NOW AND FOREVER

This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son. . . so that no one need be destroyed. . . . God didn't go to all the trouble of sending His Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again.
John 3:16-17

I don't get any kind of thrill out of catching you doing something wrong. I'm not offering you a new life just to pull it back the minute you reach out for it.
Just for you, I put together an elaborate plan and sent Jesus to earth, to rescue you. So I'm not waiting around just to pounce on you when you do something wrong. His life was too precious for Me to waste it on something as pointless as that.
My goal all along has been to show you My love and draw you to Me to heal your hurts and make you whole, and to give you a chance at real life that lasts forever.

In His Name your life shall shine!

God created the light it was good the darkness has to flee. Light boldly and unabashedly announces its presences and vigorously dispels darkness. God's desire is to fill you with His light. He wants you to shine as a brilliant testimony of His Presence and power in your life, so that the darkness in the lives of those around you will be displaced by light of God's glory.
   If, however, you notice the world around you becoming darker and darker, don't blamed! It is simply doing what darkness does. The only remedy for darkness is light. If the world is becoming darker, the problem is in us, Jesus said His disciples should be the "light of the world"(Matt.5:14). What as awesome responsibility to be the ones through whom God would shine His divine light and dispel the darkness from me and those in need. In announcing His own coming, Jesus said, " The people who sat in darkness have seem the great light, And upon Him those who sat in the region and shadow of death light dawned" (Matt.4:16).
   There was no ignoring Jesus arrived  upon Earth! Darkness has to flee and dispel! Everywhere Jesus went, God truth was boldly proclaimed, people were healed, hypocrisy was exposed, and sinners found forgiveness. The world was never the same once the Father introduce His light through His Son. Can that be said of you as well? Do your coworker recognize the light that is within you? Does the presence of Christ radiates from your home into your community? When God's light is allowed to shine unhindered through your life, the darkness around you has to flee.

FREE ARE YOU TODAY!

The Spirit himself intercedes for us. . .
[Jesus Christ] is also interceding for us
Roman 8:22-34

When we face a perplexing situation or tough problem, we often ask our brothers and sister in Christ to pray for us. It's a great encouragement to know that others who care are holding us up to God in prayer. But what if you don't have close Christ friends? Perhaps you live where the gospel of Christ is opposed. Who will pray for you?
   Roman 8, one of the great triumphant chapter of the Bible, declares, "We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the spirit himself intercedes for us throught wordless groans. . . The spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance with the will of God" (Roman 8:26-27). The Holy Spirit is praying for us today.
   In addition, "Jesus Christ who died more than that, who was raised to life is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us" (v34). The living Lord Jesus Christ is praying for you today.
   Think of it! The Holy Spirit and the Lord Jesus Christ mention your name and your needs to God the Father, who hears and acts on your behalf.
  No matter where you are or how confusing your situation, you do not face life alone. The Spirit and the Son are praying for you today.

Claiming Grace 2

The real Son of God is at your side. He is beginning to turn you into the same kind of thing as Himself. He is beginning, so to speak, to "inject" His kind of life and thought. . . into you; beginning to turn the tin soldier into a live man. The part of you that does not like it is the part that is still tin.
3. The Tin of Abrasiveness-- Claiming the Grace to Respond to what I Encounter.
This type of grace has to do with our response to people. The tin in us tends to be abrasive, to snap back. But Paul instructs us that speech should "always be with grace, seasoned, as it were, with salt, so that you may know how you should responds to each person" (Col. 6). Our words should be timely, well-chosen, and tactful. Truth alone can be hard to choke down. Grace cushions our words so that the truth can be received without needless offense.
4. The Tin Compromise-- Claiming the grace to stand for what i believe.
When strenghtened by grace, we can stand firm against compromising our principle (Heb. 13:9). Our tendency to compromise stems from trying to appear as something we're not. Grace strips away the tin and helps us to be ourselves so that when we speak of our faith it rings true.
5. The Tin of Pride-- Claiming the Grace to Submit to what I Need.
Pride is the stiff, unmallaeble tin of our nature that keeps standing erect in the presence of God instead of falling down  prostrate at His feet. If that's our spiritual posture, we will walk away from His throne empty handed, because "God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (James 4:6; see also 1 Peter5:5; Prov. 3:34).

