Are you living by Gods grace?

God gave his children two things a promise and a gift. The promise was redemption and by the promise he would give the gift. What is the gift..He is. "I am thy shield and exceeding great reward"...Grace means gift...the flesh looks at grace and confuses it with the promise...which Christ fulfilled at his cross...grace is the gift of Gods life put in you that you may be one with him...but if we confuse it and think the promise is all we get...then we are sinners saved by grace...we try knowing we will fail...we are just flesh...and God shares his glory with no flesh...
when salvation became a future event we lost our way...Our God is now...the way of life in his law was veiled ...shown by them veiling Moses face because of the glory of God emanating from it...for this reason they could not see that the law was someone to be not things to be done...they could not hear that if they gave God all heart soul and might by love that he would put these things in their heart as Moses tried to tell them in deut 6: 4-5
In the same way they are blind to the new covenant...they see being a christian as things you do not as the life of God in us making us one...so by will worship they perform and come and offer their apologies when they fail exactly as they did in the old...they have replaced the bulls and goats with a great man but still do not see the glory....the old was weak not because of the law but because of the death in us...the life we received from Adam could not generate the life found in being the law...so Jesus placed the Adam in all who trust him within himself and carried it to Calvary where it died in him and was buried...it was the Spirit of God that raised Jesus....Adam was formed then God breathed into him and he became a living soul..(not having his own life but Gods life shared)...then iniquity was found in him and he became a self (dead...separate)he passed that death of self to all....but Jesus came that we might be one with him as he is one with the Father that we may all be one....this is life that they know you...Adam knew his wife and the two became one flesh...Depart I never knew you....I came that they might have life....when Jesus breathed out his life he died and was buried...three days later God breathed his breath (Spirit) into him and both Jesus and those in him by faith became a living soul...hence Paul's title of second Adam...so if we lean on the arm of our dead buried man we find our members filled with death and sin...but if we trust in the breath(Spirit)to both will and do in us we will see His glory and righteousness revealed and our members filled with life.

Understanding Paul

So before we begin to digest the meat of Pauls teachings let us first find the proper utensils: belief and theology. As to belief all men have it and all men believe theirs is right. This is a necessity to everyday living and making decisions; however if we are to be lead into all truth it is necessary to make ourselves less a solid surface of ice and more a liquid of water or gas of air to follow the Spirit. In more practical words; we must approach all scripture study with the understanding that we are without doubt wrong about many things. Yet fully trusting that as we have been promised the Spirit will lead us into all truth, and not only this but with full assurance that he has fully prepared us to do what is set before us now and is  preparing us to do what is to come. In short…our solid belief must be not in ourselves but in Christ in us leading, guiding, and living through us giving us truth, wisdom, and understanding.

“…there is one body and one Spirit even as you are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is above all and through all and in you all...” Ephesians 4:5

“…till we all come in unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ…”Ephesians 4:13

As to theology, though I am aware of the divisions of salvation, end times, etc., I am speaking in an all-inclusive term. Simply to point out that western theology is both linear and systematic; which has merit. It is often the expectation of this form of theology which can lead to confusion if applied rigidly. As to the main instance it considers things to have a beginning followed by a process and ending in a result this leads to a concept of two points. Pauls theology does not have two points but one for it is circular not linear. In this way for Paul when you are at the beginning then you are at the end with the process being in both.

“But with the precious blood of Christ, as a lamb without blemish and without spot: who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you…” I Peter 1:20

“…of the lamb slain from the foundation of the world…” Revelation 13:8

 

By this thinking alone Paul can say you know all things and you are being brought to a knowledge without any conflict in his mind…you are perfect and you are being made perfect and he does not consider himself to have attained that perfection all at the same moment. These things we can see easily enough yet keep it in mind as we explore his teachings. This same man will say in one place we must submit and in another we are predestined to be conformed to his image.

“…for we know in part, and we prophesy in part…” I Corinthians 13:9

One last matter about perception it is not always a matter of right and wrong; often it is just incomplete. The living word is a three dimensional living thing, and as with any three dimensional thing can be viewed from six main perspectives with many degrees of variation. If one becomes stuck at one of these viewing points they may become rigid about description… they would not be necessarily wrong in their description just incomplete.

Can you drink of the Lord's cup?

 [[Mat 20:22-23/KJV]]
22 But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able.
23 And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with:...
 [[Luk 22:20]] KJV
Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.
 [[Luk 22:42]] KJV
Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
 [[Joh 18:11]] KJV
 Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy sword into the sheath: the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?
 [[1Co 10:21]] KJV
Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils.
 [[1Co 11:27-28/KJV]]
27 Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.
perhaps it was with the use of cup bearers by kings and how their fate was tied to the one who's cup they drank from,but at some point drinking from the cup came to be associated with fate. We see the harlot of Babylon with her cup of iniquity and murder of the saints being shared with the kings of the earth...sharing her fate.
So when Jesus ask can you drink of the cup I have been given...he is saying my Father has called me to poor out my life and die that others might live...holding no part back.
So it was that he would tell his disciples at the passover supper that they must all eat of his table and drink of his cup.
In the agony of the garden he says Father all things are possible for you let this cup pass...but it could not.
Peter would try by his sword to protect the Lord but the battle Jesus had entered was not against flesh and blood and could not be won by such...only a trust in the Father to perform his perfect will.
It is in this way if we would be his disciples and the sons of our Father we must die at his cross.
The life received from Adam is not changed or redeemed it is crucified in Messiah...The Father gives new life..his life to us.
This life we are given is not to be spent on us or we will find ourselves destitute among the unclean desiring that we could eat the same garbage they eat.
If we try to hold back just a piece for ourselves we find that as Ananias we fall dead...every bit must be poured out of us.
This is why Paul gives us such stern warning about the results of drinking the cup unworthy.

