“Led By God’s Truth”

 “Led By God’s Truth”

 

Lead me by Your truth and teach me, for You are the God who saves me.   Psalms 25:5

 

We are living in a world that has changed the TRUTH for LIES.  Many people seem to think that LIVING a LIE is EASIER than being TRUTHFUL.  So, they put themselves into the leadership of the DEVIL, who is the MASTER of DECEIT. And he makes LIVING A LIE, appear so MUCH BETTER, and EASIER, but he HIDES the DISASTROUS ending. 

Some are SO proficient at it, that they really don’t know what the TRUTH is.  And so, they CONTINUE to LIVE a LIE. And they LEAD others down the WRONG PATH. A PATH that can ONLY lead to a HORRENDOUS outcome, and to an ETERNAL TRAGEDY.    Hopefully, YOU are not going down this PATH.

King David is the Psalmist, and I detect a little bit of urgency.  In vv 1-3, David seems somewhat distraught, he says: “O LORD, I give my LIFE to YOU. I TRUST in You, MY GOD! Do not let me be DISGRACED, or let my enemies REJOICE in my DEFEAT.  No one who TRUSTS in You will ever be DISGRACED, but DISGRACE comes to those who try to DECEIVE others. 

In verse five David says: “LEAD ME by Your TRUTH and TEACH ME. All day long I PUT my HOPE in YOU.  He is IMPLORING God to LEAD him with His TRUTH, and to TEACH him about that TRUTH.  So, that he might NOT be guilty of DECEIVING others and end up DISGRACED. 

Like David, we NEED to SEEK God to LEAD US, by HIS truth.  And when we are SUBMISSIVE to His LEADERSHIP, we will be able to BE TAUGHT the TRUTH of GOD, and to LIVE our LIVES in HIS TRUTH, and NOT be GUILTY of DECEIVING others, and we will NOT be DISGRACED.

If you belong to GOD, HOPEFULLY, you are LIVING under the LEADERSHIP of His TRUTH, and you are being TAUGHT His TRUTH.  However, if you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to God, then you are NOT BEING LED by His TRUTH, but you are functioning under the LEADERSHIP of the Devil, and your DESTINY will be an ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS, and NO WAY to ESCAPE once you are there, UNLESS, you ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER, in NEED of the SAVIOR, the LORD JESUS CHRIST, the ONLY SON of the LIVING GOD, who DIED to bring you an ETERNAL LIFE in HEAVEN with ALL its BLESSINGS.  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 SINS and TURN TO GOD with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.   You MUST ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION and be LED BY HIS TRUTH!!  So, do this NOW, while you STILL can!!!  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!  

 

 

“Opened Eyes”

 “Opened Eyes”

 

“I want you to open their eyes, so they will turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God.  Then their sins will be forgiven and by faith in Me they will become part of God’s Holy People.”   Acts 26:18

 

The Apostle Paul was at one time a STRONG PERSECUTOR of the TRUE BELIEVERS of the LORD JESUS CHRIST.   BUT all of that CHANGED and Paul went from being a STRONG PERSECUTOR to being a STRONG WITNESS to the GENTILES (non-Jews).  This was quite a TRANSFORMATION for Paul, and it literally OPENED his EYES to the TRUTH of the GOSPEL of JESUS CHRIST.

You see, Paul had an ENCOUNTER with JESUS, one day, after the DEATH and RESURRECTION of the Lord.  Paul was on the road to Damascus, to hunt down the followers of Jesus.   When Paul met Jesus, it was like NO ENCOUNTER that Paul ever had.  He began telling of his ENCOUNTER, to King Agrippa.  “I was on the road to Damascus, when a light from heaven brighter than the sun shone down on me and my companions.  We ALL fell down, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?  It is USELESS for you to FIGHT AGAINST My WILL’.

Then Jesus told Paul: “Get to your feet!  For I have appeared to you to appoint you as My Servant and Witness.’  And Jesus said: “Yes, I am SENDING you to the GENTILES to OPEN their EYES so they may TURN from DARKNESS to LIGHT and from the POWER of SATAN to GOD. Then they will receive FORGIVENESS for their SINS and be given a PLACE among GOD’S People, who are SET APART (sanctified) by FAITH in ME.”  And that was Paul’s COMMISSIONING by the Lord Jesus Christ.   

Paul was GLORIOUSLY SAVED and SANCTIFIED to OPEN the EYES of all that he encountered.  And Paul was OBEDIENT to God, and MANY were TURNED AWAY FROM the POWER of Satan to the POWER of the ALMIGHTY GOD. And they had their EYES OPENED to the TRUTH of God’s Holy Word.   Anybody who receives Christ as their SAVIOR and LORD, is given this SAME MANDATE.  Matthew 28:18-20, is the COMMISSION for EVERY TRUE BELIEVER.  The Lord Jesus Christ says, “Therefore, GO and MAKE disciples of ALL the nations, BAPTIZING them in the NAME of the FATHER and the SON, and the HOLY SPIRIT. TEACH (Open eyes) these NEW DISCIPLES to OBEY ALL the COMMANDS I have given YOU.  And be SURE of this:  I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS EVEN TO THE END OF THE AGE.”

