These are some interesting comments indeed.

The bible teaches of sin in two different ways. There are “sins” plural which speak of our individual acts of sin. And then there is “sin” singular which speaks of the old sin nature. That driving force that compelled us to commit those individual acts of sin before God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts crying, Abba Father. (GAL 4:6)

Each and every one of us commits individual acts of sin, or sins, on a daily basis. We don’t always love our neighbors like we should. We don’t feed the poor every time there is a need. We don’t lay hands on the sick and heal them. This list could go on and on. In fact, our sins are not just the acts that we do commit, but are also those things that we know are right to do, but we do them not.

James 2:10 says:
For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.

I have never committed any acts of homosexuality. I have never committed murder. I have never committed rape. But yet I have committed other acts of sin therefore I am guilty of them all.

Did you know that if you drive 56 miles an hour in a 55 mile an hour zone, in the eyes of God that is an act of sin? The bible teaches that we are to obey all the laws of the land and be submitted to those in authority.

So what’s my point?

My point is that people do not go to hell for their individual acts of sin. Sin really isn’t the issue between God and man any longer. Jesus has amply paid the price for all sin. Not only just the sins of the believer either, but the sins of the entire world.

1 John 2:2
And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

That word propitiation means “atoning sacrifice. Anyone who goes to hell is not going because they committed individual acts of sin. People go to hell because they never accepted the payment that was made. People who go to hell go there with their sins forgiven. The check was made out payable to them the entire time; they just never opened their wallet and actually made the deposit.

To prove my point, Jesus himself said this:

John 16:7-8
Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

Take note that in verse 8 that Jesus didn’t say the Holy Spirit would convict you of your sins, plural or your individual acts of sin. Yet he said you would be reproved of sin, singular. And then He goes on in verse 9 and tells us what that one sin is:

Of sin, because they believe not on me;

The one sin that separates you from God is, not believing in Jesus. That’s the sin that sends people to hell. It’s not homosexuality, or adultery, or murder, or lying, or even speeding. It’s the fact that you are not believing on the Lord Jesus Christ.

To even further prove that:

The Apostle Paul said this:

2 Corinthians 5:19
To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

That word imputing is an old accounting term. It means that God is no longer counting, or holding you accountable for your individual acts of sin. That is of course if you have been reconciled unto Christ.

There is a plethora of scripture that support this truth. I can’t go into all of them here.

Freedom from our sins does not come from some outward effort. If we could get free from sins, or get holy on our own, we would not need the Holy Spirit. Freedom from sin comes when the grace of God is allowed to penetrate your heart. Grace is not really just unmerited favor as some have defined it. Grace is God’s enabling power working in our lives. Grace breaks the power of sin. It doesn’t set us free to sin, it sets us free from sin.

Romans 2:4 says:
Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

It is the goodness of God that causes a man, or woman to repent. Not fear of His wrath.

When the love of God is shed abroad in your heart by the Holy Ghost, and you are able to perceive and receive that love, this will cause you to live holier accidentally than you ever did on purpose.

Change is at the heart level. Homosexuality is not going to just go away by preaching hell fire and damnation. Neither is any other sin. Homosexuality goes away by preaching and teaching the love, grace, and power of God which in turn enables us to live holy lives, one heart at a time. Grace is the power to break sin, not live in it.

I know a lot of people read these sorts of messages and think I am preaching that it’s OK to still live in sin. That’s completely opposite of what I am saying. While, yes, God is a spirit (JN 4:24) and when He looks at you He sees the born-again spirit part of you, and He is not looking at your individual acts of sin, do not think for one moment that the devil operates in that same way. Satan loves it when we sin and he is and will take advantage of each time we do.

When we sin, or commit sins, we open a door for the devil to come in and wreak havoc in our lives. He plants those seeds of unworthiness in our minds and then our own conscious begins to condemn us. And when we are feeling condemned, the love and the power of God becomes hindered from flowing in our lives. Sin blocks God’s power because of our own conscious and because the devil accusing us all the time bringing forth guilt and shame. That’s not coming from God. Satan is the accuser of the brethren. The Holy Spirit is the comforter.