Dont let them smell blood

[[Gal 5:14-18/KJV]]
14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
15 But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.
16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
18 But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

in Bible prophecy and symbolism the sea is often used to speak of mankind. and since we know that Adam's life was in his blood; it would seem a fitting analogy to say that if one is struggling with the flesh they receive from Adam it is like blood in the water.
It is a great sadness that the church while saying that they are a doctor for the sick and maimed in claiming to be teachers of God's great love. often times are sharks feeding on those who cannot defend themselves.
Is it any wonder that those who are struggling must put on a church face and act as though everything is fine. The word hypocrite means a play actor and the modern church makes more and more.
Pharisees found themselves in a similar situation they knew the law better than most and were honored for it; to hide the fact that within their hearts they knew they were not keeping it they shunned several classes of people.
Jesus brought them to task on this and told them that harlots and publicans will go into the kingdom of heaven before they will. The reason was simple only the sick need a doctor... they could not admit their sin because they were seeking after honor of men.
in the New Covenant the life of Adam is crucified with Christ on the cross and the Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead is the same Spirit that makes all of us alive.
when we trust and rely on his spirit to live through us we do the things that are contained in the law there for his righteousness is revealed, but if we lean upon the old man we received from Adam we will find that we sin and iniquity is revealed.
trying to simply do the things in the law by the strength of the flesh(self life) is what Paul refers to as trying to be justified by the law. he is concluded elsewhere the impossibility of this for the flesh is sold under sin and the law serves to only show the sin and death in it. but the Spirit living through us will do the things of the law so it is by the Spirit that we are justified and found to be righteous as we place our faith in the life of Christ He has placed in us.
so I encourage all to forget the approval of men even our church brethren if they would judge after the flesh.
for all things are naked before God and he knew of your flesh before he called you and saved you and put his life in you. trust that he has begun a good thing and you will finish... where he is the author and finisher of our faith... and as John the Apostle tells us all flesh has been put under his dominion.



The grace and truth of Moses commands part 3

The diligence of the eighth commandment

[[Exo 20:15]] KJV Thou shalt not steal.

[[Eph 4:28]] KJV Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.

The teaching of the eights command is simple; do not take that which is not yours. The Israelites were to understand that God alone was their provider and as such to take what he had provided for another was to disregard his sovereignty and accuse him of causing you to lack.
In the grace and truth given by Jesus we see that this teaching goes far beyond material substance.

[[Mar 12:17]] KJV And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. And they marvelled at him.

In one short sentence Jesus preached a message that goes to the very core of anyone who claims to know God.
Caesar had created a coin to serve His purposes and have a worth that he has determined; to seal and proclaim this worth and purpose he had stamped it with his image.
In the same way God created man with both a purpose and the worth; He stamped them with his image as such men must render themselves unto God.
In the self existence inherited from Adam men gather for there own purpose.
Jesus has given his own life at no cost to us that we might have life. As such God is our possession...all else we have and receive is for his purpose and will.
What is his will? That all men would be saved...from death of self dependence and worth...sin of self worship...darkness of blindness to his glory...and all that is offensive to God being sovereign.
If you have trusted Jesus as Messiah,redeemer and Lord then he has placed his Spirit in you giving you the life of God. As such you are not your own...anything you hold back for yourself; whether material, spiritual, or of your mind, will, and emotions is stolen property. For when we do such we steal from God.


The reverence of God's sovereignty: the ninth commandment

[[Exo 20:16]] KJV Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

The specific nature of English draws a diagram of a thing; while languages such as Hebrew and Greek paint a picture. I find that it is beneficial to try to see the full picture of words to help understand what is being said.With this in mind:
to bear- while it is to speak..it is also to respond,heed,look at or consider
false- vain(of no substance) or wrongful testimony
neighbor-anyone with whom you have association i.e. brother, companion, friend, husband, ruler
Two other points of consideration; one to know a true witness of something or someone and say nothing is the same as giving a false testimony...second whatever one hoped to inflict on another by false witness was to come to the bearer.
It is not only men that one can bear false witness against but the scripture is filled with men who said God says when God had not spoke...or those who had made traditions that negated Gods law...or those who preach another gospel or another Jesus...
Jesus said from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks...and again out of the heart proceeds evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornication, thefts, false witness, blasphemies...so if our heart condemn us God is greater then our heart...can you be minded after Gods Spirit and judge all things you say and do.
If you find what is not good will you hide it from God and men with vanity, hypocrisy, and religion...or will you repent of your Adamic heart and trust his word that he will give you a new heart with his Law written in it. If you chose to deceive..deception will come on you which is apostasy.
May we bear only the true testimony of Jesus Christ laying aside every false witness of self and others...loving one another...helping and showing kindness...strengthening and establishing the faith of our brethren...