CLAIMING GRACE PART 1

"For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God."
1 Corinthian 15:9

There are areas in all our lives that are "still tin." Five common ones are 1.insecurity, 2. weakness, 3.abrasiveness, compromise, and pride. Maybe by bringing grace up close and making it personal, we'll be able to oil some of the stubborn tin that still clings to our lives. And maybe then those rusty spots will become transformed into flesh
1. The Tin of Insecurity-- Claiming the grace to be what I Am.
In 1 C1orinthian 15:9 Paul calls himself the least of the apostles and unfit to even be called an apostle because of his persecutory past. But instead of sinking in a sea of insecurity, Paul asserts with confidence that "by the grace of God I am what I am (read verse 10). Inspite of Paul's past, in spite of his unfitness to bear the name "apostle," the grace of God made him fit.
2. The Tin of Weakness-- Claiming the grace to learn from what I Suffer.
Another struggle we all live with is our own human weakness. A suffering that medication doesn't relieve. A failure that prayer doesn't remove. Because we're human, we're subject to all kinds of maladies and malaises. Paul's thorn in the flesh is a case in point (see 2 Cor.12:7-10). Prayer didn't remove the torn. It was grace that enabled him to bear that torn with contentment.

FOUR COINS in the Pool of Siloam

"and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing."
John 9:7

CAN WE CONSIDER factual whatever we read in the Bible even if it is not verified by history? Take for example the notion of some that the Pool Siloam in John 9 didn't actually exist in Jesus day. But then something happened to confirm the veracity of the biblical story.
   When workers were digging up a sewer line in the old City of Jerusalem, they surprisingly uncovered two steps. The Israel Antiquities Authority was called in, and archaeologists started excavating in that location. As archaeologist Eli Shukron cleared the rubble, he was 100% certain that this spot had to be the pool of Siloam where the blind man was healed by Jesus.
   Worker who constructed the original pool had buried four coin in the plaster. All bore images of Alexander Jannaeus, the Jewish king who ruled Jerusalem from103 to 76 BC. Archaeologists also found another dozen coins dating from the period of the Jewish revolt again Rome from 66 to 70 AD. The presence of the two sets of coin demonstrated that the pool had been silted in or filled up during that time in the first century.
   Can  you accept the Bible as factual history? Scholar might have been denying historical facts of scripture, yet archaeologists have been making discoveries that confirm the biblical data.
    The anti-factual bias of the secular world is nothing that should come as a surprise. No wonder Paul wrote, "The man without the spirit does not accept the things that come from the spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned" (1Corinthians 2:14).

A New horizon of the new World

For you have not passed this way before.
Joshua 3:4

This may be one of the great understatement of the Bible. God's people were about to enter a new world one that was so unlike anything they had ever known that they couldn't even imagine what it would be like. So it is with the person today who moves from the wilderness of religion legalism into the land of grace. To experience the reality of who we are in Christ is totally different from mere religious commitment. To compare living a religious lifestyle and experiencing grace walk is to compared two different dimension of living. They are more opposed than we can comprehend until we have crossed over from one to the other.
   As you move further along in your own grace walk, remember that there is no place where legalistic religion and grace can intersect. Law and grace can never coexist together. You must move out of the wilderness of legalism  into canaan  To accept grace means to renounce legalism a system of living in which you try to make spiritual gain God's blessings based on what you do. It is a major  move but one that will transform your life.

Red Sea Rules

And the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from the face of Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.”
EXODUS 14:25

It is comforting to know that the God who led you into the place of difficulty is the same one who ultimately will lead you out. Moses would have agreed with that statement, or at least in retrospect. On the day that he had mountains on one side, the Red Sea  in another, and the army of Egypt behind him, he might not have been so sure. Robert J. Morgan, in his book, The Red Sea Rules," list 10 rules that help you get through a tough place. Today we'll focus on the first four:
Rule 1: Realize that God means for you to be where you are. When difficulty strikes, we often think that God has abandoned us, forgotten us, or forsaken us, or else the problem would not be confronting us. God however had led Israel into a cul-de-sac of trouble.
Rule 2. Be more concerned for God's glory than for your relief. Believing that all sickness was the result of sin, the Pharisees once confronted Jesus over the issue of a man who had been born blind. "Who sinned? This man or his parents?" they asked  Jesus. "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life" (John 9:3).
Rule 3: Acknowledge  your enemy, but keep your eyes on the Lord. With Egypt's army behind them, there was nowhere to go nowhere, that is until God made a way through the Red Sea. "But that can't happen,"  you think. But God doesn't know that! Nothing is impossible with Him.
Rule 4: Pray Is that enough? Sometimes that's all you can do. Until you have prayed, you have not done your part.