God’s love causes us to live holier accidentally that we ever could on purpose.

I could go on for days but I have some work to do.

Blessings everyone,

Michael

Thanks Susan.

Happy Easter to you and to all.

Look Upon The Lifted

Yesterday, I went to the little laggon near my apartment to spend a little time in meditation and prayer. It was kind of a cloudy day and a little chilly. As I sat watching the ducks and listening to the breeze whisper through the tree branches which hang over the waters edge, I was reminded of the verse where Jesus likens the Spirit of God to wind. I was trying hard to recall that verses' address and was doing my best to quote it verbatim. I think I got the quote pretty close to the way the KJB reads, but I was way off on it's location.

So anyway, after leaving the lagoon my mind got busy thinking on other things and my plan to come straight home and look that verse up was soon forgotten. But God.......

Today I was doing some reading in the 21st Chapter of Numbers. The Israelites had just experienced God's miraculous deliverance form slavery in Egypt. They had witnessed the ten plagues, experienced the parting of the Red Sea, and seen the pillar of cloud and fire to lead them.

Nevertheless, they began to grumble, and complain. Ornery, disobedient, and unbelieving, their behavior and their attitude finally pushed God to the point of extreme displeasure. So, he decided to punish them. His discipline came in the form of venomous snakes, from which a number of people died. This prompted Moses to intercede on their behalf pleading with God to retract the snakes lest all of the people were going to die.

The Lord responded to Moses' plea by giving him a specific set of instructions. Let's read:

Then the people of Israel set out from Mount Hor, taking the road to the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom. But the people grew impatient with the long journey, and they began to speak against God and Moses.

“Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die here in the wilderness?” they complained. “There is nothing to eat here and nothing to drink. And we hate this horrible manna!”

So the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people, and many were bitten and died.

Then the people came to Moses and cried out, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lordand against you. Pray that the Lord will take away the snakes.” So Moses prayed for the people.

Then the Lord told him, “Make a replica of a poisonous snake and attach it to a pole. All who are bitten will live if they simply look at it!”

So Moses made a snake out of bronze and attached it to a pole. Then anyone who was bitten by a snake could look at the bronze snake and be healed!
Numbers 21:4-9 NLT

Anytime someone who had been bitten by a snake could then look up at this bronzed snake replica on the pole and the venom in his or her body would lose it's effectiveness and they would be instantly healed.

That's awesome! But what does it have to do with the Holy Spirit and with wind? Well, thanks to a religious Pharisee named Nicodemus, I now know the answer to that question.

Nicodemus went sneaking out one night to meet with Jesus and learn some of His secrets but didn't want anyone else to know about it. He desired to know more about the Kingdom after witnessing several of Jesus' miracles.

Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”
John 3:3 NLT

This went completely over Nicodemus' head because like many religious leaders, hypocrites and pharisees, he could only see and think two-dimensional. So Jesus goes on trying to find a way to describe it where that might sink in.

I'll skip a a few verses to save you some reading time but I was delighted to discover that within Jesus' explanation lies the very verse that I was just pondering on yesterday. I can assure you that I will not forget it's location again.

He said:

The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”
John 3:8

I think it's so cool when God leads us, through His word, in sometimes a roundabout sort of way right back to some earlier question or thought we were considering. So now I know the "wind" verse is John 3:8.

But still yet, that's not what this blog is about. The real point of this blog is not that I finally figured out where the "wind" verse lives. The real point and one that really speaks to me today is a result of the way God led me here.

Well, because of my reading in Numbers 21 today, and a reference that was given in my bible, as it pertains to Moses' bronze snake, I came to the following:

See the "wind" verse still didn't register with Nicodemus so Jesus continued explaining, and even condemned him to some degree, then eventually said this:

And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.
John 3:14-15 NLT

What an awesome response by the Lord knowing that Nicodemus knew the Old Testament like the back of his hand.

So, by Jesus' own example and His use of Numbers 21:9, we could say now that:

Anyone who has been bitten by a snake can look upon Jesus and be healed!