The providence of God in the tenth commandment.

[[Exo 20:17]] KJV Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.

My earthly father was a simple man,given to hard work and dependability, but not so much to Spiritual things. I honor him for the providence he gave. I start with this because I don't want anyone have a bad impression of what I am about to say.
My father was not a thief or one to take charity though we were by American standards poor. He was covetous though.
He had a saying that I must have heard a thousand times. " I wish I had that ___ and he had a feather up his butt!" it was applied to cars, trucks, land, livestock, guns etc.
For this is what to covet is...to desire what another has. On one hand it desires for your brother to lack for your gain...on the other it is accuses God of not providing what is good for you.
It was this commandment that was the catalyst for Paul's revelation of the grace given to us. The Pharisee in him could by blindness of flesh believe that what he did was obedience without considering the true desire of his heart. This is common in the modern church to in the heart have sin but act as expected we call it crucifying the flesh.
The tenth command deals directly with the heart...Jesus shows us that all the commands are kept or broken in the heart.
Paul and many men before and after when he had looked and heard the law with uncircumcised eyes, ears, and heart thought it was something to be done instead of something only God can make us into. Yet for that pesky tenth command...it dove past the actions that could be seen to who we are. The law shows him his sin is everywhere and cant be stopped...his will is to be right but within him all he finds is sin and death....which leads him to the grace of the Spirit given us...and that as we let our self remain crucified in Christ his Spirit makes us alive.
This was not new Moses said in Duet 6: 4-9 if we love him(not self) with all of us he puts his law in our heart.

The heel would like to say thank you.

[[1Pe 2:5]] KJV Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

Paul taught that believers are like a body; having different members with different functions but all working together. Peter says something along that same line when he says we are living stones fit together perfectly being built as a temple of God.
As I look at my google plus I see people posting encouragement to love God, love each other, trust God, rely on him, know you are not alone, learn his word, watch for wolves, and so on; it reminds me that we need what God has given to each other.
Today my page went over 100,000 views. I know this is a small number for many, but it seemed a good time to say thank you. So thank you to all who share with each other and those who have encouraged me to share. Thank you for reading my blog. I am seeking to be a vessel of God; not for personal approval but because he has burned my heart with a desire to strengthen and encourage the faith of my brethren.
So again I thank you and pray that all of us will be filled with his grace and peace unto perfection.

Be sure in your salvation!!!

most all of us know this beautiful verse, but do we remember what comes before and after.

 [[Rom 8:26]] KJV Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.

in modern language this is saying many times we're so messed up we don't even know what we need. So Gods own Spirit prays for us with words we cant even form

 [[Rom 8:29-31/KJV]]
 29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
 30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.
 31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?

 Due to the weakness of our flesh we are not promised a salvation experience without failure; however by the perfection of who He Is We are Promised a salvation that cannot fail...be blessed

We are a living sacrifice.

*[[Rom 12:1]] KJV* I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

*[[Eph 5:2]] KJV* And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour.

*[[1Pe 2:5]] KJV* Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

When Jesus was a young child, of approximately five years old, he would have started his formal education. One of the first books he would have studied is the Book of Leviticus. The first chapter of this book deals with the burnt offering.
He was the Word made flesh and as such studying the law of Moses would have been second nature to him. It was, after all, a description of who he was. We cannot know how much he would have understood about how he was to be the sacrifices when he was so young. At the age of 30 when he enters his public ministry it is obvious that he fully understands them. It is not only in his death he fulfills the sacrifices taught in Leviticus but also in the way in which he lived his life.
Some of the attributes that of this sacrifice seen in both Jesus life and death are;
there must be no blemish... he the knew no sin became a sin offering for us
of his own voluntary will...no man takes my life but I lay it down
He shall lay his hand upon his head... the laying on of hands deals with transference from one to another in this case of sins; behold the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world
The body was cut and flayed and placed upon the altar...he was wounded for my transgression, he was bruised for my iniquity, the chastisement of my peace was upon him, and by his stripes I am healed
The inwards are washed and the feet...not my will but thine be done.
Then all is placed on the alter; this is the teaching of the whole burnt offering.
It would make sense to us that burnt refer to the flames burning the body but in truth the word for burnt means ascending referring to the smoke going up into heaven.
Seeing Jesus in the sacrifice is an easy enough task for most of us but seeing ourselves is harder. Yet both Jesus and His apostles continuously use language to indicate that we too are burnt offering.
Jesus has told us the disciple is not greater than his master but it is enough for him to be as his master.
He asked his disciples if they were able to drink of the cup with his father had given it to him.( a cup is a Jewish idiom for ones fate or destiny)
So it is buy our own voluntary will Jesus lays his hands upon us... transfers his spirit to us ...the old life of our blood is spilled out upon his altar and we are crucified with Christ... our flesh must be dealt with and taken away and placed upon the altar ...our head and all of our pieces must be placed within the altar of God ...Jesus said his word washes our inward parts... and when he washed the disciples feet he asked them to you know what I've done to you
For he had prepared them, as he prepares us , as a whole burnt offering. The flesh burns up upon his altar and the smoke of spirit rising up into heaven a sweet smelling Savior.
May God give us the grace to hold nothing back but become as he is a living sacrifice

How to be a good person?

