August 2, 2020                                           ABIDING  IN  LOVE
1 John 4:15-17, 2:5-6 “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. By this, love is perfected with us, that we may have confidence in the day of judgement; because as He is, so also are we in this world.”      “but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him; the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.”
What we see in these verses is amazing. Abiding is a key word. Grapes do not become grapes by trying; grapes become grapes by simply abiding in the vine. So much of what we hear in the ‘Christian world’ is about us needing to do this or that-pray more, give, more, memorize scripture, go to conferences-or whatever. Those things are good, but why we do them is the issue. You may ask, as someone did recently, what it looks like to abide in love. For sure, I do not have the complete answer, but God is helping me understand more about what it means to abide in His love. We must understand that human love is one thing, and the love of God is something else altogether. Unlike the love of God, human love is fragile and is often selfish in nature. The good news for us is that Romans 5:5 tells us that God has poured out His love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. Another truth from scripture we must understand is that He has made us new (not refurbished) creations, and as His new creations, we are able to live in a way that reflects His nature. For example, because it is God’s nature to be patient, we can be patient; and like God, we can love the unlovely; we can be gentle; we can be kind-hearted-and etc. We are free from having to try to live a life that pleases God; we can now simply abide in Him, receiving nourishment and life that flows from Him. To abide does not mean that we are idle; to abide means we are receiving and putting to use what we receive. We abide by learning of Him through His word, by praying, and by letting His life flow through us, and by desiring to do the things that are pleasing to Him. It’s not about us living our life; it’s about us dying to ourselves and living as unto the Lord. The love of God cleanses us, makes us new, gives us new desires, and enables us to be expressions of His love to those around us. If we are abiding in, living in love, we are abiding in God for He IS love.
1 John 4:7-8, 3:1 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”         “See what kind of love God has given us, that we should be called the children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know Him.”
Blessings,
Buddy

 
July 31, 2022                                               HE  WHO  LOVES  MUCH
Luke 7:47 “For this reason I say to you, her sins which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little loves little.”
Colossians 3:12-14 “And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.”
There is a correlation between love and forgiveness. If one has trouble loving others, it’s an indicator that he or she has not realized how needful they were of being forgiven by God for their sins. When we are aware of how we have sinned against God, and others, and come to realize that God has forgiven our sins, we are more compassionate and more loving, and not quick to judge others-it’s that simple.   When received, the love of God has a way of cleansing and purifying us; His love changes our hearts. When we do not love, or forgive, or not be gentle and patient, we are walking in our flesh and not according to the Spirt. The basic truth that underlies our living out the gospel is being aware of the forgiveness of our sins; if we don’t think we have sinned, or if we think we have not ‘sinned very much,’ or if we think that our sins were not ‘big sins,’ then we have missed it and we do not know the love of God. God came to us in our sin-and forgave us. We may have lived a moral life, but even if that is the case, we nonetheless were separated from God by our sinful nature and in need of His forgiveness. In the Colossians verse above, we learn that we can ‘put on love;’ that is an amazing truth to embrace. We can put on love even when others do or say things that are unlovely. God’s love is not like human love; human love fails and is fragile; the love of God is steadfast, never fails, and is not selfish. The good news is that we are not limited to human love; Romans 5:5 tells us that God has poured out His love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit! It is our opportunity to live life on this earth out of the love of God. God’s love in us enables us to rise above-to respond as God responds. The two points for us today is to realize that we have been forgiven much; when we do so, we will become aware of the love of God that enables us to love with an unselfish love. It is amazing, but we can put off what is not love, and we can put on love! Let us be those who are always putting on love.
1 John 4:16 “And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
Blessings,
Buddy

