love – James G. Owen, Author

Understanding the Sin Nature of Man

By James G. Owen

Why do I stumble? Fail? Why do I keep falling into sin after living by faith for a season? These are the questions I have asked myself these questions many times after receiving salvation. Before getting saved, being forgive by Jesus, I did not have these experiences nor thoughts of failure because I was in sin and did not know the wonderful blessing of being in a relationship with God Jehovah and his son Jesus.

What was the problem? I did not have the knowledge and understanding of scripture at the level where I am now. Growing up I needed the maturity that scripture and prayer to give me the strength I needed. I also cared what people thought about me when I should have been strong and let myself be myself. The other problems are that I let the sin capture me and keep me in bondage. I knew sin had pleasure attached to it and I kept looking over the fence. So, realizing all this what have I been doing to understand? I sat down and wrote a definition of the sin nature from my experience and studies.

What is the Sin Nature of Man?

Before defining we need to know the origin of the sin nature. In Genesis we find Eve and Adam in the Garden of Eden. Both God had instructed Adam and Eve not to eat of the tree of good and evil. The serpent we call Satan began to tell Eve that if she ate of the tree of good and evil, she would know the difference between good and evil and will become like a god. Adam, I believe was sitting there with her and heard the exchange of the conversation. Like any human, curiosity fed the imagination of how it would taste. The longer she thought about how the fruit tasted the greater was the temptation. Eve made the decision to eat of the tree. She enacted the free will that God gave all of us to whom we will serve. Either we search God Jehovah or Satan. That was the choice. As soon as Eve ate of the fruit her eyes was opened. The veil of innocence fell from her eyes. Her innocence was stolen by Satan who lied to her. Adam soon partook of the fruit as well. Scripture does not record why he did not object or direct Eve not to partake of the fruit, but scripture records the fall from perfection into sin.

The Sin Nature of Man Defined

The sin nature is a fallen position. A position that man fell from God’s safety, goodness, love, and a perfect world. The fallen position is the separation of man from God. The purpose of humanity was to worship God and be totally in his image. God created man to multiply and to oversee all of creation on earth. This was man’s habitation. From the soil of earth to the boundary of the first heaven—the sky. When man fell, he was no longer the subject of God, but in bondage to a new master, the slave of Satan. Man had dominion over the earth until his sin, but now Satan has dominion over the world. The Earth was a state of perfection before sin entered, and man went from a perfect creation, a glorified state, to a fallen state into darkness. With God man was always in his light and had direct access to all God possessed. Now Satan wants to illuminate humankind with his gloomy light. Now that sin entered the world and universe, the future generations of man defiled by the sin become part of every human being because the situation did not have a remedy. Sin is generational and has become innate. It is not genetic but is a spiritual transformation. The remedy is an atonement, a blood covenant, and a perfect sacrifice to die for man. No animal or sinful human is perfect. Only God’s son Jesus is the perfect sacrifice. He is pure. There is no spot or blemish, no defilement because he has never sinned. Yet, he took sin upon his shoulders for you and me to deliver us from sin and bring those who accept him back into perfection by believing in him and accepting him. Justification is now in place for those who accept him.

“But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

Genesis 2:17

“So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.”

Genesis 3:24

The tenets of sin are pride, selfishness, the rebellion against God, his word, and the image of God. Sin is about the destruction of innocence and causes man to be guilty before God and accountable to his rebellion. The nature of sin is humanistic using pleasure to enslave humanity and keep him in depravity. The type of pleasure is varied and affects the psyche of man causing a perversion in his thinking process, imagination, and spirit. Hate, rebellion, disobedience, selfishness, and pride enters the spirit. Now, man has a desire for power to control mostly because of pride. The prideful man is about controlling other men, and nations. Their desire is to be a dictator, a god, that other men look up to as a savior and worship. This is an antichrist type and destruction of God’s creation is the goal. We have seen in world history men who came to power considered themselves as god as evident in the Roman Caesars, and other prominent dictators as recent as the 20^th century. The sin nature is enmity against God. It is against God’s image to usurp his position while working to destroy man who was created by God in his image. Man was originally created above the angels, yet when he sinned his position was lowered below the angels.

Going further into the realm of sin, its claws grab ahold of mankind’s heart and brings upon humanity spiritual bondage. Humankind imprisoned by Satan’s control and now man is a prisoner, a peon, slave to sin and control. Man’s heart now deceives him since the seed of sin has been planted. Man’s master now is Satan because of sin imprisons.

”His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.”

Proverbs 5:22

The spirit of man is now at war within himself. He may want out, but his flesh and mind war against each other. This is the prison. Within this prison we have become defective, ineffective, and impaired, not being able to function as created.

“Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?”

Romans 6:16

” But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.”

Romans 7:23

The sin nature, a prison, a prison within ourselves that we cannot shake. We cannot provide the answer, the remedy, because of defilement and not in the perfect state. All of creation is wailing and groaning because what man has done. The remedy came in the form of a man and God. He has given his life as a reconciliation and broke the chains of death by giving his life on the cross. He further brought sin to its knees by his resurrection and procured eternal life for all who believe in him. Those of us who want out of the spiritual prison we have found ourselves can now choose the remedy and be set free from sin’s dominion. When we are set free our master becomes Jesus and the reward is eternal life. The sin nature of man will bring him to eternal death. Death being the penalty, the eternal death of separation eternally from God. The first step to a decision to eternal life is realizing and understanding the sin nature of man. Now, we know what holds us. Liberty is at hand.