Friends, we have all been bitten by the snake. But praise God that He cared enough about us to send His only begotten Son, knowing that He would be "Lifted Up" on that cross and that by His stripes we could be healed!

Today is Easter. And we know that Jesus isn't on that cross anymore. He's no longer in the tomb either. He is the risen and living God. Hallelujah!

Are you snake-bitten today? Is that venom still running through your veins causing death, sickness, depression, or any other demonic turmoil. Then today my friend all you have to do is accept Jesus as your Lord, keep your eyes upon Him and that poison will immediately lose it's effectiveness. You will be healed and you will have an abundance of life. You will have life eternal!

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Hebrews 12:2

Praise God!

Happy Easter everyone,
Michael

Amen Rainbow: I am glad to hear that God has assured you and given you stability. He's the same yesterday, today, and forever so the more we allow Him to live through us, then the more smooth this ride we call life. Thanks for sharing that with us.

Britty: You're quite welcome. I am glad to see you and "hope" that your day is outstanding!

Communicating Faith

We are communicators, right? I mean look at all the posts and follow-up comments in all the different categories just here on Mingle2 alone. People are out there seeking to find something meaningful to talk about. So what about those of us that follow Jesus? What is it that we like to talk about? What are we communicating? The bible says that "out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks". Hopefully what we are communicating is our faith.

Paul, one of my own personal heroes, gave us much advice in his writings, would you agree? In the book of Philemon he gave a piece of advice on how to effectively communicate faith. It was by remaining in constant awareness of our sinful, fallen state, right? Wrong. What Paul said was that for the communication of faith to have the greatest effect, we have to acknowledge every good thing which is in us in Christ Jesus.

That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.
Philemon 1:6

It would be incorrect to say that we can acknowledge something that may eventually occur, but hasn't yet. We can only acknowledge, or take recognition of, that which has already happened.

Praise God that I am no longer just an old sinner saved by grace. I was an old sinner, but I got saved by grace and now I have become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. My old wretched human nature was removed by and replaced with the Spirit of the Lord and along with that came the very righteousness of Jesus himself. That's almost too good to be true, but it's the Gospel.

The same goes for you O, born-again one. You are no longer just a worm, You are a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a chosen and peculiar people. You are more than a conqueror. Children, and friends of the most high God.

Recognize that. Acknowledge that. Focus on that. In this way that ever-so-needed communication of your faith will have an even greater impact. In you is where the Spirit of God dwells!

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
Ephesians 3:20-21

In you, the Christ in you, is the hope of all glory!

To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
Colossians 1:27


Amen

Why thank you ladies! Your comments are appreciated.

Hope you both have a wonderful day!

Get Your Hopes Up

How many of you grew up being told “don’t get your hopes up”? You had been planning, asking, and or hoping for something you really wanted. Maybe it was a trip to summer camp, or a new bicycle. Maybe you wanted to go to a Christian school or play in the band. Maybe you just wanted to have more time with your dad. How often, after expressing your desire for things such as these, were you told, “don’t get your hopes up”?

I was. I was told that many, many times. I believe that these negations proved to play a major role in some of the problems I faced as a young adult. Why do I believe that? It’s because all that I had been dreaming of or hoping for had been smudged out, instantly by those words. I was heart sick.

The bible says:

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life.
Proverbs 13:12 (NLT)

Late in my early thirties, after being married for ten years, having three children, and owning my own business, my life took a serious turn for the worse. I found myself poured into a mold that did not line up with what I had originally hoped for in life. My life had been deferred down the broad and common road.

Divorce, alcoholism, a failed business, cocaine addiction, crack addiction, homelessness and hopelessness led me straight into an eight month Christian rehab. Christ changed my life during those eight months, and I praise him for that. But that’s not exactly what I am here to talk about today. What I want to talk about are the effects I witnessed as a result of hopes deferred. Mine were quite obvious.

During these eight months I lived in a huge Victorian home with thirty other addicts, victims of abuse, drunkards, criminals, and the like. Sounds like a rough bunch, I know. Many times they would not stay through the entire program and others would come in their place. For many, the call of the world was too great for them to endure. But many others did endure. During this period I got to know, personally, many different types of people, from many different walks of life. And you know what I discovered? Each and every one of them had hidden gifts and talents. They were not addicts. They were people. They were people who's hopes had been deferred.