In You i will live!

"We are going up to Jerusalem, and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will turn over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified
Matthew 20:18-19

The dirt road to Jerusalem was bustling, Jesus and His disciples had to step into a ditch while a camel caravan shuffled past. A group of boys herded their goats. Women chattered and carried baskets of figs and olives.
  Jesus and the disciples continued their trek up the road, yet no one noticed the Lord's strange, heavy tread. Finally, when they rounded the top of a hill and caught sight of the gleaming temple of Jerusalem, Jesus stopped Peter, John, and the rest strolled a few yards ahead. Then they turned around. Something was wrong.
   Jesus began to pour out His heart, telling them exactly what was about to happen to Him when He passed through the city gates. But that's not all. They not only ignored the Lord's troubled words, they began arguing and jockeying for position in the coming kingdom two of them even dragged their mother into the dispute.
  Perhaps the Lord had hoped to lean on His friends at such s time. Instead, He found a bunch of squabbling men who only half listened. He found no friendly words, no sympathetic ears.
Think of all the things friends share heart-to- heart talk, the sacrifice of time, joys and sorrow. Jesus covers His side of friendship, but what about our side?  What sort of friend does He have in you?
O Lord, it's easy for me to criticize the behavior of the disciple, but I am no better. Forgive me when I fail You, but thank You for being such a faithful friend to me.

Praising and Asking

"But will God indeed dwell with man on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you, how much less this house that I have built!"
2chronicle 6:18 ESV

Teen challenge, a ministry to at-risk youth that started in New York city, was born from an unsual commitment to prayer. Its founder, David Wikerson, sold his television set and spent his TV- watching time (two hours each night) praying. In the months the balance between praising and asking Him for help.
  King Solomon's temple dedication prayer show this balance, Solomon began by highlighting God's holiness and faithfulness. Then he gave God credit for the success of the project and emphasized God's greatness declaring. "The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have build!"
  After exalting God, Solomon asked Him to pay special attention to everything that happened inside the temple. He asked God to show mercy to the israelites and provide for them when they confessed their sin.
  Immediately after Solomon prayer, "fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offerring and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple"( v7.) This incredible response reminds us that the mighty One we praise and speak to when we pray is the same One who Listen to and care's about our requests.
How would you describe your conversation with God? What might help you grow closer to him as you pray?
Continue reading 12-21.
Prayer helps us see things as God sees them.

Don't give up

having accomplished the work that you gave me to do."
John17:4

The grace walk isn't a passive lifestyle. In the final hours before His crucifixion, Jesus prayed to the Father and acknowledge that He had accomplished the work He had been given to do.
  You have an opportunity to fulfill a divine mission too. The sultry sirens of the status qou beckon us all to lie back and be passive. The call to those who want to live a grace-empowered lifestyle is to rise up in the power of the life that indwells them. Take chances, knowing that your Father guides you in every thought and action as you depend upon Him.
  It isn't your responsiblity to make sure that things turn out the way you want. Your only the unknown, knowing that there is no such place for the omniscient God who leads you forward. He has already gone ahead of you, preparing the way to ensure that you experience all that He has for you in every area of your life. Accept your life mission with enthusiasm.

Side track effect!

"But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion."
Luke 10:33 ESV

If anyone could understand the temptation to let their vision distract Him from the father's activity, Jesus certainly could He told a parable that clearly illustrated this danger: A certain Jewish man was on his way to Jericho when he was brutally attacked by thieves and left to die by the road. First Levite, then  a priest, passed by. These religious leaders; surely they would show compassion to a wounded person! But they had places to go and appointment to keep, so they passed him by, Surely someone else would come along who had more time to help the wounded man! Then a Samaritan, despised by the Jews, came along. Of all the people, this man had reason to look the other way, since the wounded man was his enemy. But wherever he was going could wait, for someone needed his help.
   It's easy to become so busy that you are oblivious to those in need. Your vision, affect your thinking! Say, Your schedule can become so (fool) full of accomplishing good things that you are of no help to people around you. God is at work in the lives of yours friends, your neighbor, you family members. He may ask you to interrupt your day long enough to join Him as He minister to them. Nothing in your agenda, no matter how pressing, is reason enough to ignored the voice of God when He tells you to stop and help. If you have become too busy of the vision that affect your thinking to minister to those around you, ask God to reestablished your priorities so that you do not miss the mark of your calling and the opportunity to serve Him.