Notes: All scripture has been taken from the King James Version. Public Domain. BibleGateway.

A Life Without Jesus is a Difficult Path and Hope is Found

by James G. Owen

“Good understanding giveth favour: but the way of transgressors is hard.”

Proverbs 13:15

Darkness, the spiritual nature, is found throughout the earth. Its presence is evil and makes life difficult. Our lives were placed on this path after the disobedience of Eve and Adam. They were told by God the Father and Creator that they would work the soil for their sustenance, and Eve would bear labor in birthing children. From that day sin became generational in the manner man is born into the way of sin.

What is sin? It is a general term used by Christians to denote the different levels of wrongdoing. In our minds we perceive sinfulness from bad to worse even though God sees them as one big lump of disobedience. This word really means to “miss the mark”, and is unintentional, but there are levels of sin that are committed intentionally in rebellion against God. The intentional sins are various forms of sexual immorality, murder, theft, lying, vile affections, deceit, wickedness (corruption), envy, whisperers, malignity, backbiters, haters of God, boasters, inventors of evil things, covenant breakers, being unmerciful, and without understanding (Romans 1). Our actions should cause guilty feelings and shame and should prick our conscience so that we will reflect and change our hearts.

People all over the world live in a world of sin. Some do not realize the difficulty of their lives because a life of sin is all they have ever known. At times, they will tell you how hard their life is because of life’s experience of dealing with the death of loved ones, the misbehavior of kids, or difficulties they are having because of what life generally brings us. People throughout the world bring difficulty on themselves because of their idolatry, in worshiping demons, participating in the occult, or may be businesspeople and working to obtain wealth, or simply materialistic. Anything that a person covets will become idolatry. The most common idol is money.

We, mankind, were created by God to possess freewill. All of us decide who we serve on earth and in the supernatural. Man, either chooses Jesus as their Lord, or Satan who is described in Isaiah 14 as the son of Dawn as their lord. The choice is made by default is Satan and can be changed in accepting Jesus by seeking forgiveness of sin.

The way of the transgressor is hard because we are trapped in the bondage of sin. Our lives are made hard because of our unwise decisions because sin is pleasurable. There are opportunities of getting rich quick, which plays on our greed, and the desire by fiat. Decisions that affect us emotionally by seeking revenge for something someone has done against us causes us to reap consequences and find ourselves incarcerated, by taking drugs to overcome being abused, or drowning our sorrows using liquor. Sickness and disease cause our lives to be difficult as well, and never considering there is a higher power that can help us live a better life. Some have heard of Jesus, but some have not heard. The lifestyle of sexual immorality may result in sexually transmitted diseases, and if left untreated can cause death or mental illness.

Human life is based on needs. People live in poverty because of various reasons. The lack of skills to make a living, politics, or being overtaxed by government entities. This would bring difficulty in meeting the needs in life, and not having a faith-based system to keep hope within our hearts. Everything I have said here in the article can bring distress and depression, but as I said earlier there is a way out of this path of hardship.

As a Christian looking backward before my conversion, I have experienced some difficulties in my life. I know the feeling of having a yoke, a weight on my shoulder working to meet my needs and worrying about money. I have had other difficulties like dealing with death of loved ones and friends. The difficulty of dealing with personalities, and sickness. I see the evil and corruption in America and the world. I cannot fully fathom the level of the evil I see. Even as a sinner I would marvel at the level of evil and corruption, and that is due to my Christian upbringing. Listening to news reports and seeing the faces of people I see an emptiness I have never seen before, and that emptiness is caused by the deepness of depravity they are involved in. In their eyes I do not see joy. All I see is a lack of hope. I see and feel fear from the American people.

The world today is communicating fables to the people and convincing them it is truth. Their truth is presented in various forms of mediums to persuade people. Over the decades and centuries, the fables would come in the form of false theology. Now it is propaganda and disinformation in the mix of deception. Why the fables? Why false doctrines? The reason for the fables and the false doctrines is to keep people from believing in Jesus and coming to faith. In Jesus there is life, is eternal, and a gift given freely to all mankind. All is required is to accept Jesus and salvation into your heart. There, the Spirit of God will flow freely, and a joy rises from within, and sometimes it is unexplainable. The spirit of the recipient will know it is the Spirit of God because he has created us to sense his Spirit. People who create fables and false doctrines do not posses the Spirit of God.

There are different types of people who are living a life without Jesus. Some believe that God does not exist, but he does. We see his handiwork everywhere with our eyes and even through microscopes. By seeing his handiwork and through science we can see the works of our mighty God. Even though with all the evidence of his existence many people do not see an escape from the despair, bondage, and the darkness. They may see their salvation in themselves which is humanism. The answers to our human plight are found in our Creator—God.