If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to God, by coming to JESUS for your SALVATION, then you are STILL UNDER the POWER of SATAN, and your EYES have NOT been OPENED, and you are STILL LIVING in DARKNESS, and headed for an ETERNITY in HELL with ALL its HORRORS, and NO WAY to ESCAPE once you are there.  In order to CHANGE your DESTINY, you MUST COME to JESUS and ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR.  And you MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART that JESUS DIED for YOU and 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 COME OUT of the DARKNESS and into the LIGHT and have your EYES OPENED to the TRUTH!   And RECEIVE YOUR COMMISSION.  Do this NOW, while you STILL can.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  DON’T BE LEFT BEHIND!!!

 

 

“God’s Promise of Freedom”

 “God’s Promise of Freedom”

 

Is there a conflict between God’s Law and God’s Promises? Absolutely not!  If the Law could give us NEW LIFE, we could be made right with God by obeying it.  But the Scriptures declare that we are ALL prisoners of sin, so we receive God’s Promise of Freedom only by BELIEVING in JESUS CHRIST.  Galatians 3:21-22

 

There are some in this world, today, who believe that IF you OBEY GOD’S Law, that is ALL that you need to do, to be counted as RIGHTEOUS.  However, the Law was given to SHOW mankind their SINS.  It CANNOT bring SALVATION and RIGHTEOUSNESS to mankind.  And mankind CANNOT OBEY the WHOLE LAW,  

Therefore, there is NO CONFLICT, the LAW was given to show us the TRUTH of our SINFULNESS.  The Apostle Paul tells us that the Holy Scriptures declare that we ALL are PRISONERS of SIN.  We are born with a SINFUL NATURE, and because of that SINFUL NATURE, we NEED a PERFECT SACRIFICE, whose BLOOD could BLOT OUT our TRANSGRESSIONS. 

Hebrews 9:22 tells us that; “without the SHEDDING OF BLOOD, there is NO FORGIVENESS”.  So, it came about that the BLOOD of the animals, was no longer effective in the REDEMPTION process.  Instead, God’s Promise of FREEDOM from our SINS, could ONLY be ACCEPTABLE through BELIEVING in the LORD JESUS CHRIST, and being CLEANSED by His BLOOD, which was the ONLY WAY for mankind to be made RIGHTEOUS, before the PERFECT LAMB of GOD, the LORD JESUS CHRIST. 

Do you BELIEVE that JESUS is the TRUE Son of the LIVING GOD, and that it is ONLY through our RELATIONSHIP with Him that we are made RIGHTEOUS. And that we ALL are PRISONERS of OUR SINS, and that we can be set FREE from the SLAVERY of our SINS?    

If you are STILL a SLAVE to your SINFUL LIFESTYLE, and are NOT a TRUE CHILD of the LIVING GOD, you can change that by: First, ADMITTING that YOU are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST, who SHED HIS OWN BLOOD to set YOU FREE from your slavery.  You MUST 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 and be made RIGHTEOUS in God’s Sight.  When you become a TRUE CHILD of the LIVING GOD, you will receive His PROMISE of FREEDOM from your SINS, and ETERNAL LIFE in HEAVEN, with ALL its BLESSINGS.  And you will be able to ESCAPE HELL, with ALL its HORRORS and NO WAY to ESCAPE, after you are there.  So, do this NOW, while you STILL can.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!

 

“REAL LOVE”

“REAL LOVE”

 

This is REAL LOVE—-not that we loved God, but that He LOVED us and sent His Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.   1 John 4:10

 

LOVE: A SELF-GIVING concern for the WELL-BEING of others.  This LOVE is ACTIVE and FULL of COMPASSION.  This is the kind of LOVE that the TRUE CHILD of the LIVING GOD should possess.  It is PURE and WITHOUT strings attached.

The Apostle Paul, in 1 Corin. 13:4-7, tells us that “LOVE is PATIENT and KIND.  LOVE is NOT JEALOUS or BOASTFUL or PROUD, or RUDE.  It does NOT DEMAND ITS OWN WAY.  It is NOT IRRITABLE, and it KEEPS NO RECORD of BEING WRONGED.  It DOES NOT REJOICE about INJUSTICE but REJOICES whenever the TRUTH WINS OUT.  LOVE NEVER GIVES UP, NEVER LOSES FAITH, it is ALWAYS HOPEFUL, and ENDURES through EVERY CIRCUMSTANCE.

