“How to Have Closeness with God”

 “How to Have Closeness with God”

 

If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t OBEY God’s commandments, that person is a LIAR and is NOT living in the TRUTH.   1John 2:4

This letter of John’s was written to BELIEVERS, and, like the TRUE BELIEVER of today, they wanted to have a CLOSE relationship with God. So, HOW do we go about obtaining the CLOSE, DEEPENING, RELATIONSHIP with the ALMIGHTY GOD?

OBEDIENCE ROOTED in LOVE, is the ANSWER for a relationship that is LONG-LASTING, and DEEPENING with God. And the WAY to that kind of RELATIONSHIP is ONLY AVAILABLE through the LORD JESUS CHRIST. God’s ONLY SON, who SUFFERED, BLED, DIED, and RESURRECTED with VICTORY over DEATH and the GRAVE. And by ACCEPTING Him as YOUR SAVIOR and LORD, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART, you CAN HAVE just such a RELATIONSHIP. 

The phrase, “To KNOW HIM” is a reference to an INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP, and NOT JUSTIFICATION, remember John’s readers ARE BELIEVERS. And we can be SURE that we KNOW HIM if we OBEY His COMMANDMENTS (V3). The TRUE BELIEVER is SAVED BY GRACE and GRACE does not do away with the COMMANDMENTS of God, but it gives you the ABILITY to GROW in LOVE. When this happens, your KNOWLEDGE of a CLOSENESS with GOD will DEFINITELY INCREASE.   Are YOU SURE that you have a LONG-LASTING, DEEP, INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP with God and Jesus Christ?

Here’s what you MUST DO to OBTAIN SUCH a RELATIONSHIP.  You MUST ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST. You MUST BELIEVE with ALL your HEART that JESUS DIED for YOU and that He is ALIVE in HEAVEN, making intercession for you, before God. You MUST CONFESS YOUR SINS to HIM and ASK Him for His FORGIVENESS.  You MUST BE WILLING TO TURN AWAY FROM your SINFUL LIFE and TURN TO GOD with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  You MUST ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION, and have that CLOSE, DEEPENING, INTIMATE RELATIONSHIP with GOD and His Son. And be ABLE to spend your ETERNITY in HEAVEN with ALL its BLESSINGS. And ESCAPE an ETERNITY in HELL with ALL its HORRORS, and NO WAY to ESCAPE, once you are there. 

So, do the instructions above, NOW, while you STILL can.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!

“Take A Stand”

“Take A Stand”

 

Who will protect me from the wicked? Who will stand up for me against evildoers?  Unless the LORD had helped me, I would soon have settled in the silence of the grave. I cried out, “I am slipping!”  But Your UNFAILING LOVE, O LORD, supported me. When doubts filled my mind, Your comfort gave me RENEWED HOPE and CHEER.     Psalm 94:16-19

 

The Psalmist, sounds STRESSED over his SURROUNDINGS.  In the beginning verses, we see that the Psalmist is CALLING OUT to God, the DIVINE JUDGE of the earth to UNLEASH His VENGEANCE so that he might end the PROUD celebrations of the WICKED.  The Psalmist WONDERED HOW LONG would it be before God would SET ALL THINGS RIGHT.  (V3)

The interesting thing to KEEP in MIND is that the CONCERNS of GOD’S PEOPLE, TODAY, are the SAME as the CONCERNS of His People in the PAST.  The EVIL THINGS that are HAPPENING JUSTIFIES GOD’S DIVINE JUDGMENT. Their OUTRAGEOUS ACTIONS, show that they have convinced THEMSELVES that God does NOT SEE nor does He PAY ATTENTION to them.  And they are in for a RUDE AWAKENING, under those assumptions. They could NOT be MORE WRONG!! 

The TRUE BELIEVERS of TODAY find COMFORT in KNOWING that GOD USES the WICKED to FULFILL His PLANS.  The LORD GOD will NOT REJECT His PEOPLE; He will NOT ABANDON His SPECIAL POSSESSION. He will PROTECT and STAND UP for them against evildoers. And JUDGMENT WILL again be FOUNDED on JUSTICE, and those who have VIRTUOUS HEARTS will PURSUE it. 

The Psalmist CRIED OUT:  “I am SLIPPING!” But God’s UNFAILING LOVE SUPPORTED him. And when the DOUBTS COME you can DEPEND on GOD’S COMFORT to produce a RENEWED HOPE and JOY UNSPEAKABLE. 

JESUS CHRIST, God’s ONLY SON, came to earth and took a STAND for EACH PERSON who will TAKE a STAND for HIM, by ADMITTING that they are SINNERS in NEED of the SAVIOR, JESUS, who GAVE His life to SAVE their SOUL from an ETERNITY in HELL with ALL its HORRORS, and NO WAY to ESCAPE once they are there.  They MUST BELIEVE, with ALL their HEART that JESUS DIED for them, and that He is ALIVE in Heaven making intercession for them, before God. They MUST CONFESS their SINS to Him and ASK Him for His FORGIVENESS. They MUST be WILLING to TURN AWAY FROM their SINFUL LIFESTYLE and TURN TO GOD with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART. They must ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION and TAKE A STAND for GOD and His Son, JESUS CHRIST.  So, if you have NOT come to JESUS for your SALVATION, you will be DESTINED for an ETERNITY in HELL.  UNLESS you DO what is above.  Do it NOW, while you STILL can.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!