Light counteracts and causes darkness to flee. Many years ago, I found this hope. This hope I found was giving my life to Jesus. From that point forward, I have had my problems, temptations, have sinned, but God and his son Jesus had mercy on me and granted me grace once again. I know the experience of living for Jesus. It is a joyful, and a spirit of love arises when I compare the life before, and my life now because I am redeemed. The old man has died, and the new man has arisen within me. A change took place in my heart and his Spirit filled my soul. My outlook, insight, and paradigm changed. I saw the world with fresh new eyes. Yes, all of this is spiritual, yet there has been a physical change within my soul. The change taken place is a changing of the mindset from sin to righteousness. The will and the desire to no longer sin, to do the things I once did, and a new desire boiled up from within to live in righteousness and to follow the commandments of God. My life, mind, and heart were changed because of the new covenant that Jesus fulfilled, and I came to learn and follow the teachings of Jesus who taught the old law at a higher form with an infinitesimal amount of grace. A superabundance of grace.

Why would a person live a life without Jesus? Why live-in despair when there is a better avenue of life? The way of the transgressor is difficult, but the way of following Jesus is easier. Though I must tell you even life as a Christian disciple is challenging, we have hope in the fellowship of other believers. There is encouragement, understanding, and wisdom that is found in the reading of the Bible. Our souls are fed in doing so and recharged by prayer. Paul in his writings in the New Testament teaches us how to live in our Christian walk. We are to keep our eyes on the prize, which is eternal life, doing good works, purging the sin through prayer, and resisting the devil. His letter of Ephesians tells us how to interact as a church and be successful.

In my spiritual walk knowing Jesus I have seen frowns and hard looks turn into joy. I have heard of everyday lives being changed. People being blessed by jobs and places to live. Lives changed from alcoholism and drugs. Their countenance and health becoming better and the presence of healing. You can see it on their faces. Things like worry and fear are no longer present because we have learned not to fear the things that the devil puts upon us. Life in Jesus makes us stronger within and even words and the looks of men cannot cause us to fear because we know that God is with us. So, why would you live without Jesus any longer?

Note: All scripture given is taken from the King James Version, Public Domain, BibleGateway.

Faithfulness—Being and Remaining Faithful to God

By James G. Owen

A young man saw a lady across the church congregation wondering if she was single. So, after church he went to introduce himself to her. Upon meeting her they chatted for a while getting acquainted and then he asked her to if she would go out with him on a date the next week. She said yes, and a friendship began to spring. As we know there are steps in a relationship between a man and a woman. Eventually, they decided to be exclusive, and not to date another. This began a covenant, a promise not to consider another person for possible dating. Each remained within the covenant they made to each other, and their covenant was sealed by marriage. A covenant over another covenant. The marriage covenant ideally is to be for life.

As they continued to live being married the couple made time for each other, confirmed their feelings and emotions for one another, and their love for each other grew as the years went by. Never looking at another person, nor even had vain imaginations, their marriage was successful until one passed away. The spouse passing went to be with Jesus to be granted of their inheritance which is eternal life, which is a spiritual wedding between God and the past spouse. While we are here on earth having accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior, we are betrothed to him awaiting our marriage. The physical and the spiritual covenants parallel to one another. We make the choice in whom we become betrothed and marry. This is an example of faithfulness.

Faithfulness defined is an allegiance, an oath or covenant created between two parties. To be faithful is to not commit any acts against the covenant made. As in marriage, one will not commit adultery and hurt the spouse. It is a promise made and shall not be broken.

In the moment we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior in receiving salvation we create a covenant between God and us. We are to be faithful to him as though he is the Groom, and we are the bride. For the Church is described in scripture as the bride of the bridegroom, and he will come after he has everything under his feet to claim his bride. All of us are his bride, collectively the Church.

“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.”

Isaiah 61:10

As our relationship with God and us we are to remain faithful, and we are faithful as stewards of our house. Our house is our body, soul, and spirit. In scripture our house is also described as a temple of God. For he dwells within us after sanctification has occurred in the salvation process. We are responsible for the upkeep of his house, to keep our sanctification current, and not yielding to sin or temptation. Even though we have trouble remaining faithful because of temptation and yielding to sin, God is always faithful to us in the relationship. He understands why we fail and continues to love us. All we must do is confess we have failed and restore the relationship. The relationship requires stewardship from each other.

“Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.”

1 Corinthians 4:2

Two people in a relationship or covenant will be faithful and remain faithful if they genuinely love one another. They know that any breach of the relationship will cause pain, distress, and distrust. The same goes with God and us. He is faithful to us because that is his nature, and because he loves us and will take care of us in sustenance and care. When we need him, we can go to him in prayer and God will listen to us. Caring spouses will listen to one another and work out the differences too. Whether earthly covenants or spiritual covenants both takes work to remain in faithfulness. Forgiveness is part of remaining in faithfulness to one another, and if a man or a woman does not forgive it puts a strain on the covenant or will negate the covenant. Both must be forgiving to stay within covenant, and this is the same in relation to God and us.

“Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;”

Deuteronomy 7:9

As we live our life righteously, think of how our life can be a testimony to someone who does not have a relationship with God. Our lives show either good fruit, or bad fruit. Either will cause a person to decide to live for God or not. They are watching us and how we are faithful and the manner we remain faithful. God never fails us. He can never be unfaithful because he is truth, love, and compassionate about being in a relationship with us, and he knows a righteous relationship is life, and that its result is eternal life with him. That is our inheritance. The inheritance for the married couple, the man and the woman are their testimony to future generations. This is the heritage of the earthly couple, their testimony. God’s heritage is the righteous living of his children who come to live with him eternally.

The success of being faithful and remaining faithful is having hope in each other and living a righteous life and placing our hope in God. His compassion is new to us every morning and his love is refreshed.

“They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.

The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.”

Lamentations 3: 23-24

Be faithful to each other. Be faithful in your promises remaining true to both sides. Above all remain faithful to God.

Notes:
Merriam Webster Dictionary online.

All scripture is taken from the King James Version, Public Domain, BibleGateway.

God’s Gift—Grace, Our Inheritance, and Redemption in Ephesians

By James G. Owen

Grace, a subject St. Paul talked about a great deal. Grace defined is unmerited favor, but could be love expressed by our Creator, and loved us so much that he created a plan of salvation before everything in creation was created—before the world began. God being the Father called us to be his children, and because of sin we were separated and that kept us from knowing him spiritually, a breach in our relationship between God and us. So, God in his wisdom extended grace to mankind before the world existed. Grace was part of his plan.

His plan of salvation expanded into atonement, a sacrifice, and redemption. The atonement was that a price had to be made, and a perfect man who was fathered by God to be the sacrifice, and to make sure the price was paid in full then the son of God would give his life on the Cross. This caused sin to be defeated, and death would be defeated by his resurrection. His plan of salvation also ushered in the last covenant, the new covenant of Jeremiah 33, called the better covenant. This covenant annulled the old covenant, and it was to give all of us life, both Jew and Gentile. The old covenant could not save people from sin because the blood spilt was from the blood of bulls and other animals, but the blood of Jesus the perfect man who lived a blameless life, his blood could save all of mankind. His plan God created wanted us to be blameless, to be free from sin.

In Ephesians 1, God predestined us to adoption, to make all of mankind his children. Predestination means he predetermined his plan, and what he wanted his creation to be and how to interact in creation and in man’s relationship to God. He wanted to invest himself into his creation, to be available should his creation need him, and it proves man would need him forever. He adopted us, he chose us to be in a relationship to him, just like an earthly father and mother would adopt an orphaned child so that the child would have a life, freedom, and to take care of the orphan’s needs. The orphan would grow in maturity and fulfill the purpose and destiny injected to him at conception.

What did God predetermine his creation, man, to be like? He wanted us to be like him, to conform to the image of Jesus, and we see what Jesus was like by reading the gospels about his character and spirituality. God wanted man to act with righteous morals, to be obedient, pure, having wisdom, and come to the knowledge of him, Jesus, and of course his Holy Spirit.

“For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.”

Romans 8: 29-30

How would I explain predestination further to make sure it is understood? Well, consider God the Father as an artist. The artist will have a format in which the person will follow. Not every artist will create the same, but I see God creating much the same as I would create. My process would be to conceive of an idea, plan his creation by sketching, taking note of the color palette, and whatever means he needs to execute his creation. God, as an artist I see would have much the same process but would decide what his creation will be and the extent of his creation, and foreordain the creation to possess order, beauty, and in his plan, he conceives of a rescue. That rescue was salvation. His creation would be perfect. Man’s creation would be imperfect. God’s creation would make a choice and fall into sin and would only have one way to salvation. Man’s creation may take several attempts, but is not guaranteed success, but the Father’s creation will have success as man stays within the boundaries of his grace, that he purges himself daily. God knew his creation would fail and that is the reason for salvation.

The Father calls man to salvation by the convicting of man’s heart by his Holy Spirit. Conviction by the Holy Spirit is the movement of the Spirit to cause the man to realize he had sinned through his conscience, and the thoughts of his sin will come to remembrance. The conviction will tell us we know we are not pure, and the Spirit is beckoning us to come to a decision for forgiveness. When a person decides to repent, to receive forgiveness justification will be enacted meaning he is pardoned of his sin, no longer held guilty.

Further into Ephesians 1 we see Paul writing about redemption. Redemption comes to us by his saving grace. We are saved by God’s grace, that he loved us so much he would provide a way out of sin so that we would not be condemned to eternal death by choosing his Son Jesus. Why did he give us grace? Because of our innocence and not having knowledge of what sin would cause, and never having the experience of evil. Redemption gave us access to God through faith. When he made man, he planted a grain of faith within his being, and we have been taught to enact that faith, meaning believing whatever we conceive will be done as long it is within, he will of God and his word.

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

Ephesians 2:8

What else would redemption bring to man? The redemption of man would be his inheritance. The inheritance would be eternal life, and to live in the New Earth that God would create for his children. This inheritance is guaranteed if we live in obedience, growing in wisdom, knowledge, and trusting in God. As we spend time with God you learn more about him, his personality, and his ways. Spending time reading the bible, in prayer, and the interaction of the Holy Ghost within us is how we learn to know and learn of him. As we get to know God, we will see his glory more as time goes by, and we understand the inheritance he has chosen for us. Those who have accepted Jesus are his chosen ones. As we interact with God in prayer, and the reading of his word he constantly reveals himself and his works. He shows us his full power in his works of the Holy Spirit through us and from us ministering to others.

