purpose in every area of their lives.
The Holy Spirit assures me that I am right with God, and because of that, an assurance that all is well even between me and myself, comes into my spirit.

This is to know the joy of the Lord, and it becomes a force in my life to dispel darkness and despair; to energize my life in my walk with God.

The joy of the Lord is our strength. We need it, and He has it for us.

Awake thou that Sleepest
Ephesians 5:14 “Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.”

When we are asleep, spiritually, our senses are dull. We don’t hear clearly. Our eyes are closed, not seeing what is going on.
That is why Paul, here, exhorts the Ephesians to “walk as children of light.”
(Ephesians 5:8)
Light is a great benefit for those who are growing sleepy in their walk as Christians.
It is like opening the curtain to let the sunshine come in, in the morning.
It makes you want to get up and get busy!

Darkness, on the other hand, tends to make us sleepy.
So with the darkness which comes to us spiritually. We are lulled to sleep. We begin to talk a great deal about “rest”, becoming discontent with the work we have been given for the Lord.
We look for ways to do God’s will quickly, or for a more “easier way” of walking with the Lord; for we do not want to take the action required to come to the light….for then our slothful sin will be seen.

So Paul calls on every Christian to “Awake”.
Awake, and arise; and Christ shall give you light.
Light to see what you need to do to get out of the darkness.
Light to see the world, as it is.
Light to see that Christ is worth the loss of everything.

Then Paul writes:
Ephesians 5:15 “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise.”
Circumspectly means there will be light for the path, we are to keep our eyes on the path, that we don’t get tripped up.

Awake, and walk wisely. For Christ shall give us light.

• Through the Knowledge of Him

  2 Peter 1:1-2 “Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Savior Jesus Christ:
  Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord.”

  How much we need grace and peace in these days, in our individual lives.
  It is to be had, in Christ. If you are born again, you have access to it by the Holy Spirit within.
  But to have it “multiplied unto you”; that is through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord.

  You will notice that our “faith” is through our Savior Jesus Christ; but the grace and peace multiplied is through Jesus our Lord.

  He is our Savior as we rest the full weight of our existence upon Him, through the faith that is given us by the Holy Spirit.
  He is our Lord, by our exercising our wills to make Him so.
  And we only do this as we get to know Him.

  2 Peter 1:3 “According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us unto glory and virtue:”
  “According as His divine power”; not according to my miserable ability. But according to His divine power. The limitless, and Almighty power of God.

  “All things” means all things.
  “Hath given” means they are given us in Christ Jesus, by the Holy Spirit within us; as we use them. And “them”, are all the things that are concerned, in us having Christ’s life and godliness in our everyday lives.
  Again, it is through the knowledge of Him.

  How important it is that we know Christ, and continue to gain knowledge of Him.

  He has indeed called us to “glory and virtue”; to manifest His glory, even here in these circumstances, and among these people.
  And called us to the virtue of His Holy Spirit within us: The Artea of His power.
  Artea means “force”. He is that force within us, “working in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13).
  So we manifest His glory–the glory of His salvation, of His calling, of His love by the force of the Holy Spirit within our spirits; helping us to obey, and joy in it.

  2 Peter 1:4 “Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises; that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
  Christ has given us promises….His Word to claim and obtain for yourself; they are ours , but we must get them into our experience. That is what obtain means; to get them for ourselves.
  They are given to us, that you might have the character of Christ, and escape the corruptions (envy, anger, lying)that the world’s system lives in. We each have our own lusts. Whether they be spiritual, mental, emotional, or physical; we lust after what we don’t have.
  Until we make Christ Lord of our lives, and yield to His will and way for our lives.

  And the way that happens is to : Know Christ more and more, for ourselves.
  This not to know about Him (although that is not bad), but to know Him. It is to know what He requires of me. It is to know the force of the Holy Spirit , and how we are to yield to Him. It is to know what He will do for me in the temptations, and trials that I go through.
  It is to know Him. Through the Knowledge of Him, we multiply grace and peace.