[[Matt 19:16-17/KJV]]
16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
 17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.

 [[Joh 17:3]] KJV
And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

 [[Joh 17:21-23/KJV]]
 21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
 22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

I use to find my Lords response to being called good perplexing. Why the correction after all he was good...he had never sinned and he always did what God said he should.
The only conclusion I could gather was like his baptism he was just showing us an example.
The reason for my ignorance was I had a false perception of what being good meant. I was saved but still thinking to be good meant my will and actions made to obey what was written in the scriptures. Much like the Pharisees who believed because they had the Scriptures they knew God.
 In a similar way the Apostles asked Christ if he would now restore the kingdom(reign) to Israel. Jesus replied the kingdom(reign) of God is in you; meaning until God was sovereign in their heart He could never be sovereign and their land.
So it is that life and "to be good" is Gods life and goodness...it is not generated by man; not even Jesus. His goodness and life was the Father living through him making them one.
This same oneness has been given to us who trust in the redemption of Jesus Christ. That by Gods Holy breath of life breathed into us we may live the same life Jesus lived which is Gods life making us one.
So I encourage you "lay aside THE SIN (of self reliance) that so easily entangles us " and depend upon his Spirit to live in and through you. Become an earthen vessel carrying the goodness and life of God to all who meet you.
remember nobody can serve two masters... your life depends on either you or him

The grace and truth of Moses commands part 2

learning to love :the fifth commandment


Exo 20:12
  Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee

Eph 6:1-2
1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.
2 Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)

In the first four commandments we are taught that we must love God above all else; in the next six commands that love is put into application.
Jesus taught that a child does the works of their father; as he has generated who they are. So children of Abraham believe Gods word as Abraham did...children of the devil attempt to rephrase Gods word to their own desires.
The first command dealing with God through those he loves is to honor father and mother.
We touched on what a Father is, in simplest form he is a generator of a seed of life and a mother is she who nurtures that seed to maturity.
Even after birth a father often deals with what his child shall be when they are mature while a mother deals with providing what is needed in the present.
We see this dynamic in Gods dealings with us; as the Father has given both the written and living word to show us what we shall be and the Spirit in us giving us day by day moment by moment that which is needed to mature.
We honor our mother and our father upon the earth in the same way. They have given us life and provision.For this reason God does not differentiate between a good or bad parent. If you are able to read what I have written then your parents have done enough to be honored.
If your parents have sinned against you or against God,no matter how severe, it can never take away God's desire to honor them. We must forgive we must forbear and be long suffering if we say that God is our Father. There is no loophole out of the fifth command.

love is a verb: the sixth commandment

Exo 20:13
 Thou shalt not kill.

1Jn 3:14-15
14 We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.

We are not to murder simple, straightforward. In Israel, under Moses, there was manslaughter and murder.
In accordance with the law the difference between the two was motive of the heart; for planning on a man's murder and hatred for a man ending in his death are the same. To be manslaughter, qualifying to have refuge, it had to be a complete accident with no hatred involved.
Many teachers of Moses understand murder included to kill the character of a person even if no physical violence was involved.
 They correctly determined they should not hate; that they should love.Yet still their concentration was on what they should do. The truth that Jesus brought us is that not what we do but who we are determines our actions. The commandment shows us who our faith is in; in ourselves we will break the commandment and think evil toward others. Messiah's life in us is patient, kind, long-suffering, and seeks not its own.
Trying to change how we think or act or believe are all works of our flesh generated by man... often it is the failure of these things that drives us to the grace offered by Jesus.
What is this grace He gives us? The Grace is his own life (the Spirit...breath of God) abiding in us. It is God placing us in Jesus and dying in his crucifixion being raised in a new life powered by His Spirit.
Do not let sin reign in your mortal body by leaning on the strength of your flesh to change what you do; instead trust in His Spirit to make you who you should be... through his life in you.
God has not added himself to your life, but has giving you a new life. His life shared in you.
Trust in this fact is the only thing that takes away the murder of self and others in mans heart.
*So remember it is the flesh that hears thou shalt not kill and sees something to be done...it is the Spirit that hears thou shalt not kill and sees the promise of life God has shared with us and is conforming us to .*

The protection of the seventh commandment

[[Exo 20:14]] KJV Thou shalt not commit adultery.

