Ephesians 4:2 NLT
Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other's faults because of your love.
When the word allowance is mentioned my first thought is back to my childhood when I would be given an allowance weekly to do what I wanted. It was not much; I think a quarter or less. When I was a teenager I had a paper route and earned my own money. So when Paul speaks to the Ephesians about making allowance for each other the word takes on a whole new meaning for me.
As we walk out in the Father's Love as Jesus said, being humble, gentle, and patient with each other should be easy. But here we are walking in the flesh instead of walking in the spirit once again where our old man is far from gentle and perhaps even a little condescending with a brother or sister.
We must allow our spirit to take over so we can get out of that fleshly mode we have lived through most of our lives. Holy Spirit and our spirit became one the moment we asked Jesus to be Lord of our life and He sent Holy Spirit to live in us. As we allow the spirit to rule, we see others as Jesus sees them and our old way of judging others because they do not line up wtih our way of thinking is replaced with our love for them.
It is God's love that we take on that gives us the ability to make allowances for those things that our old way of thinking would have seen as faults. For they are perfected in Jesus walking in the same promises as us. As we see them as Jesus sees them, we realize that. Thank you, Jesus!
Monday, February 22, 2016
Monday, February 15, 2016
Believe
John 3:16 NLT
For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
Words used today have totally different meanings than they did when I was growing up. Think about the word friend. If you are a Facebook user you know that the word friend has taken on new meanings. Are your friends on Facebook really friends? When you unfriend someone will you never speak to them again? And why aren't friends of friends your friend, too? Or can they be?
Everyone has seen the scripture reference to John 3:16. Some know the words, but do they really know them? The same can be said of His name, Jesus.
Knowing about Jesus is not the same as knowing Jesus. I grew up in church and knew the Bible stories. I knew God was always with me and that He was a good god. I knew the story of Jesus' birth and about the many times he healed the sick. I knew about Jesus.
I thought I was saved and that Jesus was with me in my daily walk. But it was not until I experienced Him in my life in 1991 that I asked Him into my heart, to be my Lord and savior. It was then that Holy Spirit came to live in me and everything changed. I was born again.
So before 1991 I believed about Jesus. I knew who the Bible said He was. But I did not truly believe in Him. I had not asked Him into my heart. Now He is in me and I am in Him. My spirit and Holy Spirit are one. Jesus lives in me!
For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
Words used today have totally different meanings than they did when I was growing up. Think about the word friend. If you are a Facebook user you know that the word friend has taken on new meanings. Are your friends on Facebook really friends? When you unfriend someone will you never speak to them again? And why aren't friends of friends your friend, too? Or can they be?
Everyone has seen the scripture reference to John 3:16. Some know the words, but do they really know them? The same can be said of His name, Jesus.
Knowing about Jesus is not the same as knowing Jesus. I grew up in church and knew the Bible stories. I knew God was always with me and that He was a good god. I knew the story of Jesus' birth and about the many times he healed the sick. I knew about Jesus.
I thought I was saved and that Jesus was with me in my daily walk. But it was not until I experienced Him in my life in 1991 that I asked Him into my heart, to be my Lord and savior. It was then that Holy Spirit came to live in me and everything changed. I was born again.
So before 1991 I believed about Jesus. I knew who the Bible said He was. But I did not truly believe in Him. I had not asked Him into my heart. Now He is in me and I am in Him. My spirit and Holy Spirit are one. Jesus lives in me!
Monday, February 08, 2016
Battle
Ephesians 6:12
For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
We tend to judge by appearance. If they look good on the outside they must be good on the inside. But the condition of someone's heart has nothing to do with how they dress and smell or even act. It has to do with who lives in them.
As a born again believer we have Holy Spirit living inside. He is one with our spirit. Jesus is in us and wants to work through us shining His light to all we come in contact with.
We all know someone who works at a dirty job. I mean they are covered in dirt or grease because of the job they have. Then we see them at church or at a restaurant somewhere and think "Gee, they clean up pretty well".
We must ask for more wisdom daily and for discernment to see beneath the surface. They may look good but be under control of the enemy. Let Holy Spirit guide you in every encounter so you can discern the truth.
Be prepared for battle with the enemy through those still under his control. Dress yourself for that battle by putting on the full armor of God. Let Holy Spirit guide your walk, your thoughts, and your words.
For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.
We tend to judge by appearance. If they look good on the outside they must be good on the inside. But the condition of someone's heart has nothing to do with how they dress and smell or even act. It has to do with who lives in them.
As a born again believer we have Holy Spirit living inside. He is one with our spirit. Jesus is in us and wants to work through us shining His light to all we come in contact with.
We all know someone who works at a dirty job. I mean they are covered in dirt or grease because of the job they have. Then we see them at church or at a restaurant somewhere and think "Gee, they clean up pretty well".
We must ask for more wisdom daily and for discernment to see beneath the surface. They may look good but be under control of the enemy. Let Holy Spirit guide you in every encounter so you can discern the truth.