As I got to know each of them a little better, and eventually did some one-on-one counseling, I was able to glimpse into a portion of their childhood and recognize a hope once had. That hope, tragically, had been buried deep with layers upon layers of rejection, disappointment, and resentment. Hope deferred.

But as with myself, once these people sat under the Word of God long enough to realize the amazing love God has for them, and once they understood who they were in Christ, a majority of those childhood hopes were brought back into a foreseeable vision. Hope restored.

In preparing for this little lesson, I searched through the New Living Translation and found 189 verses which contain the word hope. Certainly I am not going to list all of those here. But I have got to tell you how encouraging it was reading through those verses. If you have found some pain buried deep within your heart, perhaps it is directly related to some lost hope, or hope deferred. I exhort you to look up some verses that pertain to hope. God’s Word is health and healing to our souls.

PUT YOUR HOPE IN JESUS

Here are a few that I really want to share:

Lord, you know the hopes of the helpless. Surely you will hear their cries and comfort them.
Psalm 10:17

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.
Psalm 25:5

Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again—my Savior and my God!
Psalm 42:11

So each generation should set its hope anew on God, not forgetting his glorious miracles and obeying his commands.
Psalm 78:7

In the same way, wisdom is sweet to your soul. If you find it, you will have a bright future, and your hopes will not be cut short.
Proverbs 24:14

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
Jeremiah 29:11

No wonder my heart is glad, and my tongue shouts his praises!
My body rests in hope.
Acts 2:26

And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
Romans 5:5

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13

This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary.
Hebrews 6:19

Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.
Hebrews 10:23

Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.
Hebrews 11:1

Your parents loved you. And maybe they did tell you not to get your hopes up on occasion. But our parents could not teach us what they did not know.

Jesus not only knows the answer, He is the answer. And today Jesus has something that he’s been dying to tell you, literally:

GET YOUR HOPES UP

Thanks bro!

There's one thing thats for certain as far as bibles are concerned: Size doesn't matter!

I have got a bunch of bibles and I am finding it more and more neccesary to read the large print versions myself.

But I am believing that God has already provided for my vision to be restored.

He promised me that He would fill my mouth with good things and that my youth would be restored like the eagles!

Thanks for dropping by!

I hope this isn't a repeat. I didn't read all the other comments.

This is from The David Crowder Band, It's called, "Everything Glorious"

Here's a link to a YouTube video I made from this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6LdfHT9jQc

Lryics"

The day is brighter here with You
The night is lighter than its hue
Would lead me to believe
Which leads me to believe

You make everything glorious
You make everything glorious
Yeah, You make everything glorious
And I am Yours
What does that make me?

My eyes are small but they have seen
The beauty of enormous things
Which leads me to believe
There’s light enough to see
Oh, that

From glory to glory
You are glorious
You are glorious
From glory to glory
You are glorious
You are glorious
Which leads me to believe
Why I can believe

From glory to glory
You are glorious!

Thanks Susan, that was sweet!

God's Word Holds The World Together

Actual Photo


I have a cool little pocket version of the New Living Translation. This little bible is about the shape and size of a checkbook and it fits perfectly in my back pocket. I carry it every single day of the week and have done so for the last two years. It contains only the New Testament but also has Psalms and Proverbs. It's been a blessing to have the Word with me always. I love to read the chapter of Proverbs each day that corresponds to the day of the month. Isn't it just awesome that Proverbs conveniently was divided into 31 chapters?

Anyway, my little bible is beginning to show some serious signs of wear and tear. The pages are beginning to come undone and they are no longer attached to the binding. So this morning as I was reading John Chapter 4, and holding the pages in place, the Lord spoke the following to me; this is what He said:


"The reason that your life is not falling apart is because your bible is."


Wow. What truth, eh? So I would have to ask you, is your life falling apart? If so, I would venture to say that your bible isn't.

