Mark's Daily Reading Journal

Diane and I recently celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary...my celebration was that she has not left me!  Years ago I adopted Dr. Rogers line that he would say about his bride...that is that if Diane ever leaves me I am going with her:)  I would rather be with her than me!

It really seems insane to think that we have been married 25 years, it really feels more like 10...I think that is a good thing.  We were married in Springfield MO, in Phelps Grove rose garden.  I can vividly remember Diane coming into sight as I stood beside the Pastor...it was an amazing moment.  I thought that my heart was going to pound out of my chest, I was nervous, scared, excited...more than anything I was in awe that this beautiful, amazing girl was going to marry the likes of me!  I will never forget the surge of emotions, the intense power of the moment as she walked toward me...for an extended period of time it was as we were the only two people present...I was oblivious to everyone else, it was as if time stood still and we were the only two people in the universe.  I will never forget that moment when the Pastor said "I now pronounce you husband and wife, Mark you may kiss your Bride."

A few of you may be thinking, gee Mark, that was nice, thank you for the stroll down "your" memory lane...hey, no problem, don't mention it:)  This is  my blog anyway!  Just kidding, just kidding...

Since entering the ministry I have had the joy of officiating several weddings at Bellevue.  It is so cool, because in a sense I get to relive that moment through the couples I have been privileged to marry.  After weeks of premarital counseling, standing at the front of the chapel with the Groom is an intense moment.  A few of the Grooms I have stood with have begun to sway and hyperventilate as we stood waiting for the Bride to appear...at that moment I would place my hand on their back and calmly talk to them without moving my mouth.  Each time I was just praying that they would not fall out and faint on us:)  It never failed to happen...as the doors would swing open and the Bride came into view...you could just sense this intense joy in the Groom, sometimes they would vocalize it and quietly say something profound like..."WOW!"  It's fun stuff!

OK Mark, what is your point if you have one...thank you for asking.

In Zephaniah 3:17 God tells us that "The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”  It excites me to think that God takes delight in me...and the little I know of HIS love, I know that HE delights in me and you more than we delight in our own children.  Let that sink in HE delights in you more than you delight in your own children!

I still don't see what that has to do with getting married and weddings...please make your point Mark...ok, ok.  Here it comes, get ready, if you are not careful you will miss it!

In Isaiah 62:5 God teaches us about HIS delight in us, HIS children..."For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your sons marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you. 

Did you catch it?  "as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you."  Do you see the picture that is being painted of the intense joy God has for HIS OWN!  In Jeremiah 32:41 God tells us that, "I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul. 

Question...what does it look like when God does something for us with all HIS heart and All HIS soul?  It looks like Jesus on the Cross, it looks like Jesus, God the Son, HIS death, burial and resurrection...Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body (1 Cor 6:19-20).

Let us find great joy and peace in knowing that the God of the universe, our great God and King delights in you, HE delights in YOU!  Knowing that...let us rejoice in HIM...rejoice in the Lord, again I say rejoice...delight yourself in the Lord!

Philippians 1:27 caught my attention this morning...in the HCSB translation verse 27 begins, "just one thing."  Just one thing, let your manner of conduct be worthy of the gospel!  The little word "conduct" has its roots in the Greek word "politika."  Quite simply it means to live as a citizen.  When you and I travel to another country we don't lose our identity as US citizens, we may have to adapt to some degree in a foreign land, but you never forget that you are a citizen of the United States. 

Paul will press this point further in Philippians 3:20..."But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ."  Elsewhere Paul commands us to walk in the light...in Eph 5:8 he tells us that, "you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light, and in Philippians 2:15 we are commanded to do everything without complaining..."so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world."

So in verse 1:27, Paul is exhorting the Philippians to conduct themselves as citizens of heaven..."Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel"

We are commanded to live as citizens of heaven, as children of light in a dark and dying world...we are commanded to stand firm in ONE Spirit, with ONE mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel!  Over and over Paul exhorts us to stand firm in the faith...act like men!

1 Co 16:13  Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

Ga 5:1 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

Eph 6:11-14  Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

1 Th 3:8 For now we live, if you are standing fast in the Lord.

2 Th 2:15 So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter.

You may remember Paul's words in Eph 2:19, "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household."

I don't know about you, but by HIS grace I refuse to be chained and weighed down by my past, yes I have a past..."It is for freedom that Christ has set us free, if the son has set you free you are free indeed!"  Through the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ by faith I am free to live as a child of the King, I am free to live in the light of my future, not bound by my past...I am free to be what Jesus created me to be...an heir of God, a joint heir with Jesus Christ.

Peter flips the words and exhorts us to live as aliens and strangers to this world in 1 Pet 2:11, Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul.

Php 1:9-11 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Father in heaven,

complete the good work you began...for YOUR glory and our JOY in YOU!

love,

m

Are you a follower of Jesus?  Do you love Jesus?  Really?  How much time do you spend with HIM? 

I remember when Diane and I first met, we both were altering our schedules to have chance encounters with the other...it was so easy to spend hour after hour talking.  25 years later it's not so easy but we both still work to find time to talk...3 young children, life, ministry and stuff..."life comes at you fast."  However, if I made no effort, zero effort to talk to her to communicate in anyway but would tell her that I love her in passing do you think that she would believe me?  NO!

So on Sunday morning you and I sing sweet songs to and about Jesus, but I have to wonder how many times Jesus would look at me and say...“Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far away from Me (Mark 7:6).  An easy question to ask is what are you thinking about during the worship service?  What are you thinking about?  If you are not thinking about HIM you are not worshiping...you are worshiping in vain!

Do you remember what Jesus said in Rev 2:4-5 when HE was rebuking the churches...Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. 5 Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.

If you have never felt toward Jesus like you did when you were dating your spouse...the good stuff...you could not wait to be with them, you could talk for hours, an intense sweetness and intimacy in the relationship...if you have never experienced that with Jesus then you probably, PROBABLY, are not saved...you may not really know HIM and it is very likely that you are not known by HIM!

If you have felt that way, but it's just not the same now...then in Rev 2:4-5 HE is talking to you and HE is talking to me!  You have forsaken your first love...remember, remember...do the things that you did when you first met Jesus, remember from where you have fallen, repent, and do the things you did at first!

All that to point to Paul's last words in Ephesians...in Eph 6:24 Paul writes, "Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love."  As I read that I was blessed and then...I wondered what does Paul want to happen to those that do not love Jesus with an undying love?  Then I remembered his answer in 1 Co 16:21-22, I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand. 22 If anyone does not love the Lord—a curse be on him. Come, O Lord!

Paul...like a few friends of mine are blessed with the spiritual gift of frankness:)

What do you think about the most?  What is it that gets the best of your time, energy, talents, money?  Be careful if it is not Jesus...those are likely to be idols in your life.

Jeremiah 29:13  You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

Father in heaven,

Create in me a clean heart, Holy Spirit of God grant me an undivided heart for YOUR glory and my joy in YOU!  Finish the good work YOU began!

love,

m

As you contemplate God's Word you have to stand in awe, you cannot help be filled with wonder and amazement unless you are blind...spiritually blind...this book is breath taking, it is living and active, it is sharper than any two edged sword!  I know that we are in Isaiah, but I want to point out some of the places that Isaiah was quoted in the gospels.  Remember Isaiah was written around 600 BC.

John 12:35-43  Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. The man who walks in the dark does not know where he is going. 36 Put your trust in the light while you have it, so that you may become sons of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.

37 Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him. 38 This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet: “Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” 39 For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere: 40 “He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn—and I would heal them.” 41 Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him. 42 Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; 43 for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.

Some 700 years before Jesus birth, some 700 years before God incarnate dwells with us, some 700 years prior to Emmanuel taking on human flesh Isaiah 53 is penned under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and we are given in incredible detail a portrait of the the Suffering Servant, we are given a portrait of the Cross.

What do you do with this?  What do you do with the knowledge that "it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand (Isa 53:10)."  You will remember the testimony of John the Baptist in John 1:29, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" 

It is the gospel of Mark that paints the portrait of Jesus as the suffering servant, the focal point of Mark's gospel is Mark 10:45, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

How is it possible that God chose us in HIM before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in HIS sight?  How is it that HE predestined us to be adopted through Jesus Christ for HIMSELF according to HIS favor and will (Eph 1:4-5)?  I don't know how!  But we must receive it by faith and trust in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ...Eph 2ff. —it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

In Isaiah 53 we learn that it pleased God the Father to crush HIS only Son, in Jesus own words, HE testifies that HE came to serve and to give HIS live a ransom for many...it was all part of the plan set in the counsel of the Trinity before the foundation of the Word. 

What do you do with this?  YOU WORSHIP, YOU WORSHIP, YOU WORSHIP...HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is the Lord God almighty!

You respond like Isaiah did in chapter 6...“Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.”

Let's Worship Jesus, the Suffering Servant who willingly gave HIMSELF as a ransom for many!

love,

m

My computer locked up yesterday morning and I'm not sure if I am out of the woods yet...it is still doing strange things, but I am hopeful:)

OK, I am getting ready to walk down a winding path...please walk with me and don't get lost:) in the woods.  As I was prayerfully reading this morning my heart and mind kept overloading while reading and thinking on things like...Isa 50:4-5 "The Sovereign Lord has given me an instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being taught. 5 The Sovereign Lord has opened my ears, and I have not been rebellious; I have not drawn back."   As I am reading that I am praying and crying out for God to open my ears to hear HIS word this morning and to fill me with HIS Holy Spirit that I might listen like one being taught...and then I have barely caught my breath and I read Eph 4:24 "to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."  Does that blow you away?  In precious few words we are told to "put on," (something I do) the new self "created," (something God did and does) to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.  If my head could spin...it would be spinning now!  I really don't think I come close to understanding what that means!  I WANT TO KNOW, I WANT TO KNOW HIM!

OK, stay with me now...So I am being blown away by Isaiah and Ephesians and then my eyes pass over Psalm 69:9 "for zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult you fall on me.  You may remember this from John 2:17 when Jesus cleared the temple of the money changers and John records this in his gospel under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit..."His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”"

Still with me...then my A.D.D brain bounced to the blog posting a few days ago..."MINE."  Remember how we talked about that God is jealous and zealous for HIS OWN, no one will snatch HIS children out of HIS hand...no one!  Why is he so jealous for rebellious, fallen, sinful people...like me?  Why?  I am unspeakably delighted and glad that HE is...but why?  I believe that I see it a little better this morning.

Check out the verses below...don't get mad at me, but the church buildings are nothing...God's people assembled together...that is the Church!  So if the people of Bellevue gather together at Pickwick that is the church.

1 Cor 3:16  Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

1 Cor 6:19  Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?

2 Cor 6:16  Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, “I will dwell in them and walk among them; And I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

Heb 8:10  “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel After those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds, And I will write them on their hearts. And I will be their God, And they shall be My people.