July 29. 2022                                       HAVING  STRONG  ENCOURAGEMENT
Hebrews 6:18-20 “in order that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have strong encouragement, we who fled for refuge in laying hold of the hope set before us. The hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”
There are three realities that each of us must face: we live without hope; we live with a hope that is based on self and the world around us; or we live with a hope that is rooted in the knowledge of God. The hope that is based on self and/or the world around us is not a steadfast hope. For many, hope is dependent on the circumstances or on their ability to bring about the desired outcome. The hope that is rooted in God is steadfast and is not dependent on the will of man or on circumstances. The acid test for the believer that reveals the source of hope is adverse circumstances, when everything seems to be wrong, when things are not what we desire. Depression and anxiety can be signs that our hope is not coming from our relationship with God. It seems that the more affluent a society or individual is, all too often, hope in God wanes. As believers, it is wise, and it is scriptural, for us to examine ourselves for the purpose of making sure we are spiritually healthy. One reason for evaluating our spiritual health is to determine where our hope lies. A foundational truth regarding hope is that of knowing God according to the scriptures-who He says He is-not who we think He is. Not knowing God according to who He says He is an unsure foundation that will not stand the test and will lead to disappointment. If we are to have a steadfast hope, even in an affluent society, and even in the midst of trying times, we must continually feed on the truth of God’s word, increasing in the knowledge of Him. When we believe that God is who He says He is, when we believe that He is sovereign, when we believe that His plans and purposes will come to pass, and when we know that we belong to Him and are being used by Him, we will have an abiding hope and we will be encouraged because we know that God never fails. This does not imply that we are oblivious to or in denial about the fact that we do encounter trials and difficulties; it does mean that we are confident that God works in and through the difficulties we face. For sure, our soul needs an anchor in the days in which we live. The only sure anchor that holds in the most violent storm is our relationship with Jesus-He is THE anchor; if our anchor is anywhere else, the storms will prevail. We have been given the Holy Spirit to reveal to us the things of God, and as we come to know God and to know who we are in Christ, we will experience the sure and steadfast hope that is rooted in God Himself. Whatever you may be facing, let your hope in God be strong.
Romans 15:13 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Psalm 147:11 “the Lord delights in those who fear Him, who put their hope in His unfailing love.”
Blessings,
Buddy

 
July 25, 2022                                            GROANING  WITHIN
Romans 8:19, 21-25 “For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.”    “that the creation itself will also be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruit of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one also hope for what he sees? But we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”
The life we live now is not the best there is; the best is yet to come. We have a tendency to be focused on our lives here on earth more than what God has in store for us in the future. Yet, we are well aware of the trials and tribulations among the peoples of the world and among the natural world as well. We experience hurricanes, forest fires, volcanos, pollution, droughts, floods-and the list goes on. We have a basic desire, a yearning, and we groan within ourselves for things to be as God designed. All of the trials in this life and the disruptions in the natural world are a result of the sin of man; God’s original design and plans for mankind, and the natural creation, is not what not what we see today. The good news is that God has plans to put a stop to all that is wrong; He hears our groaning. We cannot imagine what glorious things will take place when Jesus returns to earth; at His return, things will immediately be made right. At His return, the sons of God-believers-will be revealed and their full adoption will be consummated; we will see our Father and our bodies will be redeemed-we get a new body! The revealing of the sons of God is a big deal-bigger than we can comprehend. We will be free from all corruption and will experience the glory God. When He returns, even nature will be made right. However, we can live in victory even in a world that has lost its way, and at the same time groan for the things God has in store for us. Our hope is not based on what we see and not based on what we think we can accomplish-our hope is based on what we do not see-but on believing that God will fulfill His promises to those who love Him. We have the Spirit of God living in us now, but it is the ‘first fruit of the Spirit;’ the Holy Spirit in us is a down-payment, or guarantee, as proof that we have been purchased by God; any day Jesus will come to take full possession-He is coming for His bride! Yes-we experience trials and we groan for things to be made right-and they will be. Keep enduring, and keep your focus on our Redeemer coming again.
2 Timothy 4:7-8 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.”
Blessings,
Buddy