Compared to adultery murder is a kindness. To commit adultery involves breaking almost every commandment. It wreaks devastation in the heart and life of the those committing it, their spouses, their children, and all their family and friends. If the initial blast of deception and reproach don't kill the soul then often the fallout of shame, mistrust, blame, and guilt act as a slow poison.
It is for this reason that God proclaims Israel in breaking his covenant with them had been an adulteress bringing the devastation of Israel and Judah by means of Assyria and Babylon upon themselves.
The world portrays adultery as a natural and unavoidable occurrence. In their shows in their movies and their songs it is glorified as love.
Jesus teaches that it is not a problem of the acts of the body but of the heart. Therefore the devastation and death does not occur solely in the act but in the lust of men's fleshly heart.
The world may be correct in the flesh it is natural for the carnal man to act this way, but the grace and the truth that Jesus brought us is that we are a new creation in Christ. The new man has the life the Spirit of God living in us.
So we trust in His Spirit to write his law in our heart and in our mind changing us into who we should be.To the end that not only would we learn faithfulness to our earthly spouse but to our heavenly spouse.
If we try to follow this law by the strength of our flesh, that is our own ability, we will discover only sin and death, but if by trusting and relying on his breath of life in us(Holy Spirit) we mortify the flesh. We will see his promise of thou shalt not commit adultery lived out in our heart and body.

Why did Jesus weep?

[[Joh 11:35]] KJV Jesus wept.

[[Luk 19:41]] KJV And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,

There are two records of Jesus weeping in the Bible. Once is for the city of Jerusalem and thereby the nation of Israel; knowing that they will reject the life he has offered and put him to death. The other is when Lazarus has died; as he sees a weeping of those around him.
There are two things we should consider about these events. The first question is the why he wept.
Those who where present assumed it was because he loved Lazarus (which he did) and now Lazarus is dead.
 We know from what Jesus has told his disciples about waking Lazarus and that he was glad that his disciples would see that the life in him was far more than healing the sick but to raising the dead. So what made him weep?
The veil of uncircumcised eyes or ears or lips or heart or mind is a covering of flesh...this is the flesh which Adam has passed to us.
 Death is a separation. So when Adams life became self generated he lost the oneness of Gods life generated in him and threw himself into a darkness.
 It is this inability to see the things pertaining to God (who is life) that is a walking death found in every man ever born from mans seed.
It is this walking death that blinded the faithful apostles from understanding the things they saw and heard as Jesus walked among them.
it was this death of the flesh that caused a loving disciple like Martha to see a future promise in written word that had no effect on her present. She not to see the living promise that stood before her.
This same darkness of death made the blessed Jews see only good man who cared deeply for his friend instead of their Messiah; anointed of YHWH to change everything from death to life.
Not many days later Jesus would destroy that death for those who trust in him.
 The flesh generated life of his followers would be laid across his shoulders and he would carry it to a hill outside of Jerusalem. There he who knew no sin would pay the wages of sin...where he who is our life would take on himself our death.

In chapter 11 of John verse nine and ten Jesus said

[[Joh 11:9-10/KJV]]
9 Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world.
10 But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because there is no light in him.

He is the light of the world and while He was here his disciples could preach the gospel, heal the sick, and cast out devils...but he was going to the Father.
 In verse ten Jesus says if a man walks in the night he stumbles because he has no light IN him.
Yet our master not only carried my flesh of self to his cros;s He provided that the same life and light of God that abides in him was given to me...the Holy breath of life...The Spirit.
What does Jesus see when he looks at us...
 the confusion of his self oriented young apostles or the boldness of the apostles who expected God to work through them..
.a disciple who longs for the self benefit of what he has read or a disciple who is experiencing the living word bringing light and love and life to all around them.
 A people who look for a future promise or that embrace the fulfilled promise in them.
When Jesus looks at us does he weep?

The gift of a pure heart: lessons from Peter

[[ 1 Peter 1:6-7/KJV]]
 6 Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
 7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

John testified of Jesus that he would baptise with Holy Spirit and fire....Jesus said that the Spirit would separate the grain from the chaff...Peter concludes that our suffering of trails and temptations purifies us like gold in fire.
The man to whom God gave more wisdom than any other concluded by experience that nothing that can be done or gained in this earth has any value that is not fleeting...saying it is all vanity and vexation of the soul.
I would believe all of us have asked God why at some point. There are always in every situation a "friend of Job" to tell us God is angry at us or we have no faith or we are in sin...at times that "friend" is our own heart.
Consider with me for a moment an allegory for this thing in the life of Paul. Paul as an apostle is a ambassador of Jesus in this role he had told those with him not to set sail. Those with him chose instead to trust the council of a worldly captain. As they set sail(vessel) on the sea(world)a great storm arose(trials). No matter how hard they tried their experience of how to steer a ship could not bring the vessel under control. They tried to lighten the load and gain control by throwing away all that was unnecessary...no help. They next tried to gain control by throwing away what was surely necessary to steer if perhaps they might gain control if only in the storm. finally they consigned themselves to death. Paul(Jesus) stands up and encourages them That God will not let them be lost as long as they are with him though the vessel will be broken and lost.
If none of this had happened a young man would not have been healed and a entire tribe would not have heard the gospel.
Their is hardship and pain in this world...God allows it in his long suffering so that all who would accept him can be given time to accept his life.
 The fire applied to us who have believed is often what is needed to make us turn loose of that which we trust in that is not truly expedient to life. It is not to harm us but to show us and those who are around us the pure undefiled trust and reliance upon only God...that at Jesus appearing we will be vessels of praise and honor and glory.
For this gain Peter says greatly rejoice though you are in heaviness.