“In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”

Ephesians 1: 13-14

The inheritance is given to us as soon as we give our life to Jesus, and this inheritance was also assured by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and by the fulfilling of the new covenant. The cross gave us the victory over death, and through Jesus resurrection he ascended to heaven to sit on David’s throne and to administer the kingdom to bring things to an end. He is there sitting by the right hand of God reigning until his return to earth.

We see in Ephesians 1 that God has set Jesus above all creation giving him all authority as the head of the Church and the kingdom, and that God is Israel (God prevails). His Church is his body, his temple where the Holy Spirit dwells. In administering his covenants God has brought all the major covenants to fulfillment. His Church is prevailing in the last covenant sharing the gospel to the world so that all men will have the chance to salvation that was predestined before the beginning of creation. Grace, faith, salvation, and redemption were in place waiting for the time to come to being to bring men out of sin and to bring in the New Earth, which is Eden and the inheritance.

God deals with man through his covenants written in his word, and dispensation (administration) to cause man to stewardship (relationship) with him giving him deliverance and restoration. Can you see the love of God in all his actions? Why would God go to such lengths if he did not love us? The fact is his action is the ultimate love anyone would express. Wouldn’t a parent on earth not do the same? Your hope that Paul writes about in his letter is within God’s grace, and your hope is the resurrection that conquers death for eternity. Let me ask you this. Are you willing to change to live a righteous life to achieve eternal life? To assure your place in a beautiful, perfect place for eternity? To live and not die. Are you willing to place all things on the altar so you can break from the bondage of sin and your habits? Are you tired of sin? Tired of uncertainty? If so, make your decision so that you will assure your place in God’s record of life.

Notes:

From the website messie2vie.fr Strong’s Hebrew 3478, Yisrael.

All scripture given is taken from the King James Version, Pubic Domain, BibleGateway.

The Resurrection of Jesus: Is the Resurrection Real, or is it a Fable?

What does the word resurrection mean? It is the raising of the man, woman, or child from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit, which is a person in the in the godhead (God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) of the Father. God is a trichotomous God, yet he is One.

Is the resurrection real? In 1 Kings 17:17-24, I am reminded as I write this article of Elijah and the widow’s son. The widow’s son fell ill and died. The lady complained to Elijah saying she had to pay for her sin by her son’s death. I can imagine that Elijah was grieved by the complaint and learning of the boy’s death. He took the widow’s son to the bedroom and laid him there, and for three times he petitioned God the Father to raise up the boy. After the third time God permitted him to come to life, and the boy did live. Imagine the look on Elijah’s and the widow’s face. With Elijah it must have been the look of determination and of faith. With faith we can move mountains and in enacting our faith we have authority. Elijah’s authority at this time was with the Father, even though God’s Spirit raised the boy from the dead. Also, seeing is believing and the widow believed by sight, and by the word of God that came from Elijah which was truth.

“And the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”

1 Kings 17:24

In Ezekiel, we can read about the story of the dry bones coming together as an army to fight for the Lord. Many think this is a story of the Holocaust, and it could be, but as I have been thinking on my writings this week it could be the raising of an army to go forth to bring the gospel to every man on earth by those who believe in Jesus, the Church.

Also, the basis in the New Testament that the resurrection is not a fable, but truth lies in Jesus raising the body of Lazarus who was dead for four days. It is at this point in the degradation of the human body that it begins to have a stench. Jesus waited until this forth day to prove that the man was dead, I believe, for the people to believe. Jesus by the word of his mouth, just as in Elijah’s case, commanded Lazarus to come forth. Looking upon the sepulcher where Lazarus was laid the people watched as Lazarus came forth clothed in his grave clothes. Here, we see the Old Testament giving its account and the New Testament giving witness of the other.

On the third day after Jesus was crucified, he arose just like he told the disciples. On that same morning there is another account in the New Testament, and that is the saints in the graves of Jerusalem were resurrected and walked the streets. Imagine the power of the Holy Spirit, and the Father. In the Father there is all power and can do the impossible. Surely there were people who did not believe that Jesus was resurrected, but there were many who did because of his actions in his ministry prior to his death. Jesus, arose, folded the grave clothes as he came out of the grave with the gravestone having been rolled away by two angels. Was the sepulcher guarded? Yes, by Roman guards, but they fell asleep, being put to sleep by the angels.

“And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulcher. And they entered in and found not the body of the Lord Jesus.

And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:

And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?

He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee,”

Luke 24: 2-6

Imagine the scene as Mary Magdalene and others came to the grave and saw his grave empty and wondering who took him. They didn’t believe at this time, but there were two men at Jesus’s grave site and reminded those present of Jesus’s words. Even telling the apostles they did not believe but came to believe after being reminded, and in the days forward of Jesus coming to him before his ascension. He was seen by many over the land of Palestine before the feast of Pentecost. It was important for Jesus to die for us, and to be resurrected. It is by his death and resurrection that Satan was defeated, and those who choose life through Jesus, death can no longer sting or take hold.