“The Name Above All Names

 “The Name Above All Names”

 

Therefore, God elevated Him to the place of highest honor and gave Him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in Heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that JESUS CHRIST is LORD, to the glory of God the Father.  Philippians 2:9-11

 

What is in a NAME?  When the angel, Gabriel, came to Mary and told her that she had found FAVOR with God, and she would conceive and give BIRTH to a Son and you will NAME Him JESUS. He will be VERY GREAT and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the Throne of His ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel FOREVER; His Kingdom will NEVER END!  (Luke 1:30-33)

Even though Jesus was God in the flesh, He did not think of EQUALITY with God as something to cling to. He gave up His DIVINE PRIVILEGES and He took on Himself the HUMBLE POSITION of a SLAVE.  He HUMBLED Himself in OBEDIENCE to GOD.  And He DIED a CRIMINAL’S death on a CROSS. And was RESURRECTED from DEATH and the GRAVE.

God EXALTED JESUS to the place of HIGHEST HONOR, because of His OBEDIENCE to GOD. And God gave Him the NAME above ALL other names, that at the NAME of JESUS EVERY knee should BOW IN HEAVEN and on EARTH and UNDER the EARTH, and EVERY tongue declare that JESUS CHRIST is LORD, to the GLORY of God the Father.

The Apostle Paul tells those who are TRUE BELIEVERS, that we should WORK HARD to SHOW the RESULTS of our SALVATION, OBEYING GOD with DEEP REVERENCE and FEAR; because GOD is WORKING in US, giving US the DESIRE and POWER to DO what PLEASES HIM. And that we SHOULD live CLEAN, INNOCENT LIVES as God’s Children, SHINING like BRIGHT LIGHTS in a DARK, PERVERTED, CROOKED World.

One day SOON, Jesus will RETURN to the earth, and when He does, EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, and EVERY TONGUE WILL DECLARE that JESUS CHRIST is LORD of ALL. Until that time, those who are TRUE BELIEVERS should HAVE the ATTITUDE of JESUS CHRIST. We SHOULD agree WHOLE HEARTEDLY with each other, LOVE one another, WORK TOGETHER with ONE mind and purpose. And be HUMBLE in OBEDIENCE to God.

If you have NOT come to JESUS, God’s ONLY SON, who gave His LIFE to SAVE our SOULS from an ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS, and NO WAY to ESCAPE, once you are there, then this is what you MUST DO:  ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST, BELIEVE that JESUS DIED for YOU and that He is ALIVE in Heaven making intercession for you, before God.  You MUST CONFESS your SINS to Him and ask Him for His FORGIVENESS. You MUST BE WILLING to TURN AWAY FROM your SINFUL LIFESTYLE and TURN TO GOD with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART. YOU MUST ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION by CALLING on the NAME of JESUS CHRIST. The ONLY WAY to SPEND an ETERNITY in HEAVEN with ALL its BLESSINGS.  So, do this NOW, while you STILL can.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!

 

 

“Jesus’ Farewell Discourse”

“Jesus’ Farewell Discourse”

 

“My Prayer is not for the world, but for those You have given Me, because they belong to You. All who are Mine belong to You, and You have given them to Me, so they bring Me Glory.”  John 17:9-10

Let us look at Jesus’ PRAYER, it was His Final Discourse.”  I would imagine that He was some-what concerned about His Disciples, those who had spent approximately three years living with the Son of the LIVING GOD. Jesus called each one at a different time, God had given Him the AUTHORITY to do so. 

 They all had GROWN CLOSE to the Son of God, they LOVED HIM.  And He LOVED THEM, and that kind of LOVE is beyond our imagination. And the PURPOSE of His prayer was because God had chosen them for Jesus, to equip them to FORWARD the GOSPEL of JESUS CHRIST.

In Jesus’ Prayer, He voiced His concern for these men. He said: “Now I am DEPARTING from the world; they are STAYING in this world, but I am coming to You.Holy Father, You have given Me Your name; now PROTECT them by the POWER of Your name so that they will be UNITED just as we are.

During My time here I PROTECTED them by the POWER of the NAME You gave Me. I guarded them so that not one was lost, except the one headed for DESTRUCTION, as the SCRIPTURES foretold. (V12) (Judas)

Jesus gave them some ENCOURAGING WORDS; “I am leaving you with a gift—-PEACE of MIND and HEART. And the PEACE I give is a GIFT the world cannot give. So, do not be troubled or afraid. REMEMBER what I told you; I am going away, but I WILL COME BACK to YOU AGAIN. If you really loved Me, you would be HAPPY that I am going to the FATHER, who is GREATER than I am. I have told you these things BEFORE they HAPPEN so that when they do happen, YOU WILL BELIEVE!” (14:27-29) These are TRULY ENCOURAGING WORDS for us ALL to HOLD ON TO.

However, if you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to JESUS, then your ETERNAL LIFE is in PERIL. To ESCAPE such a DEVASTATING SITUATION, which will be an ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS and NO WAY to escape ONCE YOU ARE THERE. You MUST ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER, in NEED of the SAVIOR, the LORD JESUS CHRIST. You MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART that JESUS DIED for YOU and that He is ALIVE in Heaven, making intercession for you, before God.  You MUST CONFESS your SINS to Him and ASK Him for His FORGIVENESS.  You MUST be WILLING TO TURN AWAY FROM your SINFUL lifestyle and TURN TO GOD, with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  You MUST ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION and BE READY for the RAPTURE!!!  It could happen at ANY TIME, So, do ALL of the above, to SECURE HEAVEN as your ETERNAL DESTINATION.  DO it NOW, while you STILL can. He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!