We can ONLY possess this kind of LOVE, REAL LOVE, through JESUS CHRIST, who LOVED US UNCONDITIONALLY, NO STRINGS ATTACHED.  However, there are some things that SHOULD be EVIDENT, if you have the HOLY SPIRIT of the LIVING GOD, LIVING in YOU.  And the ONLY WAY for that to happen is through a RELATIONSHIP with JESUS.

You can be the BEST, SWEETEST, KINDEST, person, GIVING your ALL for others, but if you DO NOT HAVE a RELATIONSHIP with the ALMIGHTY GOD through the SHED BLOOD of JESUS, His ONLY SON then you will NOT be ABLE to EXPERIENCE the REAL LOVE of FATHER GOD,

God showed how much He LOVED us by sending His One and Only Son, Jesus, into the world so that we might have ETERNAL LIFE through HIM.  This is REAL LOVE—NOT that we LOVED GOD, but that He LOVED us AND sent His Son as a SACRIFICE to take AWAY OUR SINS.  (1 John 4:9-10).

If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to GOD, through the SHED BLOOD of JESUS, then you have NOT been a RECIPIENT of REAL LOVE.  This is what YOU MUST DO, in order to become a CHILD of the TRUE, LIVING GOD, you MUST FIRST ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR, JESUS.  Then You MUST BELIEVE, with ALL your HEART, that JESUS DIED for YOU and that He is 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 EXPERIENCE REAL LOVE, and be WILLING to SHARE, what you NOW POSSESS: REAL, UNFAILING, ETERNAL, LOVE.  And ETERNAL LIFE in HEAVEN, with ALL its BLESSINGS.  And ABLE to ESCAPE ETERNAL LIFE in HELL with ALL it’s HORRORS, and NO WAY to ESCAPE, once you are there.  Do this SOON, He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  DON’T BE LEFT BEHIND!!!

“Living By Faith”

 “Living By Faith”

 

It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance.  He went without knowing where he was going.  And even when he reached the land God promised him, he LIVED THERE BY FAITH.  Hebrews 11:8 & 9

 

Abraham, the MAN of FAITH, our scripture tells us that when God called Abraham to LEAVE HOME and GO to ANOTHER LAND, a LAND that was to be his INHERITANCE.  Abraham didn’t have a CLUE as to WHERE he was going, but he OBEYED GOD and packed up EVERYTHING he owned and he LEFT his and SARAH’S families, and ALL they had and went wherever God led them. 

Abraham, LIVED BY FAITH, because he was like a FOREIGNER, living in tents, in a land that God had PROMISED him.   Abraham, TRUSTED GOD, with a STRONG, UNFAILING FAITH.  He could do this because he was yearning for another CITY—-one whose ARCHITECT and BUILDER is the LORD GOD, ALMIGHTY.  Abraham had his FOCUS on the SPIRITUAL and LOOKING for the PHYSICAL.  Abraham’s FOCUS was on the HOLY CITY of GOD. 

Mankind usually don’t know what God is doing in their life.  And they FOCUS more on the PHYSICAL, and what they KNOW, then TRUSTING in not ONLY the ARCHITECT of the ETERNAL CITY, but also the ARCHITECT of the OPPORTUNITIES in their lives.  When this is the case, they become DISCOURAGED, which can CAUSE FALTERING FAITH.  And they will MISS OUT on the BLESSINGS GOD has waiting for them.  HOW is YOUR FAITH?? 

When a CHRISTIAN is FOCUSED MORE on WORLDLY THINGS and ASPIRATIONS, and neglect the SPIRITUAL THINGS in their life, it can become a CALAMITY.  The TRUE CHILD of GOD should follow Abraham’s example by putting THEIR TRUST solely in GOD PLANS and INTERVENTION. And TRUST Him to do what’s BEST for THEM!

If you have NOT given your HEART and LIFE to GOD, through the SHED BLOOD of His ONLY SON, the LORD JESUS CHRIST who GAVE His LIFE to SAVE your SOUL from an ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS, and NO WAY to ESCAPE once you are there.  And to MISS OUT on an ETERNITY in HEAVEN, with ALL its BLESSINGS.  This is what you MUST do in order to become a CHILD of the LIVING GOD.  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 LIFESTYLE and TURN TO GOD with a TRUE REPENTANT HEART.  You MUST ACCEPT God’s Gift of SALVATION and start LIVING BY FAITH, until He RETURNS.  Do this NOW, while you STILL can.  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!!   

 

“The Nature of God”

 “The Nature of God”

 

The LORD is good and does what is right; he shows the proper path to those who go astray.  Psalm 25:8

 

When we become TRUE CHILDREN of the Living God, we are not TOTALLY without SIN, because of our SINFUL NATURE, we STILL SIN.  The difference is OUR SINS are FORGIVEN as FAR as the EAST is from the WEST.  But in our SINFUL NATURE we, at times end up LIVING a LIFE that is, in some ways NOT PLEASING to GOD. 