 
July 25, 2022                                                WALKING  IN  FREEDOM
Galatians 3:24-25, 4:6-7, 5:1, 13, 16-18   “But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.”  “And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, Abba! Father! Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.”     ”It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject to a yoke of slavery.”   “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”     “But I say to you, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets it desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh, for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.”
To get the point Paul is saying, it is time well spent to read the book of Galatians. Paul was correcting believers who had turned from freedom back to living under the Law. We may think that this does not apply to us-but it does. Living in the freedom that we have as sons and daughters of God is a big deal; in many ways, freedom is fragile and easily lost. The unredeemed nature of man is to live under a certain set of rules that he sets us as his parameters. For centuries the Israelites had lived under the Law; but when Jesus came, He fulfilled the Law and set them, and all who believed in Jesus, free from living under the Law. The point we must get from Galatians is that we are free, but not free to do whatever our flesh wants to do; freedom is not a license to sin. The freedom that God has given us frees us to live in ways that are in keeping with His kingdom. I said that the message of Galatians applies to us because we may believe that because we attend church, we give financially, we ‘don’t drink and curse’, we pay our bills-we are in good standings with God. If we think that way, we are living under law and are in slavery. The freedom that God has given is based on love, not rules. The freedom we have in Christ changes our hearts and our ‘want to.’ The crucial truth we must see is that even though we are saved, our fleshly nature has not been annihilated and it continues to set its desire against the Spirt that lives in us; however, there is good news for us. We have the power to say ‘no’ to the flesh, and we have the power to say ‘yes’ to the Spirit-to walk according to the Spirit. So, we are indeed free; to be free implies we are free to choose; the Galatians were choosing to revert back to living under the Law, back to slavery. The great and glorious truth for us is that we can now live in true freedom-free to be who God made us to be. There is always a voice calling us back to being slaves, but we must stand firm in the freedom that God has given us.
Romans 8:1-2, 6 “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the life of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.”     “For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace,”
Blessings
Buddy

 
July 23, 2022                                         LOOKING  AND  DOING
Titus 2:11-14 “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in this present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ; who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.”
There are two instructions and admonitions that are found throughout the New Testament. You simply cannot get around these two instructions; they are core to the life of one who claims to be a follower of Jesus. First, it’s as clear as can be; we are to “deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in this present age.” We do not need to know the Greek meaning of these words-the message is loud and clear. If it’s ungodly, don’t do it! If you have worldly desires, (things not pleasing to the Lord) change you desires! Do the things, speak the words, and have thoughts that are righteous-that please the Lord and are like Him. This all sounds so simplistic-but yet, it is so powerful. After all-Jesus came to “redeem us from every lawless deed and purify us for Himself.” Reject the lie that says we are just sinners who sin-we can live righteously because of what Jesus has done. Second, we are to be “looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” We work and live in this world and go about our daily chores and routines, but as we do, our heart should be longing and looking for His return. If the things of this world have captured our hearts, then we have missed a clear teaching of the scriptures and we are living beneath our privilege as those belonging to God. In 2 Corinthians chapter four, Paul admonished us to ‘fix our eyes on not what is seen, but on what is not seen’ and he viewed life on earth and living is an ‘earthly tent.’ For us to live as Paul described, we must have a firm belief that we have a fantastic inheritance that will be revealed when the Lord returns-so we have every reason to be looking forward to the blessed hope and the appearing of our Lord. We enjoy the Lord now, but we only have a taste of what it will be like when He suddenly returns. Jesus has redeemed us from every lawless deed, is purifying us as His own possession; and as His people, we are to be zealous for good deeds. So, let us be looking and doing!
Colossians 1:11-13 “strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,”
Blessings,
Buddy
​

