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The Preeminence of Jesus Christ…

30 Dec

Colossians 3:3 (NKJV), “For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

In the world that we live in today, the glory of the Lord is displayed in every major aspect of our being. The Most High God has embedded the superiority of Christ and our need of repentance as the means to achieve our purpose in Him! Through the covenant of the New Testament God implanted a sure way to be made right and whole in His eyes, through the acceptance of Jesus. Christ is the rock of this foundation, and most importantly in the reconciliation to God His resurrection made. Colossians 1:21-22 (NKJV) reads “And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight.” Many forget that there is still only one true way to please God and that is through Christ atonement at the Cross, and no other means. The Most High calls those who have ears to hear into repentance through Christ and the perfect sacrifice that He made. The Bible states that Jesus is the light of the world (John 8:12), and this light is visible to all those who see. This light is namely visible in government, in the election of a leader to guide and uphold the righteous of the people for a higher quality of life. A President or Governor are a representation of a type of Christ, working for the people of a nation. Many forms of governmental power foreshadow the need of a perfect powerful leader, which when compared to Jesus hold no resemblance. Colossians 1:17 (NKJV), “And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.” Jesus is everything every man or woman would need based off of His duality with God. In our hunger to eat, the teaching of Jesus Christ is present in His statement of being the “Bread of Life,” (John 6:48) In the way we need food at times our spiritual man is in as dire need as well. The daily work ethic of waking up is symbolic of the spiritual struggle of working towards the goals of the Most High. Namely in our fall from grace in which God cursed Adam. Genesis 3:22-23 (NKJV) reads, “Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever” therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken.” The work we all put in on a weekly basis is based of the original sin of Adam and reminds of our need for a Savior. The preeminence of Christ is focused most strongly on our own humanity, in our imperfections and bad desires. Colossians 3:5-14 (NKJV) states “Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all.” In the times that we as human beings fall short we are reminded of one who never did, and has come to redeem us. Through the sacrifice of the son Jesus we all get a chance to see the Father. A friendly reminder is that all roads do not led to God, but if you look close all roads lead to Christ. Shalom…

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Presenting Ourselves as a Living Sacrifice for Christ…

30 Dec

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Romans 12:1-2 (NKJV), “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

The term “a living sacrifice,” is really underrated in today’s Christian world, where the godly and ungodly are beginning to intermingle. In our repentance from sin and turning to Christ for a new life, we at times forget just what exactly we are being held accountable for in this new life. The Bible states in Colossians 3:3 (NKJV), “For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” In the same way that Jesus died for our sins we are to die to the needs and the wants of our old self. In Jesus we are to begin to think with a new mindset, one totally focused on having a godly perspective of bringing the Kingdom of God to Earth for His spirit to dwell. This means not partaking in the things of this world where sin is becoming more prevalent and normal for people to partake in rather than to focus on biblical teachings. In short, we showcase the Gospel of salvation and just how believing in the Son of God can transform anyone’s life to begin anew. The term Holy in Romans 12:1-2 means to be set apart different from everyone else to display holiness and goodness to the unsaved. This is mainly displayed through grace and mercy. We were are sinners at sometime in our lives and the light of God was shown to us, and called us out of darkness. These characteristics make us acceptable unto God and enables the Holy Spirit to flow through many to cause repentance from the sin nature we inherited from Adam in Eve. As a living sacrifice we complete the good news of the departed Savior. In spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the four corners of the world and then the Lord will return. Matthew 24:14 (NKJV), “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” Through the Assembly of the Saints, we set the example and preach the good news of Christ sacrifice to the world. Allowing the Kingdom of God to be shown through us, and one day usher in the return of our Savior Jesus Christ. Shalom…