Since God is our Heavenly Father, and He is HOLY, RIGHTEOUS, and DEFINITELY SINLESS, it is our place to seek HIS GUIDANCE, and to SEEK the RIGHT PATH we NEED to take while we are in this LIFETIME.

David, who penned this Psalm, in verses one and two says; “O LORD, I GIVE my life to You . I TRUST in You, my God!”  In this conversation, David is exemplifying a part of God’s Nature, and that is, His TRUSTWORTHINESS, David could TRUST his LIFE to the ALMIGHTY GOD.   And he was at PEACE with doing just that.

Next David exposes a couple of ATTRIBUTES of God’s NATURE, and that is being TRUTHFUL and FAITHFUL. (V5) David says: “Lead me by Your TRUTH and TEACH me, for You are the God who SAVES ME.  All day long I put my HOPE in You.”  David could TRUST God because He is TRUTHFUL, so David says:  “Lead me by Your TRUTH and TEACH me, for YOU are the GOD who SAVES me.”   And David brings out GOD’S FAITHFULNESS in his statement:  “All day long I put my HOPE in YOU.”  This shows us that David was HOPEFUL because he KNEW that GOD is FAITHFUL and TRUE. 

Two more, of the ATTRIBUTES of God’s Nature is, His COMPASSION and UNFAILING LOVE.  And because of these two ATTRIBUTES, we can, like David, experience ALL the ATTRIBUTES of GOD’S NATURE.  He is a LOVING and CARING HEAVENLY FATHER, who wishes that NO ONE SHOULD PERISH, but that ALL WOULD BE ABLE to have ETERNAL LIFE in HEAVEN, which is made POSSIBLE by the SHED BLOOD of the ONLY BEGOTTEN SON of GOD, the LORD JESUS CHRIST.

If you have NOT GIVEN your HEART and LIFE to GOD, then you cannot experience the ATTRIBUTES of GOD’S NATURE.  And your DESTINED for an ETERNITY in HELL, with ALL its HORRORS and NO WAY to ESCAPE, once you are there.  This is what you NEED to do to get on the RIGHT PATH; First, ADMIT that YOU are a SINNER in NEED of the SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST, GOD’S ONLY SON, who GAVE His LIFE to SAVE your SOUL from that DESTINY.  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 ENJOY the NATURE of the ALMIGHTY GOD!  Do this NOW, while you STILL can!!!  He’s WAITING and COMING SOON!!!   Don’t Be LEFT BEHIND!!! 

“Now Is the Right Time”

“Now Is the Right Time”

 

God Says: “At just the right time, I heard you.  On the Day of Salvation, I helped you.”  Indeed, the “right time” is NOW.  Today is the Day of Salvation.   2 Corinthians 6:2, Isa.49:8

 

TIME:  An appointed, fit, due, or proper instant or period.

The Apostle Paul, in verses one and two, is advising the BELIEVERS in CORINTH to NOT ACCEPT God’s marvelous Gift of GRACE in VAIN, or NOT to IGNORE IT.  The writer in Ecclesiastes 3:1 tells us that there is a TIME set aside for EVERYTHING. A time for EVERY ACTIVITY under heaven.

God has made EVERYTHING BEAUTIFUL for its OWN TIME.  He has planted ETERNITY in the human heart, but even so people CANNOT SEE THE whole scope of God’s work from BEGINNING to END. (Ecc. 3:11). God, in His PLANS, has an APPROPRIATE TIME for EVERY ACTIVITY. 

Mankind has the desire to always want MORE, especially because God has put ETERNITY in the HUMAN HEART.  And we long to WANT MORE and to KNOW MORE.  But mankind CANNOT see the WHOLE SCOPE of GOD’S WORK from BEGINNING to END.

 So, the planting of ETERNITY in the HEART of mankind, helps to bring them to the knowledge that there IS a GOD, and hopefully in their SEARCHING, they will FIND the TRUTH that NOW is the RIGHT TIME for them to BELIEVE and ACCEPT the LORD JESUS CHRIST as their SAVIOR and LORD.  And to be ABLE to SPEND their ETERNITY in HEAVEN. 

Don’t delay, NOW is the RIGHT TIME to come to JESUS, GOD’S ONLY SON, who DIED for your SOUL, to be able to have a RIGHT RELATIONSHIP with GOD and to be able to have Heaven as your ETERNAL HOME.  This is what you MUST DO: 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.  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 DO IT NOW, because NOW IS THE RIGHT TIME!!  HE’S WAITING and COMING SOON!!!  DON’T be LEFT BEHIND!!!