 
July 21, 2022                                       WALKING  THROUGH
Psalm 23:4 “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for Thou art with me.”
John 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulations, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”
One undisputable fact is that we have troubles, trials and afflictions in this life. Some have a tendency to say or imply “Trust Jesus as your Savior and everything will be fine.” In heaven, everything will be fine, but here on earth we have difficulties-Jesus forewarned us of that in John 16:33. If we expect not to have trials, or at least, not many trials and not severe trials, we feel disappointed and overwhelmed when they come. I am not suggesting that we have a ‘doomsday’ or ‘expecting the worse’ mindset; but just realize that we are not exempt from difficulties, knowing God will comfort us and give us grace to endure. Most of us have heard it so often said that God uses trials for our good, that we do not really hear it-if you know what I mean. However, whether we understand it or not, God does use the difficult times for our good; it is often in the trials that we grow spiritually. Personally, there have been times in trials that I came to the place that all I could do was acknowledged to God that I had no power to change anything and that He was the potter and I was the clay; I felt totally helpless, but He was faithful comfort and enable me to endure. Someone said “If you are walking through a storm, keep walking.” Note that we ‘walk through the valley’-we don’t camp out there or get stuck there. Our posture should be one of trusting God when the trying times come; and should remember that this world is not our home but that we will soon be with the Lord where there are no troubles and trials. So, in the trial, be honest with God and tell Him how you feel and confess your need for His strength and comfort that you might endure and overcome the trial. It’s important for us to cry out to God in time of need. His promises never fail.
Romans 14:8 “If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”
James 1:2-4 “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
2 Corinthians 2:4 “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”
Blessings,
Buddy

 
July 19, 2022                                            GROW  UP  INTO  HIM
Ephesians 4:15,24, 5:1 “but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ-“       “and put on the new self, which is in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.”     “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children;”
1 John 2:6 “whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked.”
1 Corinthians 11:1 “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ”
Romans 8:29 “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.”
Philippians 2:5 “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.”
Peter Parris made a statement that speaks volumes: “When we are lost, we don’t know how lost we are, and when we are saved, we don’t know how saved we are.”  Our salvation is so much more than we perceive it to be; it’s much more than a ticket to heaven. There is a prevalent attitude and belief that says “I’m not perfect-I’m not God” or “I am not Jesus.” Normally these statements are made to justify their life or actions that are unlike God. True, we are not God and we are not Jesus; however, the gospel calls us to be like them; the Holy Spirit is given to us to make it possible for us as mere human beings, to be like God! Wow! Of course we are not like God in having all power and all wisdom, and we could not have spoken the universe into existence; but we can be like Him in character and we can operate out of the His love that He has poured out into our hearts, and we can do the things that are pleasing to Him. We could never be like Him in our own strength and determination; only by His working in us can we be like Him. This is why it is so critical to discover our new identity in Him as sons and daughters and to come to know that He is not ‘refurbishing’ us, but has made us NEW creations. This is the point where many believers stumble; many still view themselves as ‘sinners who continue to sin.’ (It’s another subject; when we sin, it’s because we choose to do so.) In the Ephesians verses above, we are admonished to ‘grow in all aspects into Him;’ to ‘be imitators of God,’ and in the 1 John verse, we are told to ‘walk in the same way in which He walked.’ Those are amazing commands of scriptures; to do as these verses instruct, we must first believe that we can do as they say, and we must rid ourselves of the mind-set that we are sinners who continue to sin, and begin to live as new creations who have power over sin and have the power, by the Spirit of God, to say yes to all the commands that the scriptures give. Walking and being like God is not a matter of great effort and will-power, but is a matter of knowing who we are in Him and who He is in us; and walking is His way is nothing we take pride in, but is something that humbles us because it is His work in us-allowing ordinary people like you and I do be like Him in in conduct and thought. Let us receive and embrace these scriptures as God’s desires for us.
2 Peter 1:3-4 “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence, by which He has granted to us His precious and very great promises, so that through them you might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.”
Blessings,
Buddy