The Grace and Mercy of the Lord Jesus Christ…

30 Dec

Hebrews 4:14-16, “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

Grace in Christianity is defined as unmerited divine favor on the behalf of God. This gift comes to those who are repentant of their sins and accept the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for the remission of the sin nature that exist in every man and woman created. Grace comes solely based on the fact that we as children of the Most High God are not perfect creatures as we were originally created to be, and Jehovah knowing that while in the flesh sinful man cannot live a perfect life according to His will. The Lord knows this based on the Son Jesus Christ who walked among mankind for over 30 years feeling the same temptation that we feel in these mortal bodies. Jesus was tempted by Satan in Luke 4:1-13, but never sinned due to the fact no sinful nature was present in Him due to His Divine Nature. This makes mercy readily available to those who ask for it. The Lord knows how each and every person was born in sin and shaped in iniquity, knowing we had no choice when we came into this sinful fallen world. In Christ perfect mercy His gives His power to Us who believe the power to overcome Luke 10:19 reads, “Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” Jesus speaks here that no Spiritual infirmity will come our way that we do not have the power to overcome in His name. This includes Satan, Fallen Angels, and Demonic Spirits that influence our Earthly matters to steal, kill and destroy Humanity. This Divine power is the same Jesus Christ used to resist the Devil and to heal the sick, but more importantly submit to the Will of God which is the ultimate goal for every Christian. At times when we fail the Lord and fall short of His standard of Holiness know that His mercy sustains Us. Jesus knows the difficult task we have in this life and grants those who believe the Grace to make mistakes and also the power to overcome them. God is omnipresent in all of our situations, and hardship’s comes to perfect the Saints for Jehovah’s purpose. In short, Grace is the ability to be forgiven and the Mercy of the Lord is to overcome. Shalom…

Speaking the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ…

24 Nov

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Matt 10:34-36, Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.

One of the harsh realities of being a true follower of Jesus Christ is the rejection of others due to your new found Faith. When the Lord Jesus Christ came into this world, it was’nt to give everyone security to continue living their lives as they wanted, but to let all know that their is a desperate need for a Savior. The Law and Religion of that time and even now, is not sufficient enough to redeem man from the sin nature bestowed upon Us by the acts of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. This revelation of letting everyone know that all are sinners and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23) will indeed cause many to reject you, as no one likes the idea that they are wrong in any type of way or lifestyle that they are living. Never the less, the standard of serving a Holy God is in fact living Holy and no other way as stated in Hebrews 12:14, “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.” The Pharsees in the days of Jesus believed in only following the Law of Moses was enough to satisfy God, but were only good in preaching and not at all capable of living by the Law themselves. Matt 23:27-28 reads, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. The Gospel displays that one and only one is justified in the eyes of God and that is Jesus Christ, the perfect offering for the sins of the World. Hebrews 7:26-28 reads, “For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people’s: for this he did once, when he offered up himself. For the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore. Jesus came so that all of Humanity can be baptized into His perfect nature (Galatians 3:27) which places all in the right standing with God instead of a Law in which no man can keep, other than Christ Himself. I urge all to Preach the good news that all will here no matter the rejection, upon hearing the truth many may not like it but will ultimately repent and be made right with God, as in 2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” Shalom.

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Bearing your Cross for Christ…

30 Oct

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Luke 14:26-27, “If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.”