So we know that the church is not the buildings, but the church is the people that make up the church.  We will learn in 1 Peter 2:5 that as individual believers and followers of Christ we are..."as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

OK, STILL WITH ME?  We are the church, the temple, you and I are living stones being built up and Jesus is consumed with a zeal for God's house, Jesus is jealous for us!  MAKE ONE MORE LEAP WITH ME...COME ON, YOU CAN DO IT, DON'T GIVE UP NOW, WE ARE ALMOST THERE!

We have to reach back and look at the end of our reading in Isaiah yesterday...why does God delay HIS wrath?  Why doesn't God cut them off?

Is 48:9-11 For my own name’s sake I delay my wrath; for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you, so as not to cut you off. 10  See, I have refined you, though not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. 11  For my own sake, for my own sake, I do this. How can I let myself be defamed? I will not yield my glory to another.

OK, this is super cool, but only if it connects in your heart and mind.  The reason Jesus is consumed with zeal for HIS house, zeal for you and me, zeal for the adopted children of God is because HIS glory is on the line!  AND HE WILL NOT BE DEFAMED!  HE WILL NOT!  In HIS manifold wisdom, you and I are a part of displaying HIS glory.  Why is this so awesome?  NO more do I have to wonder why he would use someone like me, no more do I have to think that HE could not use someone like me.  HE DOES IT FOR HIS OWN GLORY!  Listen, listen, listen, being HIS child and being used by HIM depends completely on HIM...not on anything HE sees in me...it is all of GRACE...

please see this, please see this...it is incredible freeing in HIM.  I know that HE will complete the good work HE began in me because HIS glory is on the line and so I joyfully rest knowing that HE WILL NOT BE DEFAMED, HE WILL NOT GIVE HIS GLORY TO ANOTHER.

love

m

Paul's prayer for the Ephesians has been one of my favorite prayers and one of my favorite passages for many years.  I remember several years ago being stuck on verse 19...praying and thinking and meditating on those words..."to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge."  I remember praying, "Father, how can you ask me to know something that passes my knowledge?"  I will come back to this in a moment.

Paul is pointing out that the Jews and Gentiles have been brought into the same family through the blood of the Messiah, that the hostilities have been removed in Christ Jesus, we who were without hope and without God, now have access by one Spirit to the Father!  So Paul is showing the unity we now have in Christ and he is showing his ministry to the Gentiles and how God's manifold wisdom may now be made known through the Church!  These truths and more lead him to break out in prayer and praise to God the Father.

Eph 3:14-21 For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— 19 to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, 21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

I can only imagine what Paul experienced during his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus...I believe that he witnessed the "riches of HIS glory" and as a result was "strengthened with might through HIS Spirit in HIS inner man."  Can you imagine having an encounter like Paul, or Isaiah in Isaiah 6, or how about Moses, who talked to God face to face, what about Job in Job 42:5-6 “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. 6  Therefore I abhor myself, And repent in dust and ashes.”

Paul longs for the Ephesians, by the inward working of the Holy Spirit, to know, to KNOW the riches of HIS glory in their inner man by faith, to comprehend with all the saints, (corporate fellowship, worship etc.) to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 

Think about this for a moment...our being filled with the fullness of God depends on our knowing the love of Christ which passes knowledge.  I don't remember how long I had to wrestle with this...but I recall thinking Father, are you telling me that to experience fullness in my relationship with YOU I have to do something that I can't do?  I was stuck!

Then in the year 2,000 Diane and I were at a going away party for some friends.  We were at the Church in a large open area with about 80 people standing around talking.  Diane was holding Zachary, who was 6 months old at the time, it was early afternoon on a Sunday and he was extremely tired.  I'm sure all of you have witnessed the 6 month old tired head bobble, their eyes close, head drops and then pops back up again.  It is amazing how long they can do this before passing out on your shoulder.  There we were surrounded by a crowd of people, everyone talking and enjoying the fellowship...all the while I have one eye on Diane and Zach.  Diane's back is to me, so I am watching Zach's little head bop up and down...thinking how cute he is and at that moment from about 30 feet away, through several people Zach sees me and his little tired face lights up and he grins from ear to ear...He saw his Daddy!  If you are a Daddy you know what that did to my heart...those are sweet memories.

During the next few days during my quite times with the Lord it hit me like a ton of bricks...NOW STAY WITH ME ON THIS...When Zachary saw my face and his face lit up at 6 months old it showed that he KNEW A LOVE THAT PASSED HIS CURRENT KNOWLEDGE!  His knowledge of me at that moment was very limited, he had no clue that every resource at my disposal would be deployed and used on his behalf if needed.  But at 6 months old he had a KNOWLEDGE OF THE LOVE OF HIS DADDY THAT PASSED HIS KNOWLEDGE!  Today Zachary is 9, his knowledge is much deeper, he has a better grasp on my love for him, he still does not fully understand...for him I believe that will come when he has his own children.

So, I love this, you and I can know the love of Christ which passes knowledge...THAT WE MAY BE FILLED WITH THE FULLNESS OF GOD!  WOW!  Let this smack you upside the head...is it any wonder that after sharing this Paul broke out in a doxology...20 Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, 21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. at

OH Father in heaven,

open the eyes of our hearts that we may see, delight, enjoy YOU and the fullness that you long to pour into YOUR children...enable us to know YOUR love that passes knowledge!

love,

m

How awesome...today's reading in Isaiah includes my hospital passage!  Hospital passage, what do you mean Mark?  I might as well go ahead and tell you, if you ever end up in the hospital and I come to visit you this is the passage I will read and pray.  I typically reserve this passage for dire health conditions so if I read this passage to you in the hospital be afraid, be very afraid...the end is near:)

You might wonder why I would choose this as my hospital passage...or you might not!  Check this out, you may want to make it your hospital passage too:)  This is amazing to me...I know, everything is amazing to me...Take a look at what God tells us in Isaiah 43:1 But now, this is what the Lord says— he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.  I have called you by name, you are mine!  I don't know about you, but I am very encouraged to know that God is jealous over me with a godly jealously!  I want HIM to look and me and say "MINE."  The more I know about HIM the more exciting it is to know that that in verse 21 HE says "the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise."  HE formed us for HIMSELF that we may proclaim HIS praise...HE formed us for HIMSELF that we may proclaim HIS praise...boy that sounds familiar, it seems like I just read that yesterday...hmmmmmm.  OH, I did in Ephesians 1:5-7, what did Paul write?  He predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace."  It is the riches of God's grace that transforms us, it is the redemption through his blood that allows us to enter through Jesus, through the door, through the gate and be called HIS OWN, transformed into HIS sheep.  Jesus paints this picture beautifully in John 10:27-31 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. 30 I and My Father are one.”  Even at deaths door I have a purpose!  It is to know that HE, Yahweh, formed me and created me to proclaim HIS praise...I was dead in my sins and trespasses, but Jesus made me alive together with HIMSELF in the heavenlies...HE called me out of darkness into HIS marvelous light...by grace I was saved!  THANK YOU JESUS!

Remember we are in the hospital...if I am getting ready to be cut on or I am standing at deaths door, it is good to know that God the Father is very possessive over me...Amen!  It is really good news to know that you are in HIS righteousness right hand...Jesus, and no one is able to snatch you out, that includes you...you can't take yourself out of HIS hand!

If your situation is really bad I will add these verses...John 6:37...“All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. " If someone is uncertain of their salvation or if they are having doubts this is a great verse...come to Jesus, come to Jesus, if you come he will not turn you away, he will not cast you out, but you must come! 

All of this flowing from God tell me that HE created me, that HE formed me and that HE has called me by name and I belong to HIM!

One last thought!  In John 16:33 Jesus promises us tribulation in this world, “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.”  Our hope and courage comes knowing that this is not our home, we are passing through to our eternal home that Jesus is preparing for those that love HIM.  In Isaiah 43:2 it is vital to notice that God tells us..."when you pass through, when you pass through...NOT IF, BUT WHEN...I WILL BE WITH YOU!  "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you."

HE promises HIS presence and it is more than enough if we will have eyes to see and ears to hear!

Rejoice in knowing, provided you know, that you are HIS!

Your fellow partaker of the divine nature!

m 

About 3 years ago I was on vacation with my family at Orange Beach in Alabama...we were staying at one of the Condo's on the beach, Alexis was about 9 months old and the boys would have been 6 and 4:)  As you might imagine with the children at that age we had a ton of stuff with us and while we were down at the beach Diane and I were constantly on high alert.  Normally sitting on the beach is very relaxing, soothing and calming...but not with 3 little ones that are clueless to the dangers just a few feet away!  There are countless directions that I could go right now, but I will resist the temptation and labor to stay on target:)

The point I want to make is that my quite times were especially sweet because I could sit on the balcony delighting in my great God and HIS creation with HIS Word and a cup of coffee without being on high alert...I was blessed with some sweet time with my Lord where I could focus heart, mind and soul on HIM and HIM alone!

One of the mornings I was reading in Isaiah and I ran across our passage from this morning, specifically Isaiah 40:12..."Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance?"  When my eyes ran across "who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand," I look out at the Gulf of Mexico, (a relatively small body of water) and thought WOW!  Not only does the gulf, but the Atlantic, Pacific, and every other body of water fits into the hollow of HIS hand!

I sat there on the balcony for some time contemplating this great God who has adopted me, who died for me, who became poor that you and I might become rich in HIM...I sat there gazing at this body of water, watching the sunrise, realizing that HE dwarfs HIS own creation and that HE is sovereign, absolutely sovereign and governs HIS creation with the providential care of a gentle shepherd (Isa. 40:11).

I was caught up in the moment, lost in HIM, if you know what I mean and then I heard a tapping sound on the glass behind me...startled, I turned quickly to see 4 sleepy eyes, my two boys, 4 and 6 standing in their jammies...the 4 year old was holding meme, his blanket and the other holding bunny, as you might expect, it's a bunny:)  A few moments later they are both on my lap and we are all watching the sunrise...it was a sweet time with my boys.

I asked them to look at all the water out there...and then I asked them, "hey guys, what do you think would happen if Daddy scooped up as much water in his hands at the beach...would anything happen?"  They both looked at me a little puzzled.  I asked them, "would the water level drop if I scooped up as much water as I could in my hands?"  The 4 year old shrugged his shoulders and the 6 year old rolled his eyes and said, "that's silly Daddy...of course it wouldn't drop...look how much water is out there."

Then I read Isaiah 40:12 to them......"Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?"  I pointed out that God measured ALL the waters in the hollow of HIS hand...and that it did not say that it even filled the hollow of HIS hand, just that HE measured it in the hollow of HIS hand. 

It was so cool to watch their eyes, especially my 6 year old who seemed to grasp the concept...their eyes got really big, REALLY BIG!

This is my prayer for me and it is my prayer for you...what Mark?  I must confess that there was so much awe-striking beauty and glory in our readings today, I was in sensory overload...it took my breath away!  Then the prayer came as I remember my boys eyes as they began to grasp the immensity of God...remember at 4 and 6 Daddy is huge in their eyes...to make a leap to contemplate someone that makes your Dad look like a dust speck is awe-striking for a child.  BUT THAT IS IT...that is were I want to live, breath, drink in deeply of the living waters and remain in awe of the one who saved me, the one who makes me look like much less than a dust speck. 