The grace and truth of Moses commands. Part 1

The grace of the first commandment:

Exo 20:2-3
2 I am יהוה thy Elohim, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
3 Thou shalt have no other elohim before me.

YHWH is the personal name of God. When he speaks his name he is speaking of your relationship with him; the ways in which his love is toward you and yours should be toward him.
Elohim is the name we see used of God at the beginning of Genesis. It is a name that denotes ability and power to create, to bring to pass, possessing might and authority.

So we see that He is saying I am yours and you are mine; I am your power and might and authority to possess life.
I have delivered you from those who believe themselves masters of the land I spoke into existence...I have delivered you from that which claimed you where their own possession...
I will not allow any other power, might, or authority to be with me or beside me or over you.

The flesh sees the law as something to be done; something it can never fully attain to so the law is seen as a curse of death.
The spirit sees the law as what YHWH is making us to become; that he who can not fail is forming us so the law is a promise of the life he has shared with us.

The fidelity of the second commandment.

Exo 20:4-6
4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

Col 3:5
  Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:

The insanity of fallen man can be clearly seen in Cain. Who took the work of his own labor and submitted himself to it; believing that it would earn him favor from that which was beyond himself.
Fallen men have continued in the futility of Cain since working to form an image and likeness that if submitted to will give them protection, providence, success, love, fertility, strength, wealth, or power.
In our modern world we have become our own idols. We work to make ourselves look, speak, and act in such a way that if we bow ourselves to this image we will gain all which idol worshipers have always tried to gain by their false way.
At the foot of Mount Sinai the children of Israel made a golden calf in the very presence of God. They said this is the God that led you out of Egypt.
In the same way the modern church teaches how to love, have faith, to do what is right saying this is God.
In trying to make ourself godly; we have forgotten that God is our Maker. He creates faith in us, He makes us to love, He forms righteousness in us.
So dearly beloved of the Lord whenever any teacher tells you to receive God's blessings and promises you must do thus and so then remember the words of our Lord and flee idolatry.
Trust in God and the life he is placed in you and he shall make you into exactly what he has promised.

The joy of the third commandment:

For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

Exo 20:7
 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

Ask most people what it means to take the Lords name in vain and they would say to use his name in the form of a curse or with no true regard and respect.
While these things should not be done they miss the idea conveyed in the third commandment of Moses. The language of this command is marriage language; so taking his name is to come into covenant with him.
When a young lady married a man, in bible culture and time, she left her own family and Fathers work. The husbands family and work became her own.
So it is with the body of Christ.
When we leave the family of the world and the work of the father of flesh; Adam.(self) We are to take as our family those born of heaven and the work of our Father in heaven to save all who would accept.
If we have Christian acquaintances and worldly friends or if our life is about self fulfillment, worth, realization etc.; then we have taken his name in vain.
We can not expect to reap the benefits of having his name without the covenant relationship of loosing self and becoming one with his life.
be blessed

The peace of the fourth commandment.

Exo 20:8-11
8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it. 
Mat 11:28
 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Mat 22:44
The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool?

Eph 2:6
  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

meaning of sabbath

Strong's Definition: Intensive from [[H7673]]; intermission, that is, (specifically) the _Sabbath: - _ (+ every) sabbath.

The lesson of the fourth commandment is that the Holiness of God is not to be found in a mans labor but in Gods rest for man.
In the grace and truth of this command we see that a mans labor is only the lesson ... a mans life can only be found as he rest in Christ
allowing Christ to work in us.
We are told to be hidden in Christ...crucified(dead) in Christ...seated in Christ. In none of these states are we to be at work...but "the sabbath of YHWH thy Elohim in it thou shalt not do any work..."
It is God who is to both will and perform his will in us. I would imagine that all Christians have tried to do what is right in their own strength (I know I have)... to prove their love for God, or their change of life, or that they are good , or obedient, or submitted.
God will not accept our labor any more than that of Cain who brought the best of his labor. It is necessary that we present to God a innocent victim for our guilt...a life with out sin for our stained life.
The only man who ever lived a life without sin is Jesus...it is his life we must give unto God. How do we give another's life...by faith we must trust when he said he gave His life for us it was true.
only when we give up our own life(self) and trust in the life that he is giving us can we ever find peace with God... for our carnal man is enmity with God.
This is our faith that He is abiding in us and the only life we have is His life.



Let God be your fortress: lessons from Peter

Let God be your fortress


[[1Pe 1:5]] KJV Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

[[Luk 9:42-43/KJV]]
42 ...Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the child, and delivered him again to his father.
43 And they were all amazed at the mighty power of God....