One of the most overlooked facts in our walk with Christ is the cross that we must bear because we belong to Him. Christ never promised that following Him would result in abundant blessings given unto us by men, but quit the opposite. In Mark 13:13, Jesus stated “And everyone will hate you because you are my followers. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” The cross that Christians will have to carry is mainly one of rejection, many still need to be shown the light of the cross and my reject the fact that they need to be change in order to be redeemed. So friends and family may be hesitant on how to approach you given your new found Faith in Jesus. Instead share with them the joy of all that He has done for you in your life, by sharing the Gospel which when heard can activate the Holy Spirit unto those loved ones who are currently lost. Find a common ground with them that allows you to open up plead your case to change. Another example of the Cross we are to bear can come from “a thorn put in our flesh,” that the Lord will use for us to be at times totally dependant upon the Holy Spirit. The Apostle Paul testified to this revelation in 2 Corinthians 12:7-9, “even though I have received such wonderful revelations from God. So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud. Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.” I love the fact that the Holy Spirit never tells the reader exactly just what this thorn was, allowing us to insert our own problem into the equation instead. This could be a disease, reocurring sin, Homosexual tendecies, or any other sin that we seek the Lord for deliverance from. This is our cross, which we seek Christ for to redeem it and make us whole for the glorification of the power of the cross. If we endure unto the end, we will be saved as stated in Mark 13:13. Pray to the Lord that He strenghthens your shoulders for the weight, so that we can continue our fight of purification unto Him. Remember the saying, “Must Jesus bear the cross alone, and all the world go free? No! Theirs a cross for everyone and theirs a cross for Me!

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We Preach Christ Crucified!

30 Oct

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I Corinthians 1:23, “But we preach Christ crucified.”

Many times, when I have seen and heard street Preachers or other Christians witness to unbelievers on the behalf of the Lord Jesus Christ they mainly speak against sin and the sin nature that all those outside of Christ live in. Trying to convict them based on guilt, instead of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that can deliver them out of it. This type of preaching is based on the the idea that that Christians can scare and unbeliever into repentance, without the actual use of the Gospel, which is of Jesus Christ and Him crucified. The Holy Bible in John 17:17 states, “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.”That truth is that God as a man came to earth as the Lord Jesus Christ, as a sin offering for the sins of all mankind. So that all may have eternal salvation through Christ who paid the price for all who accept Him as Lord to be made sinless in the eyes of God. When speaking of the Saviour, we are to have a general knowledge of what the Prophets spoke of Him in Isaiah 53:5, “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.” His genealogy of the bloodline of King David, from which He came from as stated in Matthew 1:1-17. His death in John 19 and resurrection in John 21, proving that His sacrifice was seen good in the eyes of God and exaltation in Acts 1:1-10. This is the Gospel message that will cause a sinner to repent, Romans 10:17 states, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Jesus Christ is the word made flesh as stated in John 1:14, And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. So preach Christ and Him Crucified before the masses so that they too will also begin to have Faith enough to receive all that God has given them in Jesus Christ…

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God the Father, The Son (Jesus), Holy Spirit explained…

10 Oct

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It seems that one of the most difficult facts of the Bible to explain is the 3 part system which is God. The Bible states over and over that their is only one God( 1 Corinthians 8:4) but also refers to Jesus Christ as God (Colossians 2:9) and also the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16). Over the years I have heard Pastors, Apostles, and just Brothers and Sisters in the Faith refer to God as being like water. He can exist as a liquid, ice or vapor. That is a pretty good reference but I see the system of God as being a total revealing revelation of Himself to His creation. God is omnipresent! Present in all places at the same time, due to this fact it is hard for men, who live in the present natural world to get a grip on the totality of God. This is why so many had a hard time when dealing with with Him when He made His presence know to them. Moses and the flaming bush, Balams donkey (Numbers 22:1-35) etc. In order to redeem man God became a man to not only take the sins of the world, but to show Himself in the flesh and show us how to live a divine life for Him through Christ Jesus. Remember God is omnipresent who cannot be fully understood in a natural world so He showed Himself in the natural and gave us the worldly understanding of His essence in Jesus Christ. Upon the Lords death, and resurrection Christ had defeated sin and rose with all power. Christ after having many others witness His resurrected body said that He is going to prepare a place for us and would send the Comforter the Holy Spirit to empower us to do His earthly work (John 14:16-17). Revealing the Holy Spirit of God who remains here with the Christian believer to guide us into all truth. This concept of revelation is know as God above us, God with us (Jesus), God inside us the Holy Spirit, helping all to understand His word and reveal more and more to us of the Holy omnipresent Father. All existed at the beginning of time which is way in the book of Genesis, the creator seems to be talking to Himself at the dawn of time (Genesis 1:26). God is the ultimate source of all things, Jesus is that natural manifestations, and the Holy Spirit is the worker bee in which all things are done (John 16:12-15) All revelations of the one true God!