A Little Child Shall Lead Them

... a little child will lead them.
Isaiah 11:6

THERE'S SOMETHING AWESOME about the imprint heaven  in the innocence of a child. No sooner does a child learn to talk than he voices the great interrogative question " Why?" Many questions then pour forth from the mouth of the child. "Why do I have to drink my milk? Why do l  have to pick up my toys?  Why Mommy?"
Dr Hugh Ross, a Christian scientist and apologist, sees human curiosity as one of the evidence of God's existence. Believing that the curiosity of humans is different from that of animals, he writes, " while cats may be content to play with string and stones and bouncing crickets, human want to understand everything there is to know about string. Stones, and crickets. Birds look to the star patterns in the night to guide them in their essential migrations, but human seek to make sense of the pattern and understand starlight itself.
   Human ask, "What is the nature of the universe? What is our place in it?/ where did universe and its life forms comes from? Why is everything the way it is? Human are the only animals to asked such questions, and some individuals invest(or risk) their lives to gain answers."
   Ross concludes, "God made people so intensely curious that in their drive to study all aspect of the cosmos, including  their own minds and hearts, they would discover clues that point unmistakably to Him."
   No wonder David wrotes, "when I consider your heavens, the work if your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care of him?" (Psalm8:3-4). David's curiously brought him to God. Yours as well.

LAWLESS HANDS

Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; God raise Him up again.
Act 2:23-24

Has anybody ever been terribly unfair to you? You must have this verse in you? Have you ever almost destroyed by the ruthless of another? You're not alone.
  The greatest offense ever committed against a man was what was done to Jesus by those who opposed Him. They tortured and killed the perfect Son of God. The amazing thing about the mistreatment of Jesus (and you) is the Father's ability to redeem it. You must stand in your faith for your redeemer His Word my Sword.
God is bigger than the wrong men do. Human beings were completely responsible for crucifying the Son of God. "You nailed [Him] to the cross," Peter said. But God was sovereign over even this, and in fact, had planned it before the foundation of the world: Christ was "delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God." Do you see how the two fit together? We do have as awesome God!
  Mentally release those who have treated you with unfairness or even  cruelty. Don't live in the past. Your God stands above all that has happened in your life. He can redeem and use those thing for your good and His glory.

BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD

As I read the Holy Bible in the book of John1: Holy Spirit show me the song seek him in verse 35
1. He should be revealed to me where you stay he said come and see
He should be revealed to me where you stay He said come and walked with me
chorus:
Behold the lamb of God in Him our life the of men that set us free
Behold the lamb of God in Him our life the light of men that make us free
Behold the lamb of God in Him our life the light of men come and see
Refrain:
And worship Him today(2x)
2. The King of Kings the Lord of Lords He's a wonderful counselor everything in His presence heaven and earth you
the Lord said blessed be(2x)
refrain:2
The fulnes the grace love mercy all we have received come and see and worship Him today! (back to chorus).

Your Word My Sword

Lord Jesus you are the Living word
we go forth with praise in our mouth
and a two-edged sword in our hand
today I will confess your word before men
and you will confess me before the father in heaven
chorus:
Your Word are true
Your Word my Sword
Your Word abide in me and I in you
Your Word is the foundation of the world
bridge:
I will stand in the victory that has been won
for the battles is not mine but your
who can be against me?
having done all we are going
to stand firm in our faith
we are not yielding to the devil's schemes
but we will hold fast to the word of God
we will stand in faith in our redeemer
 His Word my Sword

INSIDE IN YOU

As a grace walker, you have a great potential within you that people seldom exercise. You have the ability to affect every environment in which you function. Your very presence in a room can change the atmosphere.
Have you known people who seem to brighten up a room simply by their presence?  You may have known others who had the opposite effect. Still others respond to whatever the prevailing mood may be.
The grace of God in you can enable you to be a sorr of "thermostat" in every place you find yourself. While others may act like the thermometers and adjust to the atmosphere around them, you have the ability to change it. Jesus Christ lives inside you, and He is your source of joy.
Walk in faith and allow the joy of Christ that lives inside you to affect your whole demeanor. Smile, laugh. Love others. Be a change agent whatever you are As a conduit of grace you can have a greater influence than you might have imagined.
Don't follow the crowd. Choose to let your outward demeanor be an expression of your inner condition, where Jesus Christ lives.