In Castles their was built a keep which was meant to be almost impossible to breach; in modern times men build panic rooms and bunkers. They are built to protect from any enemy that is a threat to our lives.
For the christian we are kept by the power of God...think on that. What created thing is capable of taking something from God. before I leave this idea let me say that not only does a keep hold enemies out but it holds its inhabitants in. If they allow fear or panic to convince them to flee they will find that they are held in.
What of Gods power is tangible to us is shown in microcosm in Luke. Jesus alone can do these things; for we see his disciples are unable. He rebukes the evil spirit from us, heals us, and delivers us unto our Heavenly Father. (a note about this evil spirit...the word spirit is literally our breath...we take in the good of Gods providence and we exhale what is poisonous to us and those around us...but when God breaths his Holy Spirit into us it is to be what now comes out)
How do we enter this living protective power...faith. Faith is not a energy to be increased or a knowledge to be increased but simply a trust and reliance....when I get out of my bed I do not look to see if my floor is there...I do not poke it to see if it can hold me...I simply stand on it and walk by faith by such I experience its stability.
In this way we experience Gods power and safety only when we trust and rely on its stability, set ourselves upon it and walk.
As Jesus is to live in and through us being revealed as the Son of God to all we meet...we too are sons but we are to be hidden in him...no one should see us until God reveals us as his sons on that day.
Trust Him to live in and through you on this earth, while you live seated in heaven in and by Him.

Our inheritance in the presence of God: lessons from Peter

[[1Pe 1:4]] KJV To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,

[[Gen 15:1]] KJV After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.

[[Joh 10:10]] KJV The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

[[Joh 17:3]] KJV And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

God is our inheritance...at present we have the earnest of that inheritance...Gods life in us through the Holy Spirit...but when the corruption of our current flesh puts on incorruption we shall experience a complete oneness with God.
The scripture tells us no man has been in the personal presence of God...why... because our God is a consuming fire... as pictured in the burning bush this fire consumes all that is not living... when men experience the resurrection they will stand in the presence of God...for those who have his life within them this fire will burn away every shadow leaving only his pure life...for them this is bliss.... for those who only have self life... that same fire will completely consumed them...so while we still have time let us witness and share with every man the life he has given...be blessed.

God is our life: lessons from Peter

[[1Pe 1:3]] KJV Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

Jesus said you must be born again...Peter after having said we where chosen, sanctified, and consecrated unto God says the same...for we can not experience God living in us without first being born of God.
All of us where born in the image of Adam and as such we had no life in us. Death is not an event but a condition of separation. Adam became a self at his fall and we as his generations where born as selves. The thing about a self is by nature it is separated and hence dead.
When we are born again God breaths his life into us...we take on his life shared with us and with all others who are born of his Spirit. Jesus said as he was one with the Father we would be one with him and the Father.
Jesus calls this experience born again not educated again. When we where born as a self we learned how to walk, talk, eat, and all other things as a self. When we are born again we are not adding God to our life but our life is completely new from him.
So we must learn to speak as he speaks through us, walk as he walks through us, so in all things we must abandon what we learned as a self. Our life is his life in us and we must learn how to do all things as one with him.
Peter calls this a living hope. The word hope has taken on the meaning of the word wish in modern English, but its meaning when it was used in translation of Gods word was a desired expectation. So Peter tells us that our living in Gods life is something our Father teaches us to do; we are to desire and expect this life to be perfected in us for our Father can not fail.

Chosen, Sanctified, and Consecrated: lessons from Peter

*[[1Pe 1:2 KJV]]*
2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.



Does God give me a choice?

When one speaks of election,predestination, choice, and freewill you can be sure to find Christians who have decided on one or the other ready for hours of debate.
These debates consist of those on one side giving verses that say we must choice by our free will and the others giving verses that say it is not of our will.
 It seems to escape both sides that their opponents are quoting scriptures that are as clear as their own. So how can this be?
Two factors must play into our understanding. The first is the difference between choice and will. A choice is in a moment the will is the desire of the heart. Peter denied the Lord in a moment of choice...but it was his will to live for the Lord. The second is Gods foreknowing.
Foreknowledge works in this way. Say that all men where born unable to recognize the color blue...
it would not be any ones favorite color nor would any man long to see a blue sky or a blue ocean...
In the same way no man of himself desires God.
Going further with our blindness to blue...if God made everyone to see blue some would hate it...some fear it...some would have no concern...but some few would love it and seek after it.
Rejection of God takes one further into death. As such God does not reveal himself to those he foreknows will reject him; except when necessary to bring his purpose to pass i.e. Pharaoh and Judas.
However those he foreknows will desire him and his life he draws to himself...they are elect not because they possessed anything that was good but because they would not reject the good he decided to give them.
So God would that everyman be saved...but only the elect shall be saved...next time we will look at sanctification of the Spirit.



Are we sanctified?