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Cleansing your Temple for Christ…

1 Oct

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Luke 19:45-46, “Then Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the people selling animals for sacrifices. He said to them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be a house of prayer,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.”

Luke 19 describes the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem where observant Jews would offer sacrifices unto God, and have fellowship with their fellow kinfolk of that time. Along the road as with many of God creations, laws, and moral standard the Temple became corrupt basically becoming a place of business instead of worship. Upon seeing with His own eyes the corruption in the Holy place Christ drove out all who were partaking in such blasphemus doings. With the death of Jesus on the Cross, and Him offering Himself as the perfect sacrifice Christ transferred the old Temple used for sacrifices to our mortal bodies. Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:16, states “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?” There is no longer a need for sacrifice when the Lord has already died for everyones sin, and with that we are the living Temple of God, who are to keep our Spirit, Soul, and Body just as pure as the old Jewish Temple. This means the purging of immoral thoughts, acts, and abuse with anything that is ungodly and not of Jesus the Christ, who died so that our salvation may be made easier to please God. Today I pray that we all take a look at ourselves and see what we are thinking about, doing, and intent towards one another to see if they please God. We may have to purge ourselves just as Christ did the Temple years ago, through prayer and the renewal of our minds.

Christian Meditation…

30 Sep

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Joshua 1:8, “Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.”

The first thing that comes to my mind when I begin to think of meditation, is of a buddhist monk sitting in the mountains legs crossed and arms out stretched reflecting on His essence of being. I began to search the Holy Bible to see what the Word of God had to say on the subject of meditation and I was blown away! The Bible references somewhat 20 scriptures that promotes meditation on the word of God, with Psalm 1:2, “But they delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night” making a strong case that the Bible strongly encourages the act of meditation. So just what is meditation? Some would believe that it is a new age and demonic act, that false religions use to channel spirits. In fact the dictionary defines meditation as, “The practice of concetrated focus or reflection upon a desired matter.” Meditation and reflection on the word of God allows for the Holy Spirit to impart divine knowledge into our very soul to change our way of thinking and allowing all to see what we truly are, “Sons and Daughters “of the Living God, Romans 8:14. So what do we as Christians meditate on you ask? The answer is, “Who we are in Christ Jesus!” You are a new creation 2 Corinthians 5:17, you are righteous and Holy Ephesians 4:24, you are the salt of the earth Matthew 5:13, you are filled with the divine nature of Christ, escaping the corruotion of the world 2 Peter 1:4, and are redeemed in the sight of God by the blood of the Lamb, Revelation 5:9. Most importantly, “You are more than a conqueror through Christ.” Meaning that You are granted victory through every trial through out your life. Their are plenty more scriptures for us to dwell on I urge all to put into practice of meditation on the Word of God, and let your earthly kingdom reap the benefits of God’s knowledge in Christ!

Death, Burial, and Resurrection the Foundation of the Christian Faith…

2 Aug

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In 1 Corinthians 15:12 the Apostle Paul writes, “But tell me this—since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless.” The basis of our faith lies in the only way for man to escape His sinful nature and eternal separation from God is in Our Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God. Having a devote love for all creation God humbled Himself and was born a sinless perfect man unto a virgin, to die for the the sins of the world. The Lord knew that the only way for sin to be abolished from His creation was in fact to become one Himself ! By living a sinless life He was the perfect sacrifice to pay for the sins of the world (since there is no one who is without sin). By going to the Cross Jesus died so that we could live free from the evil desires of Our flesh and on the third day arose from the dead showing God approval of His sacrifice for the world. Share this information with others and allow the Good News of Jesus Christ comfort them and renew the will of God in Their lives!