Love

“Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”Matthew‬ ‭22‬:‭37‬-‭39‬ ‭NLT‬‬

We have heard the phrase, ‘love makes the world go round’, and it is right. However, the type of love that ensures the world’s continuity is God’s love. He holds all things together. It is His kind of love that Jesus was speaking about here also, a selfless love that gave up His only Son to die on a cross and free it from sin.

We do not love God to manipulate Him, rather, we respond to His love in gratitude. Manipulative love is the worldly kind of love. It loves to get in return. God’s love loves because it is pure, kind, unprovoked, gentle and good. We are invited to love with this love.

Now, you can say, “I can’t do that, I’m selfish to my core”. You would be right, as we all are. However, when we come to Christ He gives us His Holy Spirit and we are told to live by its goodness and power:

“The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.”Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭11‬-‭14‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2) praise God!!! I have been set free!!!! Amen!

Praise

“Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”Psalms‬ ‭103‬:‭2‬-‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

We can say psalms without really comprehending them. The first verse exhorts us to not forget all of the Lord’s benefits and then the following lists His benefits.
David had amazing insight for a man who did not live under the outpouring of grace. He lists things that are ours in the New Testament: forgiveness of sin, healing, crowning with love and compassion, and he goes on to say that He satisfies our desires with good things. He understood we have a gracious and loving God.
We need to draw near to our God and not our feelings about the problems in our world. Right now we are seeing earthquakes across the globe in the magnitude of 7.7-7.1 on the Richter scale. We see wars and hear rumours of wars. In Nepal there is political unrest with demonstrations and riots. However, God is still God and we can draw near to Him. Amen!

At Work

“for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.”Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

We see in Genesis that God rested on the seventh day after working for 6. This is our first concept of God working. We can imagine He susta around all day watching us. However, He is at work in all of us: bringing us the awareness of our need for salvation; outworking that salvation in our lives through His Holy Spirit. He corrects, challenges, comforts but never controls. 

I can be in a day of fleshly attitudes and His Holy Spirit will usually wake me in the wee hours and show me my sin. As we are not all on the same time scale His work is continual.

Jesus is seated at the right hand of God, and whilst He has finished the work of redemption for us, He intercedes for us, constantly.

The Holy Spirit also intercedes for us. I am so grateful that I have such powerful intercessors, as without them I would not make it complete, to Heaven.

I may be disappointed with my own behaviour, but He, graciously knowing my flesh, does not discard me. He will never discard me. I am His and He is mine. He is forever faithful. 

Thank You Lord!

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=Ml0L3uzYtRM&si=7E6LdKEOWtuhpcpd

Made right

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭21‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Jesus became sin for me, so that I could be free from it’s power. We all sin in many ways: in word or deed, however, when we confess our sin to Him we are set free. 

If I know Jesus has made me righteous (without sin) then I do not need to stay under it’s control. I do not need to yield to it’s power. Satan lies to us and tells us we are guilty of sin just because he plants an idea in our minds. However, we only sin when we act on Satan’s idea. He does this regularly in relationships, he suggests our family, friends and colleagues are doing selfish things to us and proposes we become offended. We only sin when we act on his suggestions.

Know we have an enemy who prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Tel him to get lost. Amen!

Greater is He that is in you than he who is in the world! 1 John 4;4. Rely on the Holy Spirit’s wisdom and direction. Amen!

Remain

“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John‬ ‭15‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬

How does one remain in Christ? How do you remain married? How do you stay friends with people? By being faithfully connected! How do you stay faithfully connected? By being in constant communion with that person.

We cannot abide by casually reading our bibles, praying when the mood strikes. We need a love relationship with Him, a vital love relationship. This is found as we seek Him as our life force, our breath, our thought, our comfort. Comfort is not found in food or drink, drugs, spending money, or casual sex. When we give ourelves to these we allow them to take up residence, and we become their slave.

Jesus does not enslave us, He welcomes us into a love relationship. His ways we find in our bibles, His truths we find there. He is good alone!

Seek freedom in a love relationship with Jesus! Amen!

Blessed

““But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.”Jeremiah‬ ‭17‬:‭7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Ah but there is more:

“They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”Jeremiah‬ ‭17‬:‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

As rumours of war swirl, God is faithful and I need not fear. Today in Kathmandu there are two protest groups assembling, both hate the other and oppose the other.  China is reading for war to take back Taiwan and oppose those who would try to intervene, Australia being one. Australia is surrounded by Chinese war machines should they dare. Australia is caught with minimal defence, but God!

This event will purify the church and get her focused on her God! Currently she is distracted with ease. Ease dulls the minds and comfort isolates from truth. However, it does not prevent the enemy from preparing to devour.

Today I had planned to go to a NGO service provider on behalf of a refugee. I would have had to go through the mass of men assembling to demonstrate. I will need to find another way, perhaps email. God knows the need of my refugee and He is not hardened to his plight. I can trust Him!

Lord may Your kingdom come, Your will be done. Amen!

Prayer

“The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers.”

‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭4‬:‭7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Peter believed that the end was coming soon, perhaps he thought it would come in his lifetime. As we Christians study the scriptures and watch the unfolding of godlessness in our world we also say, “the end is near”. However, Jesus said when the gospel has been preached to all nations, then the end will come. We , therefore, need to go and preach the gospel, but, importantly, we should pray that all will hear.

Jesus said, ‘stay alert for you do not know what day your Lord is coming…. You must be ready, because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect’(Matt 24:42-44). A way to stay alert is to stay in prayer and reading the scriptures.

Jesus used the analogy of a man who, if he knew when the burglar was coming to break in, would have stayed already and not allowed it to happen. Satan wants us lulled to sleep. 

Jesus warned that the devil roams around seeking someone to devour. He devours those removed from fellowship, lulled to sleep by entertainment, and not having their lamps burning brightly, because of lack of oil. The oil is the Holy Spirit. 

Stay alert! Stay in Christ, pray without ceasing! Amen!