Resurrection is real. Jesus’s resurrection is real and not a fable. Even today, we see a form of resurrection in the hospitals where people are given a shock to get their hearts beating and through resuscitation. Being Pentecostal, I have heard many stories of people being resurrected by the Holy Spirit in church services. We have been given the power through the Holy Spirit given to us, and the Holy Spirit came after Jesus’s death. Remember, Jesus said he would be with us always, and he is through the Holy Spirit.

Note: All scripture used was taken from the King James Version, Public Domain, BibleGateway.

God’s Glory in Light

We all have seen light in different forms. As we look into the sunlight, we know its bright and our blinded eyes will feel the effect, yet that light can be filtered to soft light and by its angle in the early morning as it rises upon the horizon. God’s light I imagine is bright, so bright that man would not be able to stand in his presence because of our corruptibility, but one day we will see Jesus, and our spirits will be fixed so that we can see God in his fullness. In this devotional I have given different ways of God’s glory in Light. Read on and enjoy.

First, God’s glory and the description of his glory is vast and deep. In 1 John 1:5, we read this about God’s glory.

“This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.”

There is no darkness in him because darkness in death. In his light there is light, hope, strength, love, confidence, mercy, grace, and faith. All of these are given to man if we are in communion with the Father.

God’s glory came to three of the disciples, James, Peter, and John, who were with Jesus upon the Mount of Configuration when Jesus was being strengthened before his death on the Cross. God came to them in a bright cloud and a voice came from the cloud. In Matthew 17:5 we read this from scripture.

“While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.”

God’s glory came to the shepherds and encapsulated them. His glory was all around them, and they were able to see and sense his glory, the reason they were afraid. His glory came in the form of an angel. Sitting here in my chair I am thinking God’s glory was working through the angel in order to be seen. I am thinking of Moses who could not see God’s face and live in the moment, and this is the reason for my thought. In Luke 2:9 tells this:

“And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.”

God’s glory was seen upon Mount Sinai, also known as Mount Horeb, and people could hear the voice of God. They looked up and could see his fire. Deuteronomy 5;24 gives evidence of this scene.

^“And ye said, Behold, the Lord our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth.”

Lastly for this devotional, God’s glory is seen through his Son Jesus. Jesus is the light sent to this earth to redeem man, and to provide salvation for man’s soul. Also, Jesus is the image of God. Some of the attributes of God seen in Jesus that I will give here to furtherance his image of God are light, holiness, anointing, and perfection. In 2 Corinthians 4:4

“In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.”

Jesus, the light of the world came to us, spent time with man, and he shared his word with his disciples so that his ministry and gospel would go on so that all men may hear, many to be drawn to his presence and experience his glory. Jesus was God coming to man giving hope to all that were downtrodden. When you think of God’s glory you will be thinking of Jesus.

Notes:

All scripture used is from the King James Version, Public Domain, Biblegateway

Troubles and Trials Shall Come, but there is Rest from the Storm

As I have spent my day listening to videos and taking care of needful things, my spirit hears the psalmist who wrote the 23rd Psalm. Who was this psalmist? He is a boy who defeated a giant, and grew to become king.

My thoughts on this psalm is how good God—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob has been good to me. I have had many troubles, trials, temptations, and the stress that life brings, but I am still here on Earth to testify that God gives peace and rest from all life’s storms.

God is my shepherd. One I can count on to come to me when I am in trouble, and always hears my cries. He is a father to me, and I am his child. He hears my distress in my voice, turns his ear, and says, “what is it my child?” I know I can trust God and tell him all my troubles because I have done so before, and he has always brought me through. God encompasses about me, protects me each day because I live in his covenant as a tithing, born again disciple. He is with me when I need and ask for knowledge, understanding, and wisdom so that I can mature and grow spiritually.

Jehovah is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures;
He leadeth me beside ^[a]still waters.
He restoreth my soul:
He guideth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Psalm 23: 1-3 ASV

God, my father and I have a special place we can go, a quiet place of my choosing, whether it be in the woods, my bedroom, or under my tallit. A place to listen to him after I have emptied my heart before him, and in this place I can find peace, and rest from the stress, the trouble that the devil has put me through, and also the distress I placed on myself.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of
he shadow of death,
I will fear no evil; for thou art with me;
Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.
Psalm 23: 4 ASV

He provides for me in every way, forgives, and restores me. He sets my feet again on the path of righteousness when I make a mistake, or sin, and I ask him to forgive me once again. There are times I find myself in darkness because of the sin when I stumble.

Trials come, and trials go, and I have learned to keep my eyes forward so that soon the trial will cease. These trials are learning periods of hard knocks which gives me the experience to teach others, and to steer them away from the path I sorrowfully took, so that these students will not go the path I once traveled.