 
July 17, 2022                                          REMOVING  THE  VEIL
 2 Corinthians 3:14-18 “But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ. But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their hearts; but whenever a man turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as form the Lord, the Spirit.”
This passage of scripture clearly explains why non-believers do not get it; and it explains why non-believers are critical of believers and it explains why they reject God. Understanding why those who reject the gospel should give us some compassion for them-they simply are blinded to the truth. This also explains why it is useless to try to change the mind of a non-believer through debate. When we understand that some have a veil over their heart and their face, we should not be surprised or shocked by the things they do or say. The good news is that the veil can be removed! The veil that blinds is not removed by education, keeping certain rules, or by modifying behavior; only by ‘turning to the Lord’ is the veil removed. God is after the heart of man. Turning to the Lord implies that one is turning from his ways and is acknowledging that he needs and desires God; it’s coming to the end of self. Even as believers we must not allow our hearts to become hardened to the Lord and must not resist the work of the Spirit in us. 1 Thessalonians 5:19 tells us not to quench or stifle the Spirit. The amazing thing is that as we turn to the Lord with an unveiled face and as we ‘behold the glory of the Lord,’ we are being transformed into His image! We are not transformed by doing, but by beholding. God transforms us from the inside out; as our hearts and minds or being transformed, our life changes and we then began to reflect the nature and character of God with the life we live. This explains why emphasizing behavior and keeping certain rules as a way to get to God or to please God always fails. The good news is that since God changes us and gives us new hearts, minds and spirits, all we do can flow out of the new creation we are, and be a result of our relationship with our Father. This truth leads to life as God intended and it frees us from a life of trying in our own strength and determination to do the things that we are ‘supposed’ to do. As we turn our hearts and minds to the Lord and as the veil is removed, one major truth we will discover is that we have a new identity as His sons and daughters; He has made opened the way for us to live a life that is pleasing to Him and a blessing for us.
Ephesians 1:18-19b “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what of the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.”
Matthew 6:22-23 “The lamp of the body is the eye; if therefore your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. Therefore if the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
Blessings,
Buddy

July 15, 2022                           STEADFAST, IMMOVABLE, ALWAYS ABOUNDING
1 Corinthians 15:58 “Therefore, My beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”
In the verses preceding this verse above, Paul in considerable detail is describing what it will be like when at that great and awesome moment, believers will be changed from mortal to immortal at the coming of Jesus. At that instant we will ‘bear the image of the heavenly’! 1 Corinthians 15:49-54. Because of these fantastic events that are yet to come, Paul concludes this section of scripture by encouraging believers to continue to live in such a way that they will be ready when that day suddenly comes. Believers experience trials and difficulties in this life and there may be times when they are tempted to give up on being faithful in the work of the Lord, but God reminds us that our labor in the Lord is not in vain-even though we may at times be tempted to think that it is. We must avoid the trap of becoming disappointed and losing our passion for the Lord because things did not happen as we thought they would or because things are more difficult than we expected. Contrary to what we like to hear, sometimes there is ‘toil’ in the work of the Lord-it’s not always easy or immediately fulfilling. Yet, when we are about the Lord’s work, there are rewards in the here and now and rewards reserved for us when we meet the Lord. Human resolve fails at some point, but the presence of the Holy Spirit empowers the believer to remain steadfast and immovable when it comes to continuing in the work of the Lord. Not only can the believer continue in the work of the Lord, he or she can abound in that work because they understand that their toil in not in vain. The believer who, from his heart, is about the Lord’s work does not require the approval or praise of man because he is doing what he does as unto the Lord and not unto man. There is something much more difficult, more dangerous and carries a high price tag for the believer than ‘toiling’ in the work of the Lord, and that is not to be about the Lord’s work. It is a simple matter of the heart: if the heart is turned to the Lord and from the heart one wants to know God, he or she will find themselves about the Lord’s work. There is no greater joy than the joy that comes from doing what the Lord calls us to be about.
1 Corinthians 15:51-53 “Behold, I tell you a mystery, we shall not all sleep, but we shall be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.”
Blessings,
Buddy