What else can you do when you read God's Word in 1 Peter 1:23-25 where Peter quotes Isaiah 40:7-8  "For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. 24 For, “All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, 25 but the word of the Lord stands forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you.  What else can you do when you read that "HE chose us in HIM before the foundation of the world."  Or that "in HIM we have redemption through HIS blood, the forgiveness of sins"  Or to know that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead is currently at work in those who believe (Eph 1:19-20).

I hope and pray that as HIS promises penetrate your heart and my heart that we are filled to overflowing with a childlike wonder, awe, adoration of our heavenly Abba, Father and Daddy!

1 Jn 2:17  The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.

Jeremiah 29:13  You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Pursuing HIM together!

love,

m

God is so awesome!  Our topic today in Bible Fellowship (Adult Sunday School) and our Pastor's sermon is about fervent prayer...what do you think we find in our reading in Isaiah today but two fervent prayers from King Hezekiah. 

Several years ago on of the Pastors at Bellevue asked me to teach a DiscipleLife (Wednesday evening class) class on transforming your prayer life, like an idiot I agreed.  Why would you call yourself an idiot Mark?  This was in 1996 or 1997, I had only been teaching about a year, I was a year or more away from entering seminary and the biggest issue is that this was the pre-children era for Diane and me.  What does that have to do with teaching a class on transforming your prayer life?  Let me put it this way...all of the scripture I have memorized concerning prayer have been invaluable in my prayer life, the many books I have read have been a great help, spending time with men and women of prayer has been a great motivator in my prayer life...BUT NOTHING HAS MOVED ME TO MY FACE, PROSTRATE BEFORE GOD IN PRAYER LIKE MY KIDS!  NOTHING HAS TRANSFORMED MY PRAYER LIFE LIKE MY CHILDREN!  My friends keep telling me..."you haven't see anything yet, just wait till High school and college:)

I believe that any deep water, that in any life storm God can, will and does work to transform HIS adopted children into the likeness of HIS Son.  Remember Romans 8:29  "For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren."  This can be a financial storm...many across our country are experiencing financial storms right now.  This can be a storm in our health or the health of a loved one...spouse, child, parent, etc.  This can be a storm in our relationships with our spouse, children, parents, etc. 

In Isaiah 36-38 Hezekiah and Jerusalem are facing certain and horrific disaster at the hand of Sennacherib, the king of Assyria.  The circumstances facing them spell out absolute and complete defeat!  What does Hezekiah do?  He sends word to Isaiah looking to God in desperation for help.

Isaiah 37:5-7 When King Hezekiah’s officials came to Isaiah, 6 Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master, ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid of what you have heard—those words with which the underlings of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. 7 Listen! I am going to put a spirit in him so that when he hears a certain report, he will return to his own country, and there I will have him cut down with the sword.’ ”

Hezekiah receives a letter from the messengers...what does he do then?  He prays!

Is 37:14-22 Hezekiah’s Prayer

14 Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: 16 “O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. 17 Give ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes, O Lord, and see; listen to all the words Sennacherib has sent to insult the living God. 18 “It is true, O Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste all these peoples and their lands. 19 They have thrown their gods into the fire and destroyed them, for they were not gods but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands. 20 Now, O Lord our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all kingdoms on earth may know that you alone, O Lord, are God.” 21 Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent a message to Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Because you have prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria, 22 this is the word the Lord has spoken against him:

What do we take away from this?  God loves to move on behalf of HIS children to demonstrate HIS glory, power and great love.  Hezekiah took the letter...you and I can take God's Word and spread it out before HIM and cry out to HIM over the promises of HIS Word.  We cry out not for the pleasures of this World, for they are fleeting and will be consumed like wood, hay and stubble.  No we cry out for HIS glory, we boast only in the cross and we cry out for God to demonstrate HIS great power in our presence that the world may know and come to the only one who can save and come to the one true God in and through HIS Son Jesus Christ.

Is 37:36-38 Then the angel of the Lord went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies! 37 So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh and stayed there. 38 One day, while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisroch, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer cut him down with the sword, and they escaped to the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son succeeded him as king.

God answered Hezekiah's prayer, quickly, decisively and in a dramatic fashion! 

I wonder what is going on in your life and in my life that God is seeking to use to transform us into the image of HIS SON?

love,

m

Don't leave Earth without HIM!

As I was slowly walking through the readings for today, taking my time enjoying the sights, sounds and smells through Isaiah, Galatians, Psalms and Proverbs...I was making notes, prayerfully reading and rereading...in Galatians I backed up a couple of chapters to keep the context and then in Proverbs it was like a bomb going off!  Draw near to God and let your words be few!

Proverbs 23:23-25--Get the truth and never sell it; also get wisdom, discipline, and good judgment. 24  The father of godly children has cause for joy. What a pleasure to have children who are wise. 25 So give your father and mother joy! May she who gave you birth be happy.

What is he talking about get "the truth and never sell it?"  Do you remember Pro 4:7...Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom.  Though it cost all you have, get understanding.  More recently we read the following in Pro 18:15, The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge; the ears of the wise seek it out.

Do you recall what our Lord said in Matt 13:44 in the parables of the hidden treasure and the pearl?  “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.   A few chapters later Jesus laments in Matt 16:26
“For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?  Sadly men are anxious to settle for much less than the whole world in exchange for their soul.

Remember Jesus is the truth...HE clearly tells us in John 14:6 “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."  Who can forget John's testimony concerning Jesus in John 1:14, The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Oh get the truth and never sell HIM, get truth and cling to HIM, get the truth and pursue HIM!  Is there anything on your heart and mind more than HIM?  Oh be careful...you very well may be selling your soul for THAT!

love,

m

Let's pursue HIM together!

Freedom is not free!  It is for freedom that Christ has set you free!  FREE?  Free from what?  Free for what?  Jesus, speaking about HIS word said to the Jewish people in John 8:32, "you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”  A few verses later HE says “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.  In Romans 8:15 Paul teaches that "you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!”  How awesome to KNOW that we are no longer slaves to sin...we are sons of the KING!  In 2 Cor 3:17 says something similar...Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.  When the Holy Spirit takes up residence in the heart of a human the heart of stone is ripped out and replaced with a heart of flesh.  Mark, that sounds a little radical, sounds like you are talking about heart transplants...YEP!  I went to the creator of the heart for my heart transplant!  Have you not read what Ezekiel wrote in Ezekiel 36:26 “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

Remember what Paul wrote in Gal 2:4?  But it was because of the false brethren secretly brought in, who had sneaked in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, in order to bring us into bondage.  It is amazing that everyone in the chains of bondage gets mad at you if you don't love and wear their particular brand of chains!  Paul warns us in Gal 5:13 not to abuse our freedom, "For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

Let's consider our reading in Psalm 63 this morning...I believe that we are free in Christ  to experience what we see in Psalm 63!  In Christ we are free to enjoy, delight in, rejoice in our right relationship with God the Father through Jesus Christ as we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God.  In Psalm 90:14 the Psalmist cries out, "O satisfy us in the morning with Your lovingkindness, That we may sing for joy and be glad all our days."  Only God Himself can satisfy the itching, burning, craving soul that has been aroused by the Holy Spirit!  We seek satisfaction in so many things or relationships, but the human heart was created by its creator with a God shaped vacuum that ONLY GOD can fill!  HIS true children are consumed with a hunger for HIM...and the more they pursue HIM and the more they feed on HIM, the bread of life, the more they want!

What did this look like in the life of David, "O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; My soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, In a dry and weary land where there is no water."  How awesome to see David expressing his hunger, thirst  and desire for God!  In verse 2 David tells us, "Thus I have seen You in the sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory."   Remember Jesus prayer before going to the Cross in John 17:24?  “Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world."  If the Son has set you free you are free to behold HIS glory, the eyes of your heart have been open and you may behold the ONE who has set you free, you may gaze upon the one who died in your place.

It is only after the eyes of your heart have beheld the glory of your Savior...it is only after "the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" that you will be able to see and that you will be able to say what David said.  Unless you behold HIS glory you CANNOT SAY...Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise You.  In verse 3 David is saying that God's saving grace is better than life...a human cannot say that and believe it unless he has beheld the King of kings and looked on HIS face.

It is only in Christ that we are free to rightly relate to God the Father and it is only in Christ that we may rightly relate with each other.  Let me put it this way...IT IS IMPOSSIBLE for a husband and wife to experience true oneness, true intimacy, (physical, emotional, spiritual) without a right relationship with God! 

Father in heaven, enable me to pursue YOU, enable my soul to cling to You; I praise YOU that Your right hand upholds me. 

John 10:27-30  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. 30 I and My Father are one.”

Hurricane Ike was of special interest for me since I have family from Clear Lake to Conroe, (20 mile north of Houston) and Dallas.  I began watching the radar around 3:30 a.m. the morning Ike made landfall and was crying out to God on behalf of my family and all those in Ike's path.  A day or two later I saw a man being interviewed on Galveston Island that rode out the storm because he wanted to surf the morning after the storm.  During the interview he became emotional because he had left some neighbors in his home to head for higher ground...the emotions came because he did not know if they had survived the storm!  He deeply regretted trying to ride out the storm and confessed it was a horrible mistake, one that he would not make again.

Thanks for the update Mark, what does that have to do with our Bible reading for today?

Consider the provision that our government made to rescue people from the coming storms, from Gustav and from Ike.  Phenomenal resources were deployed to rescue and move people from the path of the storm...many did not listen.  Around 40% of the residents of Galveston Island did not leave!  Officials were telling them to write their name and social security number on their arms so that they could be identified after the storm!

NOW consider the provision that God has made through HIS Son!  God the Father sent God the Son to seek and to save that which was lost!  HE deployed a phenomenal, breathtaking, glorious resource...HIS SON to remove us from the path of the storm.  To rescue us HE had to drink down the full strength of the storm...HE took my place in the storm to rescue me!  A storm is coming the likes of which this world has never witnessed...experiencing Ike will be like a day at Disney World compared to the coming Wrath of God!  People will long to die because of the horrors, but death will elude them.  Gee Mark thanks for the upbeat devotional:)  Keep this in mind as Paul continues with the theme of promise in Galatians!

We learn that we are heirs according to the promise, our being heirs is the result of a promise and we are children of promise!  In Gal 4:4-7 Paul teaches us that "when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” 7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

Man I hope this smokes your hardware...being saved from the storm is REALLY good news...RIGHT?  OH, by the way, the Creator, sustainer, Maker of the Universe is your Abba, Daddy, Father!  OH, and HE sent HIS Son to die in your place...OH yea, you are partakers of the divine nature!  THAT KIND OF NEWS CANNOT BE PROCESSED WITH THE PHYSICAL EQUIPMENT YOU AND I HAVE.  THAT KIND OF NEWS CAN ONLY BE RECEIVED BY FAITH!  PLEASE TELL ME THAT LEAVES YOU IN AWE OF HIM!

What is the escape route?  What is the evacuation route from the coming storm?  If you read Proverbs today you read in Pro 23:19, Hear, my son, and be wise; And guide your heart in the way.

With Hurricane Ike there were multiple evacuation routes...with God's coming wrath there is only one!  ONLY ONE!  JESUS!  Remember what Jesus said in Matt 7:13-14 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.  Jesus says this again in different words in the gospel of John when HE said in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.

I love in Gal 4:9 where Paul says, "But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God..."  The real question is not do you know God, do you have a head knowledge...remember that the demons believe and tremble...the question is do you know HIM intimately and does HE know YOU?  It is amazing to think that there will be preachers that will hear Jesus say, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’ Matt 7:23

For those that have by grace have been saved through faith, that have believed and received the gift of God Paul tells us his passion and goal for the children of the promise...In Gal 4:19 Paul writes, "My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you." 

Praise God we are saved from the coming storm...but it is so much more, it is so much more...remember what Paul wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in Romans 8:29-30  For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

Who do you and I know that is in the path of the coming storm...what are you going to do about it?   What am I?

Your fellow partaker of the divine nature!

love,

m

Paul teaches us in Gal 3:22 that, "the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.  Think about this...you and I were confined under sin by SCRIPTURE, BY SCRIPTURE so that THE PROMISE might be given to us by faith who believe.  I don't have time to dive into that...but I pray that you did not blow by those words as you read...like I did:)  You and I were confined under sin by scripture!  The next thing that POPS IS The word promise and promises shows up multiple times in Galatians 3.  Take a look!

As I was reading through those verses my mind ran to 2 Peter 1:2-4 where Peter tells us that "Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3 as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

So in Galatians we learn that we were confined under sin by scripture so that the PROMISE might be given to us by faith to those who believe and here in 2 Peter we learn that in and through the promise and promises we are invited to be partakers of the divine nature.  PLEASE LET THAT HIT YOU LIKE A HURRICANE!

BE QUITE!  BEEEE QUIET!  BE STILL!  LISTEN!  LISTEN TO YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER!

Pursuing HIM...your fellow partaker of the divine nature!

Through out the year I have avoided the most popular verses looking to the obscure to find and mine out those precious jewels in God's Word.  However, with today's reading I just can't help myself...I must look at Galatians 2:20, but let's back up one verse and start a 2:19.  Paul writes, "For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”

Why back up one verse, because that one verse is the whole point...our entire life is to be lived to God!  Galatians 2:20 tells us how it is that we who are dead in our sins "might live to God."  We are free to live to God because we have been crucified with Christ...I believe that Paul teaches us something similar in Romans 6:4...what do you think?  "Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.  A few verses later Paul tells us to consider yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus, he teaches us to offer ourselves to God as weapons of righteousness!  I know it has been a little while, but do you remember what Paul wrote in 1 Cor. 12:13?  "For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body— whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.

Do you see it?  I have been crucified with Christ, therefore I die and I am buried with Him through baptism unto death...walking in newness of life made to drink of the Spirit.  Therefore, it is no longer I who live, but Christ in me.  I never could live the Christian life and I never will be able to live the Christian life, BUT if idie then HE lives in me!  The way that iknow that HE lives in me is a life of faith and faithfulness!  Why do you say faithfulness?  Don't you know Mark, that the righteous shall live by faith!  Grab a good bible dictionary and checkout Habakkuk 2:4, any good study bible should point this out...if you check this verse out in the Hebrew it is "the righteous shall live by faithfulness."

Here is the definition from the Theological Word Book of the Old Testament.

116.0 !m;a' (°¹man) to confirm, support, uphold (Qal); to be established, be faithful (Niphal); to be certain, i.e. to believe inHiphil). (ASV, RSV usually the same. One notable exception is Gen 15:6 where RSV has "believed," while ASV has "believed in." )

(116a) !m,ao (°œmen) faithfulness.

What is the difference Mark?  Why make a big deal about this?  Meet me on the other side of the following verses:) 

Habakkuk 2:4 "Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.
Romans 1:17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith."
Galatians 2:19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God.
Galatians 3:11 Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for "The righteous shall live by faith."
Galatians 3:12 But the law is not of faith, rather "The one who does them shall live by them."
Galatians 5:5 For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness.
1 Thessalonians 5:8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.
1 Timothy 2:15 Yet she will be saved through childbearing- if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control.
Hebrews 10:38 but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him."
Hebrews 11:9 By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise.

What did James teach us about faith?  In James 2:17 he wrote, "Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself."  It is hard to forget what he wrote in James 2:26 "For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead."

What is your point Mark?  The point is that if you have an encounter with the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, if you meet the Lamb of God that was slain before the foundation of the world...if you meet Jesus and you die and He begins to live in you...YOUR LIFE WILL NOT LOOK THE SAME AS IT DID BEFORE!  If Christ is in you, the hope of glory YOU WILL LIVE BY FAITHFULNESS...not perfectly, but faithfully!

So often Paul comes across like a mad man!  It is amazing how many battles and how many battle fronts he maintained.  At this moment in Galatians we see him fighting and rebuking legalism, the "traditions of men" and in other places the battle rages against idolatry in its countless forms.  The amazing thing is that he is always battling for others and not for himself!  Remember what he told the Corinthians in 2 Cor. 11:2?  "For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, so that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin."  He is jealous that he might present them to Christ and here in Galatians 2:5 we see his fight is to maintain the truth of the gospel...he put it this way, "we did not yield submission even for an hour, that the truth of the gospel might continue with you."

Think about the fact that you have unconverted Paul on his way to Damascus seeking to destroy the Church, Paul has an encounter with Jesus Christ and he is transformed!  I believe that Moses, Isaiah, Job and others encountered Jesus and they were transformed...radically transformed!  You might even say that they are new creatures, new creations!

Two thoughts are haunting me...yes haunting!  How is it that there are so many that can say that they know and love Jesus, they say that they have a relationship with HIM and yet they continue unchanged, living like the world?  How is this possible?  It does not reconcile with the Bible...does it?  Where is the transformed life?  Are they followers of Christ?  Are they carnal?  Are they deceived?

The other haunting thought is where is the passion for Jesus?  I see a passion for "our way of life," but I don't see much passion for HIM, to know HIM and make HIM known. 

I long to burn with a zeal that is white-hot, a burning zeal and passion for Jesus Christ...but that burning zeal must be according to knowledge...right...it must be according to HIS precious Word.  I long to know HIM as HE is...not as I want HIM to be!

I acknowledge that without Jesus Mark Gates would spend eternity in hell and that is what I deserve and that would be right, just and fair...as a matter of fact anything better would be unjust because that is what I deserve for the countless sins I have committed.  I also acknowledge that just one sin that I have committed would be sufficient to send me to hell for all eternity.

I rejoice in knowing that Jesus took my place and became sin for me so that I might become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, I celebrate the fact that God the Father adopted me as his son and I am now and heir and a joint heir with Jesus Christ!  This is incredible news, this is good news, this is the gospel! 

When you see it, taste it, smell it and receive it by faith you cannot walk away unchanged and unmoved...transformed!  If you do then you are still lost in your sins! 

Ps 143:2 Do not enter into judgment with Your servant,  For in Your sight no one living is righteous.

Ro 3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

Ga 2:16 knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.

Come to Jesus and live!

In Galatians 1:4-5 we learn that Paul is giving testimony of the rescue mission of the triune God, he is giving testimony of the Son of God entering this world to seek and to save that which was lost.  Paul tells us that Jesus is the one "who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen."

What is the present evil age?  It is the current world system!  Are you and I carried away by the currents and concerns of this world and this life?  What did Jesus tell us in Matt 13:22?  HE put it this way, "As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful."  Remember Paul's warning to the Christians in Rome?  "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." 

Jesus died on the cross to deliver us from the present evil age, HE came to give sight to the blind, HE came to open the eyes of the hearts of those who would believe in and follow HIM.  The god of this world desperately wants to keep people groping in darkness, blind to the truth of the gospel...remember Paul's words in 2 Cor 4:4, In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Paul uses some amazing language in Galatians 1:15-16, this is not the time or place to dive into the theology packed in these words, but simply to enjoy and delight in their beauty and to be amazed at their implications for you and me!  What does he say that is so amazing?  Here it is..."But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, 16 was pleased to reveal his Son in me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone;

Paul acknowledges that God almighty set him apart before he was born and then called him by HIS grace!  If you don't see that as massive, as life changing, please stop taking drugs and wake up...I say that in love:)  THIS IS HUGE!  We have similar words in other places in God's Holy Word!

Isa 49:1 The Lord called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name.

Je 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

Ac 9:15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.

Ro 1:1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,

Ga 1:6  I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—

THE MAIN POINT THIS MORNING IS God set you and I apart, HE called us by HIS grace NOT FOR SELF AND SELF GRATIFICATION...BUT TO reveal HIS SON in you and me!  Paul tells us that God was pleased to reveal HIS Son in him...OH Father in heaven, "I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints"...OH God, "make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory."

THERE ARE NO WORDS TO DO THIS JUSTICE...God the Father is pleased to reveal HIS Son to this dark and dying world system through you and me...it pleases HIM for HIS Son to be incarnate in you and me.  YOU AND I MUST BE BROKEN OPEN FOR THE FRAGRANCE OF CHRIST TO PERMEATE OUR LIVES AND TO PERMEATE OUR CIRCLES OF INFLUENCE.

Pursuing HIM together!

love,

m

Distracted is the word of the moment, I am distracted with hurricane Ike, at this moment Ike is passing over my family and millions of people in the Houston area.  I praised God for our reading in Psalm 57 this morning...I take refuge in YOU...until danger passes.  That is appropriate for the moment.  My prayer this morning for them has been Psalm 57...that their refuge is in the hand of God, that they would be protected in the shadow of HIS wing until the danger passes.  Over and over David cried out to God in the midst of physical crisis.  We should cry out too!

Psalm 57:1-3 Be gracious to me, God, be gracious to me, for I take refuge in You. I will seek refuge in the shadow of Your wings until danger passes. 2 I call to God Most High, to God who fulfills ⌊His purpose⌋ for me.  3 He reaches down from heaven and saves me, challenging the one who tramples me.  Selah   God sends His faithful love and truth.

There is much joy in knowing that God did send HIS faithful love and truth, HIS name is Jesus!  Jesus is the way, the truth and the life..."For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."   The joy is in knowing that regardless what happens to us while we are on this planet, for those in Christ Jesus, this is not our final destination, this is not our home...we are aliens and strangers passing through. 

Just before David tells us that God "sends His faithful love and truth" he also tells us that he is calling to God "who fulfills His purpose for me."  It is stated a little differently in Psalm 138:8, The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.  In Psalm 57:2 it is stated again, I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.  Don't forget Paul's words in Philippians 1:6, And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

It is the storms of life that remind us and keep us on our faces before Holy God, it is the storms that keep us desperate before HIM!  It is strange that it does not matter if you are enjoying a beautiful sunny day or in the eye of a hurricane you are just as desperate for HIM in both set of circumstances!  However, those in the eye of the storm, those that know HIM in the eye of a storm are painfully mindful of their desperate situation.

I think that is it...IT JUST HIT ME...we should live our lives in desperation on HIM like we are perpetually in the eye of the storm!  In this world you will have trouble...but take heart, Jesus has overcome the world.

Psalm 57:7-11 My heart is confident, God, my heart is confident. I will sing; I will sing praises. 8 Wake up, my soul!  Wake up, harp and lyre!  I will wake up the dawn. 9 I will praise You, Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to You among the nations. 10 For Your faithful love is as high as the heavens; Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds. 11 God, be exalted above the heavens; let Your glory be over the whole earth.

Father in heaven,

We rejoice in knowing that YOU are sovereign over Ike and YOU are sovereign over every storm in our lives...we rejoice in knowing that YOUR faithful love is as high as the heavens, it fills the universe, we witnessed YOUR love at the cross...Father we know that YOU did not spare YOUR own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, because of this we know that YOU with Him also freely give us all things?  Help us Lord to fix our eyes on Jesus, Lord we believe, help our unbelief!  Father in heaven be exalted above the heavens and let your glory be over all the earth.

love,

m

If you are a child of God you cannot help but love HIS Word to HIS children...it is obvious that David loved and cherished God's Word!  I have always been amazed at the transparency of God's children in the bible.  Over and over in the Psalms we hear David in great distress eventually coming to a place of rest and peace in his spirit, knowing that God is his shield and refuge.

Ps 56:3-4 Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. 4  In God (I will praise His word),  In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?

Ps 56:10-13 In God (I will praise His word),  In the Lord (I will praise His word), 11 In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? 12  Vows made to You are binding upon me, O God; I will render praises to You, 13 For You have delivered my soul from death. Have You not kept my feet from falling, That I may walk before God In the light of the living?

I was convicted this morning to seek HIM and to seek to please HIM alone...my purpose on this planet is not to be a man pleaser, but to play, to live, to work for an audience of one!  The lover of my soul.  The HCSB translates the last words of v13 saying "to walk before God in the light of life."  That is to walk and play in the light of HIS presence, in the light of HIS glory as little children will play at the feet of their parents.  

Let's walk, run, live and play in the light of life...specifically HIS life, the life of Jesus!

love,

m

I was recently asked to share my life verse and I must confess that the question caught me off guard.  I responded with 1Timothy 4:7, "discipline yourselves for the purpose of godliness," knowing that it is the biblical disciplines that place us in the rivers of God's amazing grace or the means of HIS grace that we may experience and encounter HIM and experience growth toward HIM.

Normally when I am asked to share my life verse I give Philippians 3:10, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death...If by HIS grace I am able to know HIM in this way then the fragrance of Christ permeates my life and everywhere I go HIS fragrance permeates and penetrates every heart, mind and soul.  His fragrance is only released as I am broken of myself and desperate for HIM!  DO YOU SEE IT?  By desperately pursuing HIM to know HIM my one little life is making HIM known.  I don't have to be an expert in the law I just need to share how much Jesus has done for me!  That would be everything!

In the light of that as I read “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” I thought hey that would be a great life verse!  You have to love Paul, his passion, his zeal and his incredible knowledge of the God of the universe!  With all those credentials and more the God of the universe tells Paul in 2 Co 12:9-10  “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

1 Co 2:5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

Eph 3:16 16 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man,

Php 4:13 13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

What is the greatest need in the world today?  What is the greatest need in our nation?  What is our greatest need in our churches today?  You will hear many say that thechurch should use this method or that method, don't talk about sin, don't talk about hard things, make them comfortable...THE PROBLEM IS THAT IF YOU DO THAT YOU SIMPLY SEND THEM TO HELL WITH LESS PAIN ON THE WAY...ETERNITY IS A VERY LONG TIME!

The need is the same everywhere you go...world, nation, church, community, home, family, marriage, single...the need, the desperate need is JESUS!  Great Mark that really helps...every child of God knows that they need Jesus...how do you do that?  What does that mean?

Jesus strategy for reaching the world is to become incarnate in you and me...Christ in us the hope of glory, for us to be Spirit filled and Spirit led...remember what Paul taught us in 2 Co 4:6-7?  For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. 

What is the treasure?  The treasure is Jesus, the treasure is Christ in us the hope of glory...you and I are the earthen vessels and the Spirit of the living God pours through us as we are broken and humbled.  Like Paul we must celebrate the weaknesses that the power of Christ may rest on us for HIS glory and for our joy in HIM.  In the midst of this we are knowing HIM and making HIM known!

I don't know about you but I find great joy and delight in knowing that "God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong (1 Cor. 1:27).  1 Corinthians 2:14 helps us understand why people do not receive the things of God as they flow from our lives...But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.

Do you have weaknesses?  Rejoice and praise God knowing that your creator, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the Lamb of God who was slain before the foundation of the world is telling you...“My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”

TO GOD BE THE GLORY!

love,

m

In 1997 I was blessed to attend the Promise Keepers "Stand in the Gap" gathering in Washington DC.  It was a day of prayer and crying out to God on behalf of our nation.  A few churches in the area went together and charted a plane to go into DC and be home in about 24 hours.  I remember attending with great anticipation and expectation of seeing our great God move in a mighty and powerful way.

We spent long periods of the day with our face in the grass, prostrate before Holy God, seeking mercy, asking for forgiveness for our nation for the atrocities we had and were committing...like abortion and many others.  It was in incredible day of seeking God in prayer, in worship and adoration!  Honestly, I don't know what I expected God to do...but on the way home I remember thinking is that all, is that all?

I arrived home in the middle of the night, slept for a few hours and got up to get ready for church and to teach our Young Married couples class at Bellevue.  While I was getting ready, combing my hair, looking in the mirror...then personal revival came!  What happened Mark?  What did it look like?  I began weeping,  deep sobs that I could not control...God enabled me to see a glimpse of HIS Holiness...awesome right?  Right, but when the Holy Spirit illuminated the chamber of my heart...I did see HIS Holiness, but I also saw the wickedness of my own heart!  I saw the arrogance, pride, self-will, my rebellious nature...I saw my desire to be praised by others, my desire for recognition...I SAW MY WICKED HEART AND MY ROTTING FLESH and I repented of my sin, I repented and cried out to God in and through Jesus Christ and experienced sweet fellowship with the "lover of my soul."  It reminds me a little of Elijah's experience...some of you are thinking...Mark, I know Elijah and you're no Elijah!  Thank you for the reminder, I'm not making that claim:)  The similarity ends with Elijah looking for God in the wind, earthquake, and fire and God was not to be found...Elijah found HIM in the still small voice and had to cover his head in his mantel.  I was looking for God to do something big...in reality HE did something much bigger...HE applied healing to a wicked human heart!

If you think about those who had visions of God and HIS throne they all had similar experiences...Moses, Elijah in the still small voice, Job, Paul on the road to Damascus and John in the book of Revelation.

What happened to Isaiah in Isaiah 6:1 when he had a vision of the throne room?  "In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple."  What did he say?  Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips and live among a people of unclean lips and because my eyes have see the King of the Lord of Hosts."  Who did all these have encounters with?  I believe each of them had encounters with Jesus.  What do we see in John 12:41?  "Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory and spoke of him."

What about John?  Remember he is the one who identified himself as the disciple that the Lord loved in John 21:7 and 21:20...he is the one who leaned and reclined against the Lord at the Lord's supper.  What was his experience when he had a vision of Jesus, when he saw Jesus in HIS glory?  We see it in Revelation 1:17 "And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last."

Revelation mentions the throne in heaven many times...below are some of those.

Re 4:2  At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne.

Re 4:10  the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

Re 5:7  And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne.

Re 5:13  And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”

Re 6:16  calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb,

Re 7:10  and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

Re 7:15  “Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.

Re 19:4  And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!”

Re 21:5  And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

My main thought is that every time someone in God's Word has an encounter with the Lord of Hosts, every time they encounter Jesus they come away from the encounter radically different!  One Pastor put it this way...if someone is late for a meeting and they ask you to forgive them for being late and their excuse is that they were run over by a Mack Truck, but there is nothing wrong with them and their clothes are pristine...you would call them a liar!  His point was that an encounter with Jesus Christ is much more powerful than any truck, so for someone to say that they had encountered Jesus and not be radically different who would have to assume that they were deceived, a liar or a lunatic.

What does that make you?  What does that make me?

love,

m

Psalm 53 like Psalm 14 paints a horrific picture of the condition of man apart from God.  Is it possible for man to LIVE apart from God?  The answer is a resounding NO!  Consider the impact of men trying to live without God in the last few centuries, understanding that in this world evil men are restrained by the Holy Spirit.  It is a horrifying thought to know that the most vile and evil human is not as evil as they could be and that the most terrifying circumstances and conditions on this planet do NOT COME CLOSE TO THE HORRORS OF HELL!  You might be thinking gee Mark thanks for the words of encouragement:)  Don't mention it!  I will say that the good news is not truly understood until you begin to grasp your putrid, flesh stinking condition prior to coming to faith in Christ, prior to becoming a new creature in Christ!

Psalm 53:1-3 The fool has said in his heart,“There is no God.” They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity; There is none who does good. 2 God looks down from heaven upon the children of men,  To see if there are any who understand, who seek God. 3  Every one of them has turned aside; They have together become corrupt; There is none who does good, No, not one.

Anyone remember the song many years ago with the lyrics...you're no good, you're no good, you're no good, baby you're no good!  Remember?  I know some of you are shocked that I would remember such a song:)  I'm not sure how you feel about this, but it is true of YOU and it is true of ME!  THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD NO NOT ONE!  You and I were dead in our sins and trespasses, we were in absolute darkness and HE called us into HIS marvelous light!  What did Jesus teach us in John 15:16?  “You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you."  THIS IS GOOD NEWS!  What did Paul teach us in Romans 5:8?  "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."  Jesus died for us while we were HIS enemies!  I don't know about you, but my brain has to look at Ephesians 1:4, receive it by faith and marvel and worship our incredible God...What else can you do with knowing that "He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love"  LET THAT HIT YOU!  That is one truth that I love to run over me again and again!

As HIS children, how do we respond to this knowledge?  We worship, we adore...like everyone in scripture that enters HIS presence we fall on our faces...filled with awe, wonder and amazement at the sovereign God of the universe.  As we worship and praise HIM we pursue HIM, longing to know HIM!  We learn in Psalm 9:10 that we can pursue HIM by knowing HIS names and trusting HIM, "And those who know Your name will put their trust in You, For You, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You."  So in and through HIS precious Word we pursue HIS names and we pursue HIM.  I love in 1 Chronicles 22:19 where we are taught..."Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God. Therefore arise and build the sanctuary of the Lord God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord and the holy articles of God into the house that is to be built for the name of the Lord.”

In Romans 3:10-12, Paul quotes this passage as he makes the point that the entire world is guilty before God!  "As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one; 11  There is none who understands;  There is none who seeks after God. 12 They have all turned aside;  They have together become unprofitable;      There is none who does good, no, not one.”

It is this knowledge that makes the gospel so precious, so wonderful, so breathtaking.  If we don't understand, if I don't understand how evil and vile MY heart is apart from God I will not understand the beauty of the Gospel.

The words of Romans 3:21-26 are phenomenal, this is a glorious and precious jewel displayed for us in God's Word.

God’s Righteousness Through Faith

21 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, 26 to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

I fear, with the fear of the Lord, that we have become so accustomed to seeing and hearing these Words that we take them for granted...I fear that there are many who believe that they are Christians that will find themselves standing at the Great White throne judgement!  I fear that there are many people that I know and love that may hear the most horrifying words uttered in scripture..."I never knew you!"  Matt 7:21-23 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

Are you saved, are you twice born, do you know HIM...does HE know you?  Cry out to the only one who can save...JESUS!  Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved!

Pursuing HIM together!

love,

m

The last verse in our Psalm this morning sent my heart and mind soaring, to "wait on HIS name in the presence of HIS saints because HIS name is good!  That is what the Psalmist says in Psalm 52:9, I will praise You forever, Because You have done it; And in the presence of Your saints I will wait on Your name, for it is good.  Psalm 52 is a heavy Psalm, it is a rebuke and shows the futility of boastful wickedness.  In stark contrast the last 2 verses are beautiful...Ps 52:8-9 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever. 9 I will praise You forever, Because You have done it; And in the presence of Your saints I will wait on Your name, for it is good.

What are the characteristics of this man that is flourishing in the house of God?  He is a man of faith and trust, he is trusting in the mercy, the lovingkindness of HIS God...this mercy is the same mercy that moved the God of John 3:16 to so LOVE the world to GIVE HIS only begotten Son.  He is a man of faith and trust...trusting in the one true God!  Not only is he a man of faith, he is also a man of eternal praise...adoring, worshipping and praising the one true God, "I will praise you forever!  Lastly the Psalmist knew God to the point that he could, "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!"  He knew how to wait on God, he knew how to wait on HIS name.

This is what sent me soaring!  The name and names of God!   Remember what Luke wrote in Acts 4:12?  Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”   THERE IS NO OTHER NAME, NO NOT ONE, JESUS ALONE SAVES!  Remember what John said under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit?  John 14:6, Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Jesus is the key, or better yet, Jesus is the door, Jesus is the gate to God the Father!  As we TRUST in HIM, as we place our FAITH in HIM and HIS finished work on the Cross and adore, worship and praise HIM for the beauty, the awe striking glory of HIS sacrifice to seek and to save that which was lost...now we have before us the ability to know and be known by God!  Now we are his adopted children by which we cry Abba Father and we have the rest of our lives on earth to pursue knowing HIM intimately and making HIM known!  Knowing HIM and making HIM known!  Imagine a Dr. Rogers like voice saying that to you...KNOWING HIM AND MAKING HIM KNOWN!

Ps 8:9 O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth!

Do you long and burn to know God more intimately? God’s magnificent and beautiful names open windows of insight into His divine character and pursuing HIM through HIS names opens your heart and mind to intimate fellowship with HIM.

God's names show how God is actively involved with His people. HIS names demonstrate how HE longs to relate to you.  HE tells us over and over, come unto me all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you REST!

Do you want to know God more intimately? Then “glory in His holy name … Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His face continually” (Psa. 105:3,4, NASB). Each name reveals something about His character, His purposes, and His commitment to us. Praise Him for His unimaginable awesomeness as you experience facets of HIS nature in HIS names.

Trust HIM and praise HIM for the wonderful things HE has done for you?  “Give thanks to the Lord, call on HIS name; make known among the nations what He has done, and proclaim that His name is exalted” (Isa. 12:4, NIV). Worship God for how He has revealed Himself through His glorious names and tell others about His splendid deeds.  KNOW HIM AND MAKE HIM KNOWN!

Are you in the midst of difficult circumstances? Remember, “The name of the Lord is a strong fortress; the godly run to Him and are safe” (Prv. 18:10). Whatever your needs, whatever your situation, God is there to help you. His many names illustrate how sufficient He truly is to meet your every need. Use this booklet as a guide for a fresh encounter with God’s majesty through the power of His awesome nature and through praising Him for His glorious names. 

Names and Titles of Christ

The I AM names of Christ:

“I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).

“I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).

“I am from above” (John 8:23).

“I am the gate” (John 10:7).

“I am the door” (John 10:9, NKJ).

“I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11).

“I am the Son of God” (John 10:36).

“I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).

“I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).

“I am the true vine” (John 15:1).

Other Names and Titles of Christ

Advocate (1 John 2:1, NKJ)

Almighty One (Rev. 1:8)

Alpha and Omega (Rev. 22:13)

Amen (Rev. 3:14)

Anointed One (Dan. 9:25)

Apostle and High Priest of our confession (Heb. 3:1, NKJ)

Arm of the Lord (Isa. 51:9; 53:1)

Author and Perfecter of our faith (Heb. 12:2, NIV)

Author of Life (Acts 3:15)

Author of Salvation (Heb. 2:10, NIV)

Beloved (Mat. 12:18)

Blessed and only Ruler (1 Tim. 6:15, NIV)

Branch of the Lord (Isa. 4:2)

Cornerstone (Psa. 118:22)

Chief Shepherd (1 Pet. 5:4, NIV)

Christ of God (Luke 9:20, NIV)

Creator (John 1:3)

Deliverer (Rom. 11:26)

Eternal King (1 Tim. 1:17)

Everlasting Father (Isa. 9:6)

Faithful and True Witness (Rev. 3:14)

First and Last (Rev. 1:17)

Firstborn from the dead (Rev. 1:5, NKJ)

Glory of the Lord (Isa. 40:5)

God (Isa. 40:3; John 20:28)

Great High Priest (Heb. 4:14)

Guardian of our Souls (1 Pet. 2:25)

Head of the Church (Eph. 1:22)

Holy Servant (Acts 4:27)

Holy One from God (Mark 1:24)

Holy One of Israel (Isa. 41:14)

Holy, Righteous One (Acts 3:14)

Horn of Salvation (Luke 1:69, NIV)

Immanuel (Isa. 7:14)

Jesus (Mat. 1:21)

Judge of Israel (Mic. 5:1, NKJ)

King (Zec. 9:9)

King of kings (1 Tim. 6:15)

King of the Jews (Mat. 2:2)

King of the Nations (Rev. 15:3)

Lamb (Rev. 13:8)

Lamb of God (John 1:29)

Lawgiver (Isa. 33:22)

Leader (Isa. 55:4)

Lion of the Tribe of Judah (Rev. 5:5)

Lord of lords (1 Tim. 6:15)

Lord Our Righteousness (Jer. 23:6)

Man of Sorrows (Isa. 53:3)

Mediator (1 Tim. 2:5)

Messenger of the Covenant (Mal. 3:1)

Messiah (John 1:41)

Mighty God (Isa. 9:6)

Mighty One of Israel (Isa. 60:16)

Morning Star (Rev. 22:16)

Our Glorious Lord (1 Cor. 2:8)

Passover Lamb (1 Cor. 5:7)

Prince of Peace (Isa. 9:6)

Prophet from Nazareth (Mat. 21:11)

Redeemer (Job 19:25)

Righteous One (Acts 7:52)

Rising Sun (Luke 1:78, NIV)

Rock (1 Cor. 10:4)

Root of David (Rev. 5:5, NIV)

Rose of Sharon (Song 2:1)

Ruler of God’s Creation (Rev. 3:14)

Ruler (Mat. 2:6)

Ruler of Kings (Rev. 1:5, NIV)

Savior (Luke 2:11)

Seed of the woman (Gen. 3:15)

Son of David (Mat. 1:1, NIV)

Son of Man (Mat. 8:20)

Son of the Blessed God (Mark 14:61)

Son of the Most High (Luke 1:32)

Source of Eternal Salvation (Heb. 5:9)

Sun of Righteousness (Mal. 4:2)

Witness (Isa. 55:4)

Wonderful Counselor (Isa. 9:6)

Word (John 1:1)

Word of God (Rev. 19:13)

Bright, B. (2000). God : Knowing him by his names (4). Orlando, FL: NewLife Publications.

I first heard Keith Green when I was in High school, it was before he was well known and it was before I was saved.  He played in a High school gym that was packed out with teenagers.  What I remember about him was his radical love for Jesus!  I can only pray that 30-40 years from now that there will be some that were impacted by my love for Jesus.  Oh God grant me a heart, a clean heart that I might pursue you with a white-hot passion, with a devotion and a radical love...like the two guys on the road to Emmaus..."did not our hearts burn within us as HE opened the scriptures to us." 

Ps 51:10-12 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. 11 Do not cast me away from Your presence,  And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,  And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.

 

love,

m

I first heard Keith Green when I was in High school, it was before he was well known and it was before I was saved.  He played in a High school gym that was packed out with teenagers.  What I remember about him was his radical love for Jesus!  I can only pray that 30-40 years from now that there will be some that were impacted by my love for Jesus.  Oh God grant me a heart, a clean heart that I might pursue you with a white-hot passion, with a devotion and a radical love...like the two guys on the road to Emmaus..."did not our hearts burn within us as HE opened the scriptures to us." 

Ps 51:10-12 Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. 11 Do not cast me away from Your presence,  And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,  And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.

 

love,

m

A few years ago I was counseling a young couple in premarital counseling.  In our 1st session together I asked each them to describe their relationship with Jesus to me.  Being a fair and balanced guy, like Fox News, I had them taking turns answering first so that one would not always influence the others answers.  The young lady answered 1st on this particular question and she said that Jesus was her lover...and she went on to beautifully describe her relationship with the "lover of her soul."  I was moved by her answer to the point that I confessed to her that I was a little envious because as a man I just

could not go there to the degree that she described.  Then I asked the young man the same question and to my shock he said, well actually that is how I would describe my relationship with Jesus!  The young man went on to wonderfully describe his relationship with Jesus in beautiful language.

Rev 2:4-5  Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.

German scholar Franz Delitzsch saw the poem as a drama, telling the story of Solomon’s love for a girl from one of Israel’s northern villages. The king met and won her love while traveling incognito, returned to the capital, and then came back in splendor to carry her to his palace. Frequent changes in gender let us follow the speeches of the bride and the groom and recognize the chorus of friends. The niv accurately identifies the words of the Beloved, the Lover, and the Friends in its English text.

If we follow Delitzsch’s interpretation, the story behind the poem emerges as follows:

1:1–2:7	The bride longs for her lover. They meet and praise each other.
2:8–3:11	Their love grows, and the beloved praises her lover using images from nature.
4:1–5:1	The lover responds with praise for his beloved.
5:2–6:3	But suddenly the lover disappears, and the beloved cries out in longing for him.
6:4–8:14	The lover returns in splendor. The marriage takes place and is consummated (7:1–8:4), and the triumph of love is joyfully celebrated by all.

Rather than be disturbed by this extremely beautiful love poem, we might well open our hearts to it, and let this most unusual book in Scripture shape our attitude toward married love. It is God who invented sexuality. It is God who made human beings male and female. And it is God who sanctifies the intimacy enjoyed by husband and wife.

Richards, L. O. (1991; Published in electronic form by Logos Research Systems, 1996). The Bible readers companion (electronic ed.) (402). Wheaton: Victor Books.

In the midst of teaching the Corinthians about generous giving, in middle of his thought the following words come flying out of Paul's mouth...2 Corinthians 8:9  For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

If you can, if you are able hold in mind that Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah and HE is the Lamb that was slain before the foundation of the world.  Hold on to the fact that "HE is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation (Col 1:15)."  Jesus is "the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high (Heb 1:3).  If you are able to hold on to the fact that HE is the image of the invisible God, that HE is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact representation of HIS nature...see if you have enough RAM FOR THIS...that the glory that HE now shares with the Father is the glory that HE shared with HIM before the World existed.  John put it this way in John 17:5, And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.  Hold on...that's not all!

Jn 17:20-26  “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. 24 Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. 26 I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

Please tell me you feel like you just stood in front of a blast furnace, heated up to a white-hot blazing fire!  The ONE who is the image of the invisible God, the ONE who is the exact representation of HIS nature, the ONE who has shared in the Father's glory from eternity past...PRAYS TO THE FATHER that YOU AND I will believe through the Apostles words...and we learn THAT HE HAS GIVEN US THIS SAME GLORY!!!  We are partakers of HIS divine nature!  Then HE prays that we will SEE HIS GLORY...(Remember beholding is becoming).  Jesus reveals the Father to us, opens the way for us to share in the glory of the trinity and shares the love of the trinity with HIS adopted children.  This is stunning, breathtaking, awestriking, mind blowing...if you are not careful it will throw you into a state of cognitive dissonance (go look it up):)

The sovereign God of the universe, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah became poor, suffered, bled and died that we might become rich.  Jesus put it like this in Luke 9:58 “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”  This world had no room for it's creator!  Paul put it like this in Philippians 2:6-7, "though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men."

John 13:16-17  Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

What do you think...did Jesus make us rich to spend those riches on ourselves and to be self indulgent OR TO SPEND THOSE RICHES ON OTHERS THAT THEY MAY ENTER THE KINGDOM, that they may enter the rule and reign of the one who laid down HIS life for us while we were still sinners?

love,

m

It is interesting to note the purpose of applying our heart to knowledge, the purpose of keeping HIS words within us and fixing them upon our lips...the purpose is simply that we may trust in the Lord.  Did we learn something similar from the author of Hebrews?  What was it?  Oh yea, "faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ."  In Colossians 3:16 Paul exhorts us to "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God."

Proverbs 22:17-19 Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise, And apply your heart to my knowledge; 18  For it is a pleasant thing if you keep them within you; Let them all be fixed upon your lips, 19 So that your trust may be in the Lord; I have instructed you today, even you.

We sing songs about guarding our hearts..."be careful little eyes what you see, be careful little eyes what you see."  Many of us have helped our children memorize Proverbs 4:23, Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life.  You have heard it said that the best defense is a good offense!  I believe that you could make the same application to followers of Jesus.  What do you mean Mark?  The best way to guard your heart is to apply your heart to God's Word...through study, reading, memorizing and meditation.  We hear it over and over in the OT and NT...Prov 2:2 So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding; Prov 23:12  Apply your heart to instruction, And your ears to words of knowledge.

What are you doing when you apply your heart to HIS Word?  What do we learn from the Psalmist in Psalm 9:10 And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you."  How do we know HIS name to put our trust in HIM through HIS Word...remember Jesus is the Word incarnate...we are not just talking about black ink on white paper...we are talking about pursuing a person...Jesus Christ!  What did Jeremiah teach us in Jeremiah 29:13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.

Get in the race and run hard after HIM...there is incredible joy in the journey!  Yea sure there is some rough sledding...some days are really hard, really hard...but there is joy unspeakable! 

It is a little funny to me now when people are surprised at how difficult the life of a follower of Christ can be...I think that Jesus said that in this world you will have trouble...HE did not say that you might have trouble, but you will have trouble...then HE said, but take heart for I have overcome the world.  Remember what HE told us in Matthew 7:13-14  “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

So get in the race and run hard after HIM, guard your heart BY applying it to God's precious Word and then on those days when it is really hard rejoice in knowing that "He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ."

Father in heaven,

set our hearts aflame as YOU open YOUR scriptures to us...as YOU reveal Jesus, the Word made flesh to YOUR adopted children!

For YOUR glory and our JOY in YOU!

love,

m

In Revelation 3:20-22, when Jesus says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’ ”   When HE says this Jesus is talking to those in the church, specifically to those in Laodicea.  Jesus is not talking to the lost, HE is talking to HIS church and HE is rebuking HIS church.

Hold on to this image of Jesus knocking, seeking entrance to HIS own church, seeking entrance to HIS own temple, HE cries out, open the door and I will come in and make my home with you and I will reveal myself to you!    Remember Jesus words in John 14:23  “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  HE said something similar in John 14:21  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

Let this hit you like a freight train!  QUESTION...if you get run over by a real freight train traveling at 90 miles a hour would you look different after the experience?  If you are not sure the answer is yes!  How then can someone have an encounter with the GREAT I AM...JOHN 8:58 "BEFORE ABRAHAM WAS I AM...IS IT POSSIBLE TO RUN INTO HIM AND NOT BE RADICALLY CHANGED?  I don't think so!  Remember who HE is!  “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).  “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).  “I am from above” (John 8:23).  “I am the gate” (John 10:7).  “I am the door” (John 10:9, NKJ).  “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11).  “I am the Son of God” (John 10:36).  “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).  “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).  “I am the true vine” (John 15:1).

So the GREAT I AM is dwelling in you, HE is dwelling within those who are children of the Most High God.  We are the temple of the living God!  The GREAT I AM longs to be intimate with you, longs to have a relationship with you, longs to show you more of HIS glory.  Your creator, sustainer and maker is inviting you to a relationship with the triune God!  If you really believe that, if you are not just playing church...you cannot walk away unchanged...it is not possible!

2 Co 6:16-7:1  And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” 18“I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty.”

2Cor 7:1     Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Over the last several weeks we have touched on the precious and magnificent promises of God frequently.  I must confess I have lived much of my Christian life bound and crippled by my past, looking backward...when I should have been looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of my faith...my strength, my hope and encouragement comes from living in the light of my future with Christ in the heavenlies and not being bound by my past.

1 Co 3:16  Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

1 Co 6:19-20 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

This is a mystery, I should say it is a mystery to me, but you and I are an epistle or a letter of Christ to the world.  Paul writes in 2 Co 3:3  clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart."  It has been well said that there are 5 gospels...Matthew, Mark, Luke and John AND your life...most people will never read the first four, but if you claim to be a follower of Christ they will read your life...they are watching.  What is my wife and my children reading as they read me?  What are the people that I encounter reading in my life?  Do they encounter Christ in me the hope of Glory?  Do they encounter Christ incarnate in me?  Or do they encounter the best Mark has to offer...I don't mind saying if they encounter my best they receive nothing.

As HIS children we astoundingly are the temple of the living God...HE longs to make HIS home with us and reveal HIMSELF to us so that HE may REACH OTHERS THROUGH US!  HE get the glory and we get the JOY!

Father in heaven,

please finish the good work you began in me...I AM DESPERATE FOR YOU!

love,

m

In Revelation 3:20-22, when Jesus says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’ ”   When HE says this Jesus is talking to those in the church, specifically to those in Laodicea.  Jesus is not talking to the lost, HE is talking to HIS church and HE is rebuking HIS church.

Hold on to this image of Jesus knocking, seeking entrance to HIS own church, seeking entrance to HIS own temple, HE cries out, open the door and I will come in and make my home with you and I will reveal myself to you!    Remember Jesus words in John 14:23  “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  HE said something similar in John 14:21  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

Let this hit you like a freight train!  QUESTION...if you get run over by a real freight train traveling at 90 miles a hour would you look different after the experience?  If you are not sure the answer is yes!  How then can someone have an encounter with the GREAT I AM...JOHN 8:58 "BEFORE ABRAHAM WAS I AM...IS IT POSSIBLE TO RUN INTO HIM AND NOT BE RADICALLY CHANGED?  I don't think so!  Remember who HE is!  “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).  “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).  “I am from above” (John 8:23).  “I am the gate” (John 10:7).  “I am the door” (John 10:9, NKJ).  “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11).  “I am the Son of God” (John 10:36).  “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).  “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).  “I am the true vine” (John 15:1).

So the GREAT I AM is dwelling in you, HE is dwelling within those who are children of the Most High God.  We are the temple of the living God!  The GREAT I AM longs to be intimate with you, longs to have a relationship with you, longs to show you more of HIS glory.  Your creator, sustainer and maker is inviting you to a relationship with the triune God!  If you really believe that, if you are not just playing church...you cannot walk away unchanged...it is not possible!

2 Co 6:16-7:1  And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” 18“I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty.”

2Cor 7:1     Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Over the last several weeks we have touched on the precious and magnificent promises of God frequently.  I must confess I have lived much of my Christian life bound and crippled by my past, looking backward...when I should have been looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of my faith...my strength, my hope and encouragement comes from living in the light of my future with Christ in the heavenlies and not being bound by my past.

1 Co 3:16  Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

1 Co 6:19-20 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

This is a mystery, I should say it is a mystery to me, but you and I are an epistle or a letter of Christ to the world.  Paul writes in 2 Co 3:3  clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart."  It has been well said that there are 5 gospels...Matthew, Mark, Luke and John AND your life...most people will never read the first four, but if you claim to be a follower of Christ they will read your life...they are watching.  What is my wife and my children reading as they read me?  What are the people that I encounter reading in my life?  Do they encounter Christ in me the hope of Glory?  Do they encounter Christ incarnate in me?  Or do they encounter the best Mark has to offer...I don't mind saying if they encounter my best they receive nothing.

As HIS children we astoundingly are the temple of the living God...HE longs to make HIS home with us and reveal HIMSELF to us so that HE may REACH OTHERS THROUGH US!  HE get the glory and we get the JOY!

Father in heaven,

please finish the good work you began in me...I AM DESPERATE FOR YOU!

love,

m

In Revelation 3:20-22, when Jesus says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’ ”   When HE says this HE is talking to those in the church, specifically to those in Laodicea.  Contrary to popular belief this is NOT an evangelistic passage!  Jesus is not talking to the lost, HE is talking to HIS church and HE is rebuking HIS church.

Hold on to this image of Jesus knocking, seeking entrance to HIS own church, seeking entrance to HIS own temple, HE cries out, open the door and I will come in and make my home with you and I will reveal myself to you!    Remember Jesus words in John 14:23  “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  HE said something similar in John 14:21  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

Let this hit you like a freight train!  QUESTION...if you get run over by a real freight train traveling at 90 miles a hour would you look different after the experience?  If you are not sure the answer is yes!  How then can someone have an encounter with the GREAT I AM...JOHN 8:58 "BEFORE ABRAHAM WAS I AM...IS IT POSSIBLE TO RUN INTO HIM AND NOT BE RADICALLY CHANGED?  I don't think so!  Remember who HE is!  “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).  “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).  “I am from above” (John 8:23).  “I am the gate” (John 10:7).  “I am the door” (John 10:9, NKJ).  “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11).  “I am the Son of God” (John 10:36).  “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).  “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).  “I am the true vine” (John 15:1).

So the GREAT I AM is dwelling in you, HE is dwelling within those who are children of the Most High God.  We are the temple of the living God!  The GREAT I AM longs to be intimate with you, longs to have a relationship with you, longs to show you more of HIS glory.  Your creator, sustainer and maker is inviting you to a relationship with the triune God!  If you really believe that, if you are not just playing church...you cannot walk away unchanged...it is not possible!

2 Co 6:16-7:1  And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” 18“I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty.”

2Cor 7:1     Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Over the last several weeks we have touched on the precious and magnificent promises of God frequently.  I must confess I have lived much of my Christian life bound and crippled by my past, looking backward...when I should have been looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of my faith...my strength, my hope and encouragement comes from living in the light of my future with Christ in the heavenlies and not being bound by my past.

1 Co 3:16  Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

1 Co 6:19-20 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

This is a mystery, but you and I are an epistle or a letter of Christ to the world.  Paul writes in 2 Co 3:3  clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart."  It has been well said that there are 5 gospels...Matthew, Mark, Luke and John AND your life...most people will never read the first four, but if you claim to be a follower of Christ they will read your life...they are watching.  What is my wife and my children reading as they read me?  What are the people that I encounter reading in my life?  Do they encounter Christ in me the hope of Glory?  Do they encounter Christ incarnate in me?  Or do they encounter the best Mark has to offer...I don't mind saying if they encounter my best they receive nothing.

As HIS children we astoundingly are the temple of the living God...HE longs to make HIS home with us and reveal HIMSELF to us so that HE may REACH OTHERS THROUGH US!  HE get the glory and we get the JOY!

Father in heaven,

please finish the good work you began in me...I AM DESPERATE FOR YOU!

love,

m

I know that some of you will want to pick up stones and stone me with what I am about to say...and that is OK:)  A blog is one huge advantage that the Apostle Paul did not have...he would say radical things for God and get into immediate trouble!  Don't worry, I'm not lumping myself into a category with Paul...However, I am enjoying the distance between us as I say this. 

In Revelation 3:20-22, when Jesus says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’ ”   When HE says this HE is talking to those in the church, specifically to those in Laodicea.  Contrary to popular belief this is NOT an evangelistic passage!  Jesus is not talking to the lost, HE is talking to HIS church and HE is rebuking HIS church.

Hold on to this image of Jesus knocking, seeking entrance to HIS own church, seeking entrance to HIS own temple, HE cries out, open the door and I will come in and make my home with you and I will reveal myself to you!    Remember Jesus words in John 14:23  “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  HE said something similar in John 14:21  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

Let this hit you like a freight train!  QUESTION...if you get run over by a real freight train traveling at 90 miles a hour would you look different after the experience?  If you are not sure the answer is yes!  How then can someone have an encounter with the GREAT I AM...JOHN 8:58 "BEFORE ABRAHAM WAS I AM...IS IT POSSIBLE TO RUN INTO HIM AND NOT BE RADICALLY CHANGED?  I don't think so!  Remember who HE is!  “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).  “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).  “I am from above” (John 8:23).  “I am the gate” (John 10:7).  “I am the door” (John 10:9, NKJ).  “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11).  “I am the Son of God” (John 10:36).  “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).  “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).  “I am the true vine” (John 15:1).

So the GREAT I AM is dwelling in you, HE is dwelling within those who are children of the Most High God.  We are the temple of the living God!  The GREAT I AM longs to be intimate with you, longs to have a relationship with you, longs to show you more of HIS glory.  Your creator, sustainer and maker is inviting you to a relationship with the triune God!  If you really believe that, if you are not just playing church...you cannot walk away unchanged...it is not possible!

2 Co 6:16-7:1  And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” 18“I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty.”

2Cor 7:1     Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Over the last several weeks we have touched on the precious and magnificent promises of God frequently.  I must confess I have lived much of my Christian life bound and crippled by my past, looking backward...when I should have been looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of my faith...my strength, my hope and encouragement comes from living in the light of my future with Christ in the heavenlies and not being bound by my past.

1 Co 3:16  Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

1 Co 6:19-20 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

This is a mystery, but you and I are an epistle or a letter of Christ to the world.  Paul writes in 2 Co 3:3  clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart."  It has been well said that there are 5 gospels...Matthew, Mark, Luke and John AND your life...most people will never read the first four, but if you claim to be a follower of Christ they will read your life...they are watching.  What is my wife and my children reading as they read me?  What are the people that I encounter reading in my life?  Do they encounter Christ in me the hope of Glory?  Do they encounter Christ incarnate in me?  Or do they encounter the best Mark has to offer...I don't mind saying if they encounter my best they receive nothing.

As HIS children we astoundingly are the temple of the living God...HE longs to make HIS home with us and reveal HIMSELF to us so that HE may REACH OTHERS THROUGH US!  HE get the glory and we get the JOY!

Father in heaven,

please finish the good work you began in me...I AM DESPERATE FOR YOU!

love,

m

I know that some of you will want to pick up stones and stone me with what I am about to say...and that is OK:)  A blog is one huge advantage that the Apostle Paul did not have...he would say radical things for God and get into immediate trouble!  Don't worry, I'm not lumping myself into a category with Paul...However, I am enjoying the distance between us as I say this. 

In Revelation 3:20-22, when Jesus says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’ ”   When HE says this HE is talking to those in the church, specifically to those in Laodicea.  Contrary to popular belief this is NOT an evangelistic passage!  Jesus is not talking to the lost, HE is talking to HIS church and HE is rebuking HIS church.

Hold on to this image of Jesus knocking, seeking entrance to HIS own church, seeking entrance to HIS own temple, HE cries out, open the door and I will come in and make my home with you and I will reveal myself to you!    Remember Jesus words in John 14:23  “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  HE said something similar in John 14:21  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

Let this hit you like a freight train!  QUESTION...if you get run over by a real freight train traveling at 90 miles a hour would you look different after the experience?  If you are not sure the answer is yes!  How then can someone have an encounter with the GREAT I AM...JOHN 8:58 "BEFORE ABRAHAM WAS I AM...IS IT POSSIBLE TO RUN INTO HIM AND NOT BE RADICALLY CHANGED?  I don't think so!  Remember who HE is!  “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).  “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).  “I am from above” (John 8:23).  “I am the gate” (John 10:7).  “I am the door” (John 10:9, NKJ).  “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11).  “I am the Son of God” (John 10:36).  “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).  “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).  “I am the true vine” (John 15:1).

So the GREAT I AM is dwelling in you, HE is dwelling within those who are children of the Most High God.  We are the temple of the living God!  The GREAT I AM longs to be intimate with you, longs to have a relationship with you, longs to show you more of HIS glory.  Your creator, sustainer and maker is inviting you to a relationship with the triune God!  If you really believe that, if you are not just playing church...you cannot walk away unchanged...it is not possible!

2 Co 6:16-7:1  And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” 18“I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty.”

2Cor 7:1     Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Over the last several weeks we have touched on the precious and magnificent promises of God frequently.  I must confess I have lived much of my Christian life bound and crippled by my past, looking backward...when I should have been looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of my faith...my strength, my hope and encouragement comes from living in the light of my future with Christ in the heavenlies and not being bound by my past.

1 Co 3:16  Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

1 Co 6:19-20 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

This is a mystery, but you and I are an epistle or a letter of Christ to the world.  Paul writes in 2 Co 3:3  clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart."  It has been well said that there are 5 gospels...Matthew, Mark, Luke and John AND your life...most people will never read the first four, but if you claim to be a follower of Christ they will read your life...they are watching.  What is my wife and my children reading as they read me?  What are the people that I encounter reading in my life?  Do they encounter Christ in me the hope of Glory?  Do they encounter Christ incarnate in me?  Or do they encounter the best Mark has to offer...I don't mind saying if they encounter my best they receive nothing.

As HIS children we astoundingly are the temple of the living God...HE longs to make HIS home with us and reveal HIMSELF to us so that HE may REACH OTHERS THROUGH US!  HE get the glory and we get the JOY!

Father in heaven,

please finish the good work you began in me...I AM DESPERATE FOR YOU!

love,

m

I know that some of you will want to pick up stones and stone me with what I am about to say...and that is OK:)  A blog is one huge advantage that the Apostle Paul did not have...he would say radical things for God and get into immediate trouble!  Don't worry, I'm not lumping myself into a category with Paul...However, I am enjoying the distance between us as I say this. 

In Revelation 3:20-22, when Jesus says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’ ”   When HE says this HE is talking to those in the church, specifically to those in Laodicea.  Contrary to popular belief this is NOT an evangelistic passage!  Jesus is not talking to the lost, HE is talking to HIS church and HE is rebuking HIS church.

Hold on to this image of Jesus knocking, seeking entrance to HIS own church, seeking entrance to HIS own temple, HE cries out, open the door and I will come in and make my home with you and I will reveal myself to you!    Remember Jesus words in John 14:23  “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  HE said something similar in John 14:21  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

Let this hit you like a freight train!  QUESTION...if you get run over by a real freight train traveling at 90 miles a hour would you look different after the experience?  If you are not sure the answer is yes!  How then can someone have an encounter with the GREAT I AM...JOHN 8:58 "BEFORE ABRAHAM WAS I AM...IS IT POSSIBLE TO RUN INTO HIM AND NOT BE RADICALLY CHANGED?  I don't think so!  Remember who HE is!  “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).  “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).  “I am from above” (John 8:23).  “I am the gate” (John 10:7).  “I am the door” (John 10:9, NKJ).  “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11).  “I am the Son of God” (John 10:36).  “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).  “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).  “I am the true vine” (John 15:1).

So the GREAT I AM is dwelling in you, HE is dwelling within those who are children of the Most High God.  We are the temple of the living God!  The GREAT I AM longs to be intimate with you, longs to have a relationship with you, longs to show you more of HIS glory.  Your creator, sustainer and maker is inviting you to a relationship with the triune God!  If you really believe that, if you are not just playing church...you cannot walk away unchanged...it is not possible!

2 Co 6:16-7:1  And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” 18“I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty.”

2Cor 7:1     Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Over the last several weeