Blog Archives - TheNewU

GRATITUDE

9/29/2023

September 29, 2023 GRATITUDE

Colossians 2:6-7 “As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude”
1 Thessalonians 5:18 “In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
Psalm 9:1 “I will give thanks to You, Lord, with all of my heart.”

Having a grateful heart makes all the difference in living life. Viewing and filtering the events of life through a grateful mindset is an antidote for being bitter, resentful, selfish, and ungrateful. No one enjoys the company of an ungrateful person. True gratitude comes from knowing the love of God and knowing that He is a good God and that He is working all things for good if we love Him and are walking in His ways. We must be ‘firmly rooted’ and continue in being ‘built up in Him’ so that we are ‘established in the faith.’ There is a correlation in being grateful and knowing and experiencing God. When we understand that the blessings God bestows on us are because of His grace and not because of what we do, we are grateful. One might say that they have certain possessions or blessings because they work hard for them; but it is is God who gives the power and health know how to work. It is true that all good things come from our Father above. James 1:17. It’s easy to have a grateful spirit when all is well; but even in difficult times we can have a grateful spirit for what God is doing in the process and can be thankful that He will not forsake us, but will comfort us and give us the strength to endure. Let us be grateful; God loves us and has restored us to Himself and He is our provider, our protector and He is our life.

Psalm 106:1, 107:21 “Praise the Lord, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.” “Let them give thanks to the Lord for His unfailing love and His wonderful deeds for mankind.”

Blessings, Buddy

SET FREE

9/26/2023

September 26, 2023 SET FREE

Romans 8:1-4 “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the Law could not do, weak as it was though the flesh, God did; sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in then flesh, in order that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”

There are two major laws: the law of sin and death, and the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. The awesome and amazing good news is that if we trust Jesus as our Savior, we have been SET FREE from the law of sin and death! That means that we do not have to sin and we do not have to fear death. Sad to say, but many believers do not realize that they have been set free from the power of sin, and the fear death. (Someone has said that death is not an enemy for believers.) The Law was given to show that man could not keep the Law; under the Law, man was under the power of sin. The Law was our schoolmaster to lead us to Christ; the Law revealed that we needed a Savior. Galatians 3:24-27. If one does not embrace the fact that they are forgiven, they live with a sense of condemnation, and that robs them of life; believers are also set free from a feeling of condemnation. All of this is possible because of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus; Jesus lives in us and we live in Him and the sins and guilt issues were dealt with when Jesus bore our sins on the cross and then was raised from the dead. Life as God designed can be experienced only in Christ Jesus. For this reason, it is absolutely essential for believers to know their true identity in Christ; to understand how the scriptures describe who they are. Sadly, there is much misunderstanding about what it means to be in Christ. At the core of the issue of our identity is that of being made new creations-not refurbished creations. As new creations, we have new minds, new spirits, and a new heart; and the power of sin has been broken. We can now walk according to the Spirit in place of walking according to the flesh (sin). Being set free from the law of sin and death is a much larger issue than we think it may be; being set fee is being set free! We are no longer enslaved to sin, to the old way of life where we are focused on getting what we want; we are now to live as Christ-to live life to the fullest, being over-comers. Do not let a misunderstanding of our true identity rob you (I) of what great things God has done on our behalf. We are have been SET FREE to be who God designed us to be.

Galatians 5:1 “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”

Blessing, Buddy

IF INDEED

9/24/2023

September 24, 2023 IF INDEED

Colossians 1:21-23 “And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.”

(Just a quick comment before we get to the subject of this blog. The verse above makes the statement that at one point, we were all hostile in mind and engaged in evil deeds. If you were saved at a young age, you may say that you were not hostile or doing evil deeds. However, any life apart from God being our Savior, is ungodly or sinful by nature and is in need of redemption-no matter how ‘good’ one may be.) It is God who is all powerful and all knowing and His purposes are always fulfilled. YET, we have a part to play; we must work with Him as He works in us. God could just ‘snap His finger’ and we would be perfect in this life; or He could have made us like robots. But, that is not what He chose to do. It is difficult to conceive, but God has a masterful plan and purpose in what He does and in what He is presently doing, and the amazing thing is that He gives us the power of choice. At the same time, however, because His Spirit is always drawing us to God, we can never be prideful about the fact that we are working with God. It is God’s plan and purpose to present us to Himself ‘holy and blameless and beyond reproach.’ That is a major plan-and that is where we are headed. Here’s the deal; we can embrace that awesome plan of God for our lives and enjoy the journey, OR we can resist His work in us and pursue our own way-even if we choose that route, in the end we will stand before Him holy and blameless-but it will be as through fire. In other words, in this life, we will suffer the consequences of not working with Him. It’s a good question to ask of ourselves: how seriously do we take the gospel-the word of God? I fear that we at times, perhaps unconsciously, take the gospel as optional. The good news is that we can choose to continue in the faith and to be established and to be steadfast in the gospel-not moved away from the hope of the gospel. Continuing in the faith is something we do daily, no matter the circumstances. For sure there are times when we do not feel very spiritual and there are times when it seems that life is not what it should be; but it is in those times we must continue to live by faith in God and continue walking in His ways. God calls us to be firmly established and steadfast in the hope of the gospel. The gospel-faith in God-is an anchor that holds no matter the intensity of the storm.

Colossians 2:6-7 “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.”

Blessings, Buddy

WORK IT OUT

9/22/2023

September 22, 2023 WORK IT OUT

Philippians 2:12-13 “So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”

We are on the wrong track if we think life is all about us. We exist for His good pleasure-not our good pleasure. The blessing is that when we live for His good pleasure, we are blessed. Our salvation is much greater than we think. Salvation comes as a result of trusting Christ as Savior, but that is just the beginning of a life-long journey. The fact that God, the Creator of the universe, is at work in us should be a life-changer, a revolutionary reality, a humbling thought, and the greatest motivation possible. For the believer, there is never a time when it is ok to live on a spiritual plane; it is God’s heart that we have a daily, living and active relationship with Him. Our salvation is secure and is a done-deal, but at the same time we must work out our salvation; what God has done on the inside is to be expressed in the life we live; it is also internal; working out our salvation includes adjusting our thoughts and our beliefs to the ways of the Lord. Our salvation is not to be stagnant; we are to be being transformed, to be growing in the knowledge of God, to be maturing in the faith, and to be becoming more like Him. Working out our salvation is the most important thing we can do on planet earth; it is our highest calling. We are to work out our salvation with ‘fear and trembling;’ we must never take this command lightly; in fact, we should have a healthy fear of not working out our salvation by becoming complacent or negligent in our spiritual growth. I think we all know how easy it is to get into a spiritual coasting mode-just living life as it comes. Our flesh wages war with our spirit-we win that war by saying no to the flesh and by walking according to the Spirit; that is the battle ground for us. The flesh has not been annihilated, but the power of the flesh to rule over us has been broken; we have the power not to yield to our flesh and we have the power to yield to the Spirit. Working out our salvation goes hand-in-hand with walking according to the Spirit because the Spirit is always directing us and equipping us to be expressions of the great salvation that is ours through Christ.

Philippians 3:13-14 “Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do; forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

Blessings, Buddy

INSTRUCTIONS FOR LIVING

9/20/2023

September 20, 2023 INSTRUCTIONS FOR LIVING

Titus 2:11-14, 3:4-5 “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 the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus; who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purity for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.”
“But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,”

Thank God that he does not leave us on our own to figure out how to live life. In God’s word, we find instructions on how to live life in such a way that we and others are blessed and He is honored. God’s grace has appeared to all men; Titus 3:4 tells us that God loves mankind. The book of Titus is a book of instructions, and it is quite detail in scope. Paul reminds us that we are not saved by good deeds, but he also emphasizes that we are called to be about good deeds because we belong to Him. Following is just a partial list from Titus of some of the good deeds we are to be about and some instructions we are to carry out; do not gossip, encourage others, love your spouse and your children, be sensible, pure and kind, be an example of good deeds, have sound speech, be beyond reproach, be under authority, show good faith, deny ungodliness and worldly desires, live righteously and godly, look for the appearing of Christ, be ready for every good deed, shun foolish controversies and strife, reject a belligerent man, meet pressing needs, hold fast to the word of God-and many other instructions for life are found throughout the New Testament. The point is that God’s word is not just a good book to read, and it is not just a historical book; the word of God is given to us that we might discover life as God designed. His word is not a list of do’s and dont’s, and His word is not to condemn us but to guide us. Outside of God’s word, there is no other book that reveals who God is nor who we are in Him. Some believe that life is all about fulfilling personal desires; the problem with that is that it simply does not work; the sense of pleasure that comes when a selfish desire is met, it short lived. God’s word deals with our hearts; God works in such a way that life flows out of our new hearts; we no longer have to search for what satisfies. Even though we live on this earth for the time being, we have been made a part of the kingdom of God and now we have the opportunity to live according to the ways of His kingdom-even in a fallen world. Let us not live according to our own understanding, but live according to the ways of God.

Romans 12:2 “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is the good and acceptable and perfect.”

Blessings, Buddy

THE SIRIT OF CALEB

9/18/2023

September 18, 2023 THE SPIRIT OF CALEB

Numbers 14:24 “But My servant Caleb, because he has had a different spirit and has followed Me fully, I will bring Him into the land he entered, and his descendants shall take possession of it.”
Joshua 14:10-12 “And now behold, the Lord has let me live, just as He spoke, these forty-five years, from the time that the Lord spoke the word to Moses, when Israel walked in the wilderness; and now behold, I am eighty-five years old today. I am still as strong today as I was in the day Moses sent me; as my strength was then, so my strength is now, for war and for going out and coming in. Now then, give me this hill country about which the Lord spoke on that day, for you heard on that day that Anakim were there, with great fortified cities; perhaps the Lord will be with me, and I shall drive them out as the Lord has spoken.”

The story of Joshua and Caleb is one of my favorites. Joshua and Caleb were the only two out of ten spies that believed that God would let them take possession of the promised land, even though giants lived in the land. Because Caleb had a different spirit about him, and because he followed the Lord fully, God promised that He would bring him into the promised land. It’s quite simple; Caleb followed the Lord fully-even when in the natural it looked foolish to some. I am forced to ask myself if I have a ‘different’ spirit and do I follow the Lord fully. Caleb is a great inspiration. God made the promise to Caleb that he would possess the promise land-but it did not come to pass for forty-five years! Caleb, and the children of Israel, faced physical enemies, and how they dealt with their physical enemies and life in the natural in the Old Covenant is a type or foreshadowing of the spiritual battles we face as those living in the New Covenant. Just as Caleb faced physical enemies, we face spiritual enemies; and just as Caleb drove out physical enemies, we must, with the power we have in Christ, drive our our spiritual enemies. We are spiritual beings who temporarily live in a physical body, but our battles are spiritual battles. For example; if we have anger and bitterness, then we are yielding to a spiritual force of darkness; and if that is the case, then that is the enemy we must drive out. Self, or flesh can be our biggest enemy, and dying to ourselves may be the biggest mountain we face-that is a spiritual battle. Caleb possessed the promise land; the promise land represents life in Christ. For us, as we drive out spiritual enemies, as we die to our flesh, we then possess the life we have in Christ. It is crucial that we recognize the lies of our spiritual enemies so that we can reject the lies. We must be grounded in the word of God and the ways of God and make the choice to walk in His ways. Our enemies are subtle and deceitful; and it is their desire to cause us to turn away from living as unto Christ. As Caleb remained physically strong in old age, we can remain spiritually strong no matter our age. Caleb was not intimidated by his enemies; he never wavered in regards to the promises of God; and He followed God fully. Caleb wanted the high country that God had promised. The ‘high country’ that God has promised every believer is abundant life in Christ. Even though our battles are spiritual in nature, often they impact the natural or physical. God has spoken to us and given us great promises; let us take and possess what He has given. God does not always answer immediately; so continue to seek what He has promised.

Joshua 14:14 “Therefore, Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite until this day, because he followed the Lord
God of Israel fully.”

Blessings, Buddy

WHO IS WISE

9/16/2023

September 16, 2023 WHO IS WISE

James 3:13-18 “Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambitions exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruit, unwavering, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

Wisdom has a way of being expressed. One can walk and live in the wisdom that is from above (from God) or he or she can walk and live in the wisdom that is not form above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. You can be sure that where there is discord, arguments, rudeness, envy, jealousy and selfish ambition, the prevailing wisdom is not the wisdom of God, but the wisdom that is earthly. We choose one or the other; and our choice is revealed in our behavior. The earthly wisdom produces no good fruit; if fact, it produces bad fruit. The obvious ills of our culture today is the result of living according to the earthly wisdom; everywhere we see the disastrous fruit of living according to the wisdom of man. The great news for us is that God makes His wisdom available to us! Those who avail themselves of the wisdom of God are those who are wise and understanding, and they are identified or recognized by their good behavior. What a blessing that we are not bound to living according to the wisdom of this world. The wisdom that comes from God is pure, peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruit, unwavering, and without hypocrisy! We have the blessing of being ones that bring the wisdom of God to all situations we encounter; we can be those who speak for peace and offer godly advice; we can defuse potential explosive confrontations. (There may be times when the wisdom of God is rejected, but nonetheless we were able to speak the wisdom of God.) For us, we have the opportunity through our ‘good behavior’ to show the wisdom of God-not in a bragging or prideful way, but in humility with boldness. Let us root out anything in our hearts that stems from earthly wisdom. God is gracious; He has given us the opportunity to be expressions of who He is-and it is through our good behavior that we do just that. We are not saved by our behavior or our works-but be assured that we are called to be about good works, righteous works, because we are righteous in Christ.

James 1:5 “If any one of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.”
Proverbs 16:16 “How much better to get wisdom than gold, to get insight than silver.”
Blessing, Buddy

WHO IS WISE

9/13/2023

September 13, 2023 WHO IS WISE

James 3:13-18 “Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambitions exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruit, unwavering, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

Wisdom has a way of being expressed. One can walk and live in the wisdom that is from above (from God) or he or she can walk and live in the wisdom that is not form above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. You can be sure that where there is discord, arguments, rudeness, envy, jealousy and selfish ambition, the prevailing wisdom is not the wisdom of God, but the wisdom that is earthly. We choose one or the other; and our choice is revealed in our behavior. The earthly wisdom produces no good fruit; if fact, it produces bad fruit. So much of the ills of our culture today is the result of living according to the earthly wisdom; everywhere we see the disastrous fruit of living according to the wisdom of man. The great news for us is that God makes His wisdom available to us! Those who avail themselves of the wisdom of God are those who are wise and understanding, and they are identified or recognized by their good behavior. What a blessing that we are not bound to living according to the wisdom of this world. The wisdom that comes from God is pure, peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruit, unwavering, and without hypocrisy! We have the blessing of being ones that bring the wisdom of God to all situations we encounter; we can be those who speak for peace and offer godly advice; we can defuse potential explosive confrontations. (There may be times when the wisdom of God is rejected, but nonetheless we were able to speak the wisdom of God.) For us, we have the opportunity through our ‘good behavior’ to show the wisdom of God-not in a bragging way, but in humility with boldness. Let us root out anything in our hearts that stems from earthly wisdom. God is gracious; He has given us the opportunity to be expressions of who He is-and it is through our good behavior that we do that. We are not saved by our behavior or our works-but be assured that we are called to be about good works, righteous works, because we are righteous in Christ.

James 1:5 “If any one of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.”
Proverbs 16:16 “How much better to get wisdom than gold, to get insight than silver.”
Blessing, Buddy

TO HIM WHO IS ABLE

9/11/2023

September 11, 2023 TO HIM WHO IS ABLE

Ephesians 3:16-21 “that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man; so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”

This is another passage that may seem to good to be true. Can we really expect this prayer to be answered in us? As incredible as it may sound, this is exactly what God desires to do in us. God living is us is no small deal; He is about us living according to His power; not by self determination or by our best effort. Indeed, in Christ, we live a super-natural life in the here and now. We may be guilty of lowering the bar, or having low expectations of what God wants to do and can do in and through us. God redeemed us for a great purpose; He transferred us from a life apart from God and placed us in His kingdom, which is a kingdom of light. In His Kingdom life is different; life is no longer a ho-hum or same-o same-o life. There is one proviso; to experience all the fullness of God, our hearts must be turned to Him and we must be seeking Him first. All people, whether saved or lost, experience some of the blessings of God-the rain, the order of creation, and the such. I am convinced that there are levels of experiencing God; but we do not by our own effort advance to a higher level. Through faith and through believing what God says and by having a heart that desires Him more than anyone or anything, we experience more of God. God wants us to be strengthened with power in the inner man through His Spirit, so that He may dwell in our hearts through faith; to be rooted and grounded in love, and to know the love of Christ; and to be filled up to all the fullness of God! God can and will do exceedingly abundantly beyond all that we ask or think! If our hearts are turned to Him, if we have a sure faith in God, then let us believe in a big way, and expect God to do great works in us and through us. Do not misunderstand; God has never promised us a life of ease or a life free of trials; but the difficulties of life do not negate the plans and purposes of God; through Him we more than conquer. So, no matter your present circumstances, be encouraged and expect God to do great things.

John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they might have life, and have it abundantly.”
Matthew 6:33 “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
Blessings, Buddy

IN HIM

9/9/2023

September 9, 2023 IN HIM

Ephesians 1

If we do not understand and believe that being IN HIM is essential for living the Christian life, then we will miss what God has for us. We may think “Yes, I know the scriptures tell us that we are in Him, and that sounds good, but that really seems a little theoretical; I live in a practical world where I deal with real issues in the here and now. Whether I’m in Him or not, I have to get up and go to work and have to do the things I have to do.” Likely, we have all had similar thoughts. Does it really matter in this life that we are in Him, or is that something reserved for life in heaven? The truth is that the life we live and all we are, flows out of being in Him; if fact there is no real life-abundant life-outside of Him. Being in Him is for the here and now in a big way; and is really non-optional. All believers are in Christ; but not all believers are not aware of what it means to be in Him; learning who we are in Him is a lifetime pursuit. In Ephesians 1 we find the words ‘in Him’ many times. Let’s just list a few of the realities of being ‘in Him.” He has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world. In Him we have redemption and the forgiveness of our trespasses. He has made known to us the mystery of His will according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him. In Him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His will. We have been sealed in Him with the Holy Spirt of promise which is given as a pledge of our inheritance. These truths, as with all scriptures, must be revealed to us by God; we read and study God’s word, but it takes the work of the Holy Spirit to reveal and make real to us what God has spoken through His word. After listing what it means to be in Christ, Paul prays a prayer that is for all believers; what He prayed is essential; let us be reminded that what Paul prayed for is for us. Paul asked the Father to give us a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. He prayed that the ‘eyes of our hearts’ would be enlightened, so that we might know what is the hope of His calling and what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance, and that we might know the surpassing greatness of His power toward we now believe! All of these things that Paul prayed are ours because of what God brought about in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him in heavenly places. MAY THE EYES OF OUR HEARTS BE OPENED to see what blessings are ours IN HIM.

Colossians 2:6-7 “As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him: rooted and built up in Him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding Theron with thanksgiving.”

Blessings, Buddy