Be prepared for battle with the enemy through those still under his control. Dress yourself for that battle by putting on the full armor of God. Let Holy Spirit guide your walk, your thoughts, and your words.
Monday, February 01, 2016
Thoughts
Philippians 4:8 NLT
And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
James Allen published an essay in 1903 called "As a Man Thinketh". It has been popular over the years and reminds us of Proverbs 23:7 which tells us "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he."
What we dwell on can become who we are. And this includes those we hang around with, what we watch and listen to, and what we read. In other words input equals output.
As believers we have Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ in us. Our spirit is one with Him. To be become more and more like Jesus in our daily walk we must practice His presence in all we do. We need complete renewal of our mind so we think like He thinks. Who we purposely associate with can have a positive or negative effect on that renewal.
When we are in our daily life of work and shopping and the other things we are involved with we are not in control of who those people are. So we remember that He who is in us in more powerful than he who is in the world. His shield of protection is upon us.
And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
James Allen published an essay in 1903 called "As a Man Thinketh". It has been popular over the years and reminds us of Proverbs 23:7 which tells us "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he."
What we dwell on can become who we are. And this includes those we hang around with, what we watch and listen to, and what we read. In other words input equals output.
As believers we have Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ in us. Our spirit is one with Him. To be become more and more like Jesus in our daily walk we must practice His presence in all we do. We need complete renewal of our mind so we think like He thinks. Who we purposely associate with can have a positive or negative effect on that renewal.
When we are in our daily life of work and shopping and the other things we are involved with we are not in control of who those people are. So we remember that He who is in us in more powerful than he who is in the world. His shield of protection is upon us.
Monday, January 25, 2016
Renew
Romans 7:15 NLT
I don't really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate.
Before we were born again and had the Holy Spirit we knew what was right and wrong based on what had been programmed into us during our upbringing-the years up until we found Jesus. The jews had the law and that told them what was acceptable behavior and what was not.
When we accepted Jesus into our heart and believed He is the Son of God who came to save us, we were still following the moral code we learned. Now we have the Bible to show us the jewish law including the ten commandments. Jesus fulfilled the law and gave us two commandments--to love God and to love each other. In doing that we fulfill all of the law the jews attempted to follow.
Even though we now have Holy Spirit, the spirit of Christ in us, we still mess up. Our born again person is totally free. Our old man is still under the same moral patterns. We know what is true, what is right and wrong in God's eyes. And yet our muscle memory kicks in and we still do those old things, especially when we are around those we spent time with before we became a born again believer and follower of Jesus.
We try to do what is right, but we fall into the same old traps because our mind has not been renewed to the mind of Christ. You see, it is not about just having knowledge of what we should or should not do. As we build our relationship with Jesus, and this occurs over time in His word, communion with Him, and fellowship with others on this same journey, our mind becomes more like the mind of Christ. Renewal occurs a little bit at a time. Then it is not longer about the knowledge of wrong. It is about us no longer wanting to do those things.
Thank you Jesus for continually renewing my mind so I think and act more and more as You.
Monday, January 18, 2016
One Liners
The Bible is not a bunch of one liners to be mixed and merged into something we want to hear. And yet each line is important and there for a reason. We just have to ask God to have Holy Spirit reveal to us today as we read His word. Lord, thank you for fresh revelation daily.~ DickEvans.org
Ambassador
2 Corinthians 5:20 NLT
So we are Christ's ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, "Come back to God!"
Being an ambassador is a big thing. In each country around the world there are US embassies each with an ambassador to the USA. That ambassador speaks for his country. And what he does is a direct reflection on the USA.
The same is true for any business. That clerk at the local store may not get paid a lot, but how that clerk treats customers reflects on the entire business. When we have a bad experience at that business because of how a clerk handled us, we don't think "It was not the business, it was the clerk." No, we find somewhere else to do business.
We are Christ's ambassadors. Our words and our actions to others is a direct reflection on Christ. We are not perfect by any means, but we are looked on by other Christians and the world as though we represent Jesus to our world.
So we are Christ's ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, "Come back to God!"
Being an ambassador is a big thing. In each country around the world there are US embassies each with an ambassador to the USA. That ambassador speaks for his country. And what he does is a direct reflection on the USA.
The same is true for any business. That clerk at the local store may not get paid a lot, but how that clerk treats customers reflects on the entire business. When we have a bad experience at that business because of how a clerk handled us, we don't think "It was not the business, it was the clerk." No, we find somewhere else to do business.
We are Christ's ambassadors. Our words and our actions to others is a direct reflection on Christ. We are not perfect by any means, but we are looked on by other Christians and the world as though we represent Jesus to our world.
Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ lives in us. When others look to us do they see that old man we were before Jesus came into our lives, or do they see Jesus? We are the hands and feet of Jesus. We have the same authority as Jesus. We have the same power in us that raises the dead. Let's let others see the Jesus in us.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