He sets before me a table to dine, with fine linen cloth and tableware and treating me as royalty showing me grace, mercy, and love. My enemies observes his goodness and kindness by the actions of my living, and my light shines before men.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:
Thou hast anointed my head with oil;
My cup runneth over.
Psalm 23:5 ASV

Surely goodness and lovingkindness shall follow me all the days of my life;
And I shall dwell in the house of Jehovah ^[d]for ever.
Psalm 23:6 ASV

His love is forever, and I have favor as long as I stay in his covenant, revere, and respect him by obedience in keeping his covenant. Jehovah is my Lord, my Savior, and his son is the Messiah. Forever will I trust, love, and praise his name for the peace of knowing I will reach heaven.

Notes:

All scripture given has been taken from the American Standard Version, Public Domain, Biblegateway.

The Discovery of God’s Wonderful Plan of Forgiveness and Restoration

Everyday someone is looking for a discovery that one can apply to their life that will make their life meaningful with a destiny and purpose. Many look for years, but their answer may be in their bookshelf, a bookstore, church, or a friend who has discovered their destiny and purpose. Usually, it is the latter for people are social, and when they make a wonderful discovery they must run to tell it to others. Such is the discovery we will find in God’s plan of forgiveness and restoration. A wonderful plan, and a plan of beauty.

Beginning, God made a promise to Adam and Eve in Genesis 3:15, that he will put enmity between the seed of Satan and the seed of Eve, and this seed will bruise the head of Satan, and Satan will only bruise the enmity’s heel. Here, we see a promise of a messiah, that he is more powerful than Satan because it tells of Satan’s defeat, that is, in bruising Satan’s head. The bruising I believe is a physical strike against one another. Who is this enmity? We find out later in the New Testament that he is the Messiah Jesus.

And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
Genesis 3:15 KJV

God’s plan of Salvation was shown in scripture by Jesus going about healing, delivering, forgiving, and resurrecting within the land of Israel, mostly in the land of Galilee. In reading scripture we will see symbolism that shows that God feeds his children with physical food, but there is the feeding of one’s soul spiritually by the teaching of his commandments of the Torah, or the first five books of the Old Testament. Jesus’s name in Hebrew is yeshua, meaning to save, deliver, and redeem. All three are within God’s plan. How so? In Isaiah 61:1, Jesus quotes this verse to the synagogue in Nazareth and proclaims he is the messiah, that he is anointed to bring good news to the poor, bind up the broken-hearted, and proclaim freedom to those held captive in sin and darkness.

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
Isaiah 61:1 KJV

How did God in his plan bring about salvation that will provide forgiveness and restoration? He tells us that he loved us so much that he gave his son to die for us as a sacrifice, to shed his blood, blood that was not defiled by sin because this man was conceived of the Holy Ghost and Mary. Therefore, he was the perfect sacrifice because man’s seed was defiled by sin. He brought salvation to us through his blood by dying on a cross for all mankind. Only a pure source could be the sacrifice. If we believe upon Jesus who died for us on the cross we then will be saved, just like the thief on a cross next to Jesus who asked to be in paradise when Jesus came into his kingdom.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
John 3:16 KJV

How does forgiveness lead to restoration? When we are forgiven by God we will notice that a change has occurred within our spirit. Afterward, we know we must walk a different path, and to get into fellowship with other disciples of Jesus by attending church and fellowship to continue to grow. Many of us have had problems of addiction, sinned by adultery and fornication, bad relationships that has left us broken and hurt. All of this mess can lead to long term healing because it is emotional stress, guilt, and shame. We must be loved by others who have walked this path and have overcome all of it. What must we do? Stay on the road to restoration because God has a plan for us to bring us into hope and a purpose in our future. That plan is for us to work for his kingdom to bring others into it and to keep others from spending eternity in spiritual death in a place we all have heard of as hell. He uses our talents and gifts to minister to one another in order to fulfill our destiny. And remember this, going through restoration God will never leave you, nor forsake you. When we make the habit of reading God’s word to grow spiritually we will find that there will be times of difficulty, but don’t despair because these difficulties, or trials are designed to strengthen us and to bring us into a greater anointing and to a different fork on our road to restoration and spiritual perfection.

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

Jeremiah 29:11 KJV

Within this plan I see the beauty of God’s love, a wonderful plan that God brings us from a sinful, irreparable state to one of redemption, perfection, and life! We cannot do all of this along for it takes digesting God’s word —the Bible, prayer, and the counsel of godly friends and pastors. All we have to do is to have faith, walk the road of righteousness, and the mindset that we will make it, we will win the race and prove God’s wonderful plan of forgiveness and restoration.

Notes: All scripture given is taken from the King James Version Public Domain Biblegateway.

Listen Closely To What You Hear

In this world we are living in we must listen closely. We hear many things during the day by listening to people while at work or school, or we may be listening to TV show for news or an opinion. Truth may be spoken, or untruth. Whatever we hear we must think and begin to discern what is right or wrong. We must ask the question, what I heard is it true? Or is it wrong? We might say to ourselves that doesn’t sound right, or it makes me feel funny. My gut is telling me to go do some research and read up on the subject. We may find that we will have to read past history to understand an issue that we heard people talk about. We must be on our game.

And he said unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? and not to be set on a candlestick?
For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad.
If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.
²And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given.
Mark 4:21-24 KJV

We must show integrity when we talk to people because they may be activating the principles in the above paragraph. As Christians we must test the spirit to see if it is true, and to go to scripture to rightly divide. We must be alert because of the things we hear in this world is untrue. As a conversation is started we must tell the truth and project it. We must let our light shine while showing love and kindness to the world. We may encounter a sour spirit, or be contested when we speak the truths of God, but we must also be aware that the tests that come is telling us we are imparting truth, and these spirits do not like it. When people talk take note of their countenance. Through the eyes and the facial expressions will give you clues to whether what you are hearing is true, and whether or not they are of God’s kingdom. Make sure your countenance and your moods reflect the love of God as well, and that the word you have for that day for certain people is well received.

Those of us who are faithful and are walking in the righteousness of God must tune our spiritual ears, our spirits to hear God’s voice as he speaks to our minds—our souls. As God speaks he will give you sound bites, a measure of a word to give to people that speaks for them at a specific time.

We are to be careful of what we listen to because within a news story, a conversation, or just a sentence may vex, or upset your spirit, and you may lock down on that message and continue to play that over and over because it may offend you, or your heart is studying for the reason it was told to you. It may come to you in a manner that is unintended of offense, or deliberately. So listen closely to what you hear and receive. Truth can be spoken boldly, but propaganda can also be spoken boldly to gain entrance into your heart.

Those who are discerning will know the truth, because truth will bring joy. When people give of their hearts a good word, or of counsel then a blessing will come to them by the way of God, or by those whom they have helped. This is because they were careful to listen to the voice of God. How do I know if I am hearing the voice of God? Those of us who are followers and have God’s spirit within us will know because the Holy Spirit will bear witness with the other. Scripture tells us that we who are God’s children will know his voice.

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
John 10:27 KJV

Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
Luke 6:38 KJV

So, be careful to what you are listening to on TV, in a movie theater, or in a conversation. What we hear does affect us and our spiritual lives, which affects our personal lives as well. Remember, if you question what you hear research it, read God’s Word, and most of all pray about it and ask God for guidance.

Notes: All scripture given is taken from the King James Version Public Domain, Biblegateway.

Eternity: What is it?

Today, I am reflective. I have been wondering about eternity, what it is, and how it effects all of us. Man has pondered this question for centuries and the answers that man seeks is found in the Word of God—the Bible. As I read the scriptures today I wrote down my definitions for eternity. They are:

eternity is without time
time never ending
life as a continuance
eternity is continuance

Within scripture we find that the King James Version used the word “world” for eternity. Curious, I went to the Hebrew to find the word for world, and found the Hebrew word owlam. Here, this definition from the Strong’s Hebrew says eternity is time out of mind, or always. Eternity is perpetuation.

Is eternity used by God for us to hope for in terms of our obedience to gain from this sinful world? The answer is yes, but there is more to how God used the word eternity. In his word spoken by Solomon, the wisest man in the world, he spoke of eternity as a veil, that God used eternity to be set in the hearts of man to conceal the works of God so that man would not discover his works from the beginning to the end. Why would God, the God I call Jehovah and Jesus, conceal these works from man? Here are my thoughts:

If we were to know the works of God, or created to know the works of God we would work to make ourselves like him in spirit, and continue the pride set in us by sin, and this pride would be for eternity and render us unredeemable; meaning without the means of salvation.
God wants a relationship with man. The knowledge we have he wants us to search for him. Eternity in our hearts gives us an innate knowledge that we are eternal beings, whether we are good or evil.
It is a communication by God to man that God is real and exists. We are to receive this communication of knowledge by faith as well.
His desire to protect his image. We are made in his image and he wanted us to have a means of salvation. We are innocent and have not seen God’s reality has the angels have seen and experienced. He wanted us to be with him for eternity. He does not wish for anyone to perish.

He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 KJV

What other way would God use the word eternity? God speaks to us in his word of eternity in our “time” so that we can understand eternity. Peter wrote that a day is like, or is as, a thousand years. Is this literal? I perceive Peter is trying to explain eternity to man in terms of time that we will understand. There are people who believe that 1000 years is a day, but I think it is a comparison. Does eternity have a past? I think that eternity only has a past when God mentions it in his word, or refers to history on Earth. We think of time as past, present, and future. In our thinking we see a past because we have known a past in our dimension of time. Thousands of years to us will seem like eternity. God looks forward I do believe, and we should as well. Looking backward we see our failures, and that may angst our hearts if looked at negatively, or with a heart of a desire for the old life.

How will we know God’s definition of eternity, or “time”? The only way to explain this is to tell everyone to be obedient to God’s word, and at the end of our time on earth we will come to know God’s eternity when we enter it. No matter, we will enter eternity whether we are obedient or not, but our destination will be different if we do not obey his commandments. I want to know God’s eternity by living by faith, in righteousness, and know I have eternal life being able to see light, and partake of life in God’s eternity in his heavens, new universes and earth, and other planetary creations he has prepared for us.

Eternity is God. For he has been and always will be.

Yea, before the day was I am he; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand: I will work, and who shall let it?
Isaiah 43:13 KJV

Notes:

All scripture has been taken from the King James Version Public Domain Biblegateway.

messie3vie.fr website, Strongs H5769