How to correct a brother or sister

The way to correct an erring brother is not through rebuke but by intercession with Christ. He gave you the eye of discernment not so that you can take the speck out of your brother's eye, but so that you can go before God in his behelf to correct him without him being a comparison to yourself. This is not only the loving thing to do, but it is the only effective way to live as a witness for Jesus.

SEEKING GOD WITH NO REGRETS

One of the most taxing, but rewarding exercises is intercessory prayer. It is quite a thing to set aside what you need for God for the good of another. It is indeed work to do so, but a labor that has no regrets. The greater one labor's for another, the fewer and less severe our own demands become. This is why Jesus calls it the Second Great Demand, that you love one another.

Are you ready to meet Jesus?

The Christian life is all about being ready. We are told over and over again in the Bible about His imminent return. How does one prepare for His return? It is not by being religious, but by longing for His return. Mary was confirmed by Jesus when she spent her time with Him, but Martha was rebuked for caring for "too many things." Did you know that your feet follow your eyes? That is why we cast our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith.

What Faith in Jesus Means

There is never a guarantee that a person will intellectually understand all of what Jesus requires. This is where faith begins. There are those of us who sometimes call into question what Jesus is saying. We feel that if we could express ourself to him, surely we would keep him from open shame. This is neither the nature of faith or obedience. It is necessary to understand that he is God and we are not. God alone has understanding and where our obligation ends is to believe him and proceed with joy because in him all things work together for good.

Come up higher

Elevevation is both a reward and a temptation. God uses elevation as reward so that He can make further revelation to us. Satan uses elevation to come to a standard that we cannot achieve causing us to fail. Listen to God's invitation and resist other invitation that are of the flesh.

The Pure in Heart Shall See God

The reason we strive for purity is for our Lord's sake. Our identification with Christ should be evident to the onlooking public. Christ has saved us by forgiving our sins. Yet we remain in tarnished bodies and must begin to see others as God does which is good because they are in Christ. This involves both our conduct and our thought. Jesus' laws of the Kingdom are weighter than the Laws of Moses because they care about our intent.

Friends of the Bridegroom

When ever someone presents himself as holy, pure, righteous, and obedient - that is not holiness at all. Our actions should ones that draw people to Christ and not ourself. He should increase while we should decrease. Christian piety is the kind that shows others what Christ can do for them in their lives if they trust in Him.

We will not always be children of wrath

Walk by the Spirit and you will not fulfill the desires of the flesh. When you can, the sanctification process has run its course. Those who remain in conflict between natural desires and the Christian life and still being processed by the Spirit to bring conformity to the likeness of Christ. When you confess your sins, God who is just will forgive your sins. Do not justify yourself, but agree with God so the the Spirit can do his work.

Why Keep On Praying?

The reason we pray is to reach God. The reason we keep on praying is to know God better. Intimacy with God is what the Psalmist meant when he said "delight in the Lord your God, so that he may give you the desires of your heart." As one matures in faith, our own decisions become like God's decisions would be for us. This of course give great freedom and delight in our walk with Him.

Where Faith Begins

Did you know that the practical definition of faith is separation. To Abraham, it means separation from family and country to go to a place that He will show him. To I and you, it is a separation from the ways of the world. However, Jesus did say, "I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but keep them from the Evil One." So our separation is one in which we hear our shepherds voice and obey. This is New Testament faith.

Christ in Me

Do you know what it means to have Christ in you? Understand that Christ is incarnate. How then is Christ in me? The way in which Christ lives in you is by the transforming of your mind to the mind of Christ by way of the Spirit. So what are the results of this kind of change? The results are submitting your rights to His and giving Him first place in your life by way of obedience. This is how you change from walking in the flesh to walking in the Spirit.

Call sin"sin" and confess it

Tollerance of sin is its worst consequence. When the Christian is living by the Spirit, the Spirit will convict us of sin and we should confess it. If we fail to, our heart becomes hardened and it is no longer SIN, but sin. That's why Paul says if we walk by the Spirit, we will not perform the deeds of the flesh.

When He Sets His Face Like Flint, He is Hard to Follow

There is more than one face of Jesus. When He is the Good Shepherd, He gathers those who are His own to Himself and is easy to follow. Other timesHe is very distant to me. He sets His face like flint and goes on beyond me. Suddenly I am panic and am not sure if I can go there. Then I close my eyes and by faith move forward to find Jesus in control again.

Yielding ensues enslavement

It doesn't matter if the object of one's yielding is of the mind or in the flesh. If the object of one's yielding is either selfish or moral, it will enslave a person. A person will say that I can start and stop behavior, but that's not the nature of enslavement. Enslavement owns your power of the will. This is why Jesus said "I will set the captives free." Only Jesus, if yielded to, can and will do this.

Deliverance from Ones Self

Salvation is more than the forgiveness of sins or personal holiness. It speaks of a deliverance not only from the world but from ones self. In our natural condition, we contend with God and are at enmity with him. But in a delivered state, we become one with God and one with his purposes.

True Surrender

The nature of surrender is that it is selfless. It is an act of preference for Jesus without thought of what consequences are for ones-self. Surrender never anticipates the future of this apart for fulfilling the needs of Jesus and the gospel. Most have envisioned surrender but never have.

Though it tarries, wait for it. (Habakkuk 2:3)

God reveals his vision for us, but waiting of God is the test of fruitfulness. God says of his vision, "Though it tarries, wait for it." Too often, we tire from waiting and create our own vision. Of course this kind of vision is not blessed by God. The one who prevails until the end will be planted and bear much fruit.

Confidence & Not Turning Aside

Trusting in Jesus is setting your face like flint toward his goal. It is not waivering or turning aside. It is full conviction that Jesus' plans will come into being without human assistance. It is the opposite what James has already said "work without faith is dead." Apart from faith, we cannot please Jesus, but with faith we can move mountains.

Be careful what we ask other's to believe

We are not asked to preach to others to believe the Bible. No, we are called upon to believe in the One that the Bible reveals. Jesus Christ has bought us liberty in Himself and the object of our faith, hope, and trust should be Christ centered.

Be careful what we ask other's to believe

Well done good and faithful servant

The hearing of those words and the end of life comes from hesed love, which is the Hebrew word for loyal love. These words are not spoken to people who do many good things. They are spoken to His faithful ones. Jesus said, "I will show him how much he must suffer for My name's sake." Here he is speaking of obedience with loyality to be a good and faithful servant.

Following Jesus is not rational

It is dangerous to use a rational common sense approach to serving Jesus. Jesus doesn't use that approach. Is there any common sense in the Lord of the universe suffering on a cross? No, in service to Jesus we must not count ourself as our own. It means treading on dangerous waters knowing who it is that you serve.

Just as Jesus was sent, so too Jesus sends us

The reason Jesus could claim that "I am" is because He was like the One who sent Him. In the same way, Jesus has commanded and sent His disciples. So also, we should conform to the One who sent us. It is as Luther said, that we are to be the love of Christ, demonstrating His love by our love for one another.

Do You Really Love Jesus?

Sometime in our live, Jesus will probe us on the extent of our love for him. Do we really love him in our inner most being? Once we affirm our love in our inner most being, no longer will we need to try to prove our love for him. Our deep down commitment, once manifest, will amaze ever ourself. Then Jesus can tell us to feed his sheep.