I just love that little bible. But what I love even more is the truth that it contains. Right after God spoke that to me, the Holy Spirit took me to the following verse:

God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
Hebrews 1:1-3 NLT

Everything in this world is held together by the power and integrity of God's Word. God not only will not, but cannot ever break one of His promises. If he ever alters one thing that He has said, then the world would fall apart.


The world is held together by the integrity of His Word


But you know what? God is not a man that he should lie. He would never take back or alter one single word!

My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
Psalms 89:34

You will hear many unbelievers say that this world is falling apart. I say, No it's not! This world is held together by the very Word of God.

Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
Matthew 24:35

God's Word is Forever settled in Heaven, therefore let us continue to establish His Word here on earth. His Word is the very glue that holds all things together!

For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven.
Psalms 119:89



Say what God says! Speak His Words. Let His promises forever remain on......

The Tip Of Your Tongue ----->http://www.mychurch.org/blog/164165/On-The-Tip-Of-My-Tongue

It is quite possible that the reason he is depressed and withdrawn from you is the very fact that you are doing so much for him.

We men have an inherent need within us to feel and to actually be needed.

In the book, Wild At Heart, John Eldridge points out three things or characteristics if you will, that men not only desire, but physical, emotionally, and spiritually need.

They are:

An Adventure to Live
A Battle to Fight
A Beauty to Rescue

While I do not agree with everything that was written by the author, I would say, based on my own experience, that these three core needs of a man do indeed ring true.

So, could it be that he is not feeling needed in this relationship? Are you waiting on him hand and foot? Are you more than capable of running your own life and really don’t need him?

Perhaps you should consider just backing off a bit. Rather than constantly doing, try to learn how to receive. Let him be the one to take the lead once in a while. Allow him to feel like the life he has with you is truly an adventure. Let him be the mighty warrior occasionally. Give him the pleasure of being able to rescue you, even if that exists even in his own mind.

I think you will soon see that depression do a 180 degree turn and his love for you will go through the roof!

Michael

I would have to say the next best to thing to love is the ability to receive it!

I'll be real and honest here. I am truly only seeking a one-nighter. But I want that one night to last forever!

24-Hour Turnaround

For by thy words thou shalt be justified,
and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
Matthew 12:37


Some of the so-called word-of-faith preachers, and the name-it-claim-it or blab-it-grab-it crowd, have unfortunately shed a lot of bad light on certain teachings regarding the power of words and faith. I myself get flack at times when I express the use of positive confessions. ---> http://www.mychurch.org/blog/164165/On-The-Tip-Of-My-Tongue

I will agree that some have taken the truth about the power of the tongue and stretched it way beyond means. However, there is a plethora of scriptural precedence which suggest that yes, we can have what we say. Of course there is a stipulation to that and I believe that stipulation is that we can have what we say as long as what we are saying was inclusive of everything that was provided in the atonement.

Correct me if I am wrong but I do not recall $450,000 Mercedes Benz or $23,000 marble toilets included in that, but that's another blog. But what I do understand is that we have been given authority and dominion over this realm and we can use our faith and our words to curse that which is evil and speak into fruition that which is life.

Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.
Proverbs 18:21

I know you have heard the following passages preached often, especially by those in the faith camp. I have heard many people try and explain away the meaning of what Jesus was relaying. Why is it so hard for some of us to take these verses literally? Personally I believe it's because while we do have faith, at the very same time we have greater levels of unbelief and the latter counteracts the former. Yes, faith and unbelief can be present and operative simultaneously. Even right here in this passage Jesus says to have faith and to believe. Does this not imply that we can have faith, yet not believe? I do believe it does.

And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
Mark 11:22-24


I am beginning to get way off topic from what my original intention of this blog was and I really would like to keep it short enough to keep your attention long enough to absorb the very powerful truth that is to follow. So, let me back up a few verses in Mark and talk for a minute about the fig tree.


And on the morrow, when they were come from Bethany, he was hungry: And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet. And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever. And his disciples heard it.
Mark 11:12-14

There is a lot of cool stuff in those verses but in the interest of time I am going to skip over some of them. Basically this tree was a hypocrite because it was expressing or proclaiming to possess something that it did not have. Fig trees grow their fruit and their leaves in the same season. or at the same time. So if it were not the season for figs then it was not the season for leaves, But yet still, that's not the point I am trying to make.

What I am wanting to point out is that when Jesus came upon the tree that morning, and saw that this tree was a hypocrite, and was not producing fruit, and did not promote life, He cursed the tree and commanded it to die. And His disciples heard it.

They then move on to Jerusalem and Jesus enters the Temple to condemn those who were using it as a marketplace. After that the religious folks began a plot to kill Jesus even though they were amazed at His teachings. That night, they left the city.

But here are the verses that I have been wanting to get to:

And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away.
Mark 11:20-21

Take note that it was now the next morning, approximately 24 hours after Jesus had originally cursed the fig tree. The disciples had heard Him curse it. But only now, after this 24 hour period, did the manifestation of His words come into full manifestation.

Here's what I believe. I believe that the fig tree did in fact die instantly when Jesus originally cursed it. In fact, you can read this same instance in Matthew and there it does say, "presently the fig tree withered away". But according to Mark's depiction the death of the tree did not become apparent, at least to the natural eye, until sometime later. In other words, the roots of the tree died immediately but it took time for the whole tree to wither up and die.

And finally, I am able to get to my point. God told us to speak to our mountains. Not tell Him about the mountain, but speak to the mountain. These mountains are literally any problems or obstacles that we are facing. God says that anything that is not producing life for us we are to curse it. That includes all sickness, disease, poverty, depression, anger, bitterness, loneliness, sadness, addictions, and on and on and on. If any one of these mountains are causing death in any area of your life and are not bearing fruit, then God has given you the authority to curse that thing and it shall die!

But please, do not loose heart when you do not see an instant manifestation. When you pray believe that it has happened. Come back to these verses and recognize that while yes, the tree may still look alive at this very moment, in reality, spiritual reality, the parent reality, the root of your problem died immediately at the very moment you told it to die! It may still appear to be alive, but at the very root of the problerm, it's dead! That's powerful.

Once you have spoken such a thing. Do not, under any circumstances, allow anyone or anything to convince you that it didn't work. Do not let the bitter root of unbelief creep in. Have faith in God, believe in your heart and whatever you say, believing that you have received it, you shall have.

Will it happen in 24 hours as in the case of the fig tree? Possibly. But that's no guarantee. The amount of time will depend one, upon your own level of unbelief, and two, upon the depth of the roots. But I assure you, that God's Word does and will go directly to the root of the problem and that which was lifeless no longer lives; and that which gives life has now come alive!


Look forward to your 24-hour turnaround!

In love,
Michael

I am glad you enjoyed it.



Thank you. Thank you kindly. God is a good God!

Are You Sozo?

God, please save me. I beg you. I have cleaned up my act. I have quit using profanity. I have quit drinking. I try not to get angry anymore. I am paying tithes at my local church. I pray an hour a day, whether I feel like it or not. I rarely even watch television or listen to secular music anymore. I even wear the right clothes. God, please, please God, will you save me? Look at everything I am doing! I am begging you!

That's the way we get saved, right? Wrong.

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Ephesians 2:8

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Romans 10:9

We cannot earn our salvation. There is nothing we can do, or quit doing, rather than unbelieveing, to make ourselves acceptable to God. We are saved by confessing with our mouth that He is Lord and believing in out Hearts that God raised him from the dead. It's all grace. Grace appropriated through faith. All of our good works are like fifthly rags.

If I were to ask how many of you right at this very moment are saved, more than likely just about everybody on this site would say, "Yes brother, I am saved".

What If I asked you if you had been rescued from danger? Or restored to health? Made well, or even healed? How many would say, "Yes brother, I am all of those"?

The Greek word that was translated as "saved" in the New Testament is the word "Sozo" In light of that, lets look at Romans 10:9 one more time:

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be SOZO.
Romans 10:9


The word Sozo was used 110 times in the New Testament. Here's what the word Sozo means and includes:

- to save, keep safe and sound, to rescue from danger or destruction, injury or peril

- to save a suffering one from perishing, suffering from disease, to make well, heal, restore to health

- to preserve one who is in danger of destruction, to save or rescue
to save in the technical biblical sense

- to deliver from the penalties of the Messianic judgment

- to save from the evils which obstruct the reception of the Messianic deliverance


Everything you see in the definitions above, and more, was included in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus. Salvation means so much more than just being forgiven of our sins and missing hell. And, everything that was included in His sacrifice has now becomes yours, if you are truly born-again.

No begging required.

The Words says:

As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
Colossians 2:6

When you got saved you didn't have to beg God. You received faith by hearing of the Word of God and by that faith you believed that He had already died for your sins, forgiven you, and that salvation was a free gift. And so it is with everything else which was atoned for. You have been Sozo!

In love,
Michael

You've Never Seen Your Face

Seriously, you have never even seen your own face. Sure, you may have seen pictures of yourself. And you can certainly see your face in a mirror. But what you are actually seeing is a reflection, or a representation. The truth is however, that you have never actually seen your face. You have to learn to trust that reflection you see in the mirror. That's who you are in the physical.

You know something else? You have never seen your spirit! So how do you know what your spirit looks like? By looking into the spiritual mirror. The perfect law of liberty!

James 1:23-25
For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.

God's Word is an exact replica of who you are in the Spirit. You have to look into the Word and trust that what you are seeing is a perfect reflection or a mirror-image of your born-again spirit. You are what God's Word says you are!

Jesus said:
It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.
John 6:63

God's Word is Spirit and it is Life!


So, who are you in the spirit today? Who are you in Christ?

Today I am just as pure and holy as the Lord Jesus. Today I am blessed beyond measure with every spiritual blessing. Today I am sanctified and made perfect forever! And if Jesus is truly the Lord of your life, so are you. How do I know?The spiritual mirror says so!

Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
1 John 4:17



Praise God!

Michael

999 Trees


How do you tempt perfect people? Adam & Eve were perfect people. They lacked nothing. So how was it that Satan was able to tempt them? I mean, he couldn't tempt them with adultery. There was no one else to commit adultery with. He couldn't tempt them with money, there was none. He couldn't tempt them with material things either. Adam & Eve had everything they could possibly want. So how was it then that they were able to be tempted?

He tempted them by deceiving them to believe that they were lacking something. He used trickery to convince them to partake in the one and only thing they were forbidden to eat. He successfully persuaded them to fall into sin by purposefully routing their attention away from all the wonderful things they already had, and directed their focus onto the one and only thing that they didn't.

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
Genesis 3:1-4

Let's assume, for the purpose of discussion, that God had created 1,000 luscious fruit bearing trees and placed Adam & Eve in the middle of them. And the only stipulation was to avoid one of the trees in the middle of the Garden. That would mean they had full and complete access to 999 of the other trees. What if Satan had rephrased his question? What if he had stated it like this:

"Has God said that you can only eat of 999 trees?"

I think if he had posed this question in this manor, Adam & Eve's focus would have been directed to the vast amount of trees they did have permission to eat instead of the one tree that they didn't.

Isn't this exactly the way he tempts us today? I can attest to the fact that he uses this same tactic on me, often. Many more times that I am willing to admit I allow my thoughts to drift towards all of the things that I do not have in my life, rather than all of the things that I do. One of the quotes that has always stuck with me is as follows:

Happiness is not having what you want.

Happiness is wanting what you have.

Today my friend, I encourage you to take a personal inventory of all of the wonderful things God has already provided in your life. Everything we have is a gift from God. He is a good God. Instead of dwelling on something, or someone that's missing, point those internal binoculars of yours in the direction of everything that you do have. I think you'll soon discover that you have already been blessed beyond measure. I know I have, and today, I choose tho think on these things.

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
Philippians 4:8

As a single man, I can honestly say that there is one fruit that is missing in my life. I don't think I need to point out what that one fruit is. However, today I choose to praise God for everything that He is and everything He has done for me. Yes there is one tree that I cannot eat from at this time, but Thank you Jesus that there are 999 trees from which I can!


My friend, I ask you this today.....Are you satisfied with 99.9%?


I love you brothers and sisters,
Michael