[[1Pe 1:2]] KJV Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

We have in, the church as a whole, taken words such as righteousness, salvation, and sanctification and turned them into, as Jude says, clouds without water. We have made them into honorary titles given to us at our acceptance of Christ; or simply tokens of credit to be cashed in when Christ returns.
The grace we have been given is a living way, not a past or future event, but a now life.
These living words where planted in you and they will be harvested but they are being formed now.
The word for Spirit means breath...so when you accepted Christ and the Father sent his Spirit into your heart you have recieved his life within you.
 His life in you is like a consuming fire; unless you try to generate your own life by your own might, will, and ability. Yet if you trust and rely upon him to live his life in you and through you; he will sanctify you, tangibly revealing the righteousness of Christ as Jesus loves through you, consuming your old motives thoughts and actions ,purging you of their death as you surrender your life for his...after all he surrendered his life for yours.
So we see sanctification is not a concept of reason to be understood, but a action of Gods Spirit in you to be lived by faith.


Are you dedicated to God?

 [[Heb 9:19-21/KJV]]
 19 For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people,
 20 Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.
21 Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry.

 [[1Pe 1:2]] KJV Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

"and the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ" to the Jewish believers whom Peter was adressing such a statement would have caused a humbled reflection of the holiness of Messiah.
To we gentile believers who did not grow up constantly hearing the writings of Moses or participating in temple worship the statement becomes more mental than living.
Yet for Peter this statement was distinct to his life as a witness of our Lord in the flesh. It had been shortly before Jesus would manifest in his Crucifixion what John the baptist had spoken " behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world"
Peter was there when Jesus had said if you destroy this temple in three days I will raise it up and shortly after he said do not look on these buildings for a day comes when one stone will not be left on another. It would be some time later that Peter would understand the true temple of God was not the building he looked at but the man speaking to him.
The building was a shadow, a teaching of the true seat of Gods glory. In order for Christians to understand who they are they must understand who Jesus is; for God has made us one with him.
The death of the sacrifice served as a substitution for the death in the one who presented the offering before God. So it is as we trust in what Jesus has done for us and present it before God we are crucified in Christ and his death is accepted in substitution for the death in us.
Yet it is not the death that makes us his living temple....the life is in the blood...the blood(life) is cast(sprinkled)as a dedication or consecration upon the alter. As it was also by the blood (life) that the items of the temple where dedicated...table of incense(prayer) by his life...table of show bread(the word) by his life...the candlestick(illumination of Spirit)...all these are a lesson of him and as such they teach us of the Father and in sharing his life in us it teaches us what he has made us( and is revealing in us).
So we see it is not by our will or might that we are dedicated or consecrated to God; but it his his life in us. We must trust his death to be our death to have his life...but we must leave our life on the alter to be consumed and trust in his life in us if we desire the glory of God to abide in us.
We can see that Peter had learned to say much with few words; continuing to the end of his salutation he announces a blessing on those who would read his words(including us).
May the gift of Jesus life in you by the Spirit and the peace with God he has purchased you be multiplied in you.

Hiding from God

[[Gen 3:8]] KJV And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.

 [[Exo 3:6]] KJV Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. 

[[Rev 6:15]] KJV And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
 when Adam and Eve made the decision they where sufficiant in themselves to do and decide how to produce life; the bible tells us their eyes where opened and they knew they where naked.
 When they had naturaly walked in Gods life that he breathed into them there had been no such thinking for their lives consisted of Gods life in them hence they where hidden in God. At their fateful decision to become selves,abandoning their oneness with Gods life, they found the glory that had shown from them was gone leaving behind only naked flesh.
They took from the earth and made themselves aprons to cover this dead dark flesh, but when the presance of God came near they knew a covering of the creation would not hide from the creators eyes.
So it was by shame, guilt, and fear they attempted to hide themselves. We see clearly that this is the story lived out again and again in ievery fallen man...but do we see this is also the story of the redeemed. For me it was yesterday.
The Lord has shown me that his life is my life, that my self life was crucified in him, that I am hidden in him, and that by the trust he forms in me Christ lives in and through me. Yet, yesterday early at work there is a conversation taking place about a certain individual who trys at any cost to make an impression on our suprivisor. His behavior is so over the top that it is a source of ridicule. I found myself taking part in this conversation. As I was walking away my hidding started...the conversation in my mind was....oh yes you really showed an example of Jesus love to those men...why is it so easy for you to act like that...God must be disgusted with you even though he loves you...are you realy even his; maybe your just decieving yourself.
Half hearted prayers made ineffective by self pity, and loathing. Then aggrivation and blame toward God...after all he needs to change me or show me or leave me....(didnt think of it then but sounds like Jonah). Im home now with fustration and anger boiling in me...it comes out in unkind words to my wife.
 Then it is God telling me to come out and stop hiding from him. Asking forgivness from God and men feeling his mercy and forgivness...feed my sheep...how can I....do you love me,feed my sheep...what can I...do you love me
 So I am done hiding...God knew about my nakedness before he offered his glory to me. I am done with fig leaves...I am crucified with Christ and as such I am naked and not ashamed...

 [[Gen 2:25/KJV]] And they were both naked, the man and his wife and were not ashamed

[[Heb 4:13]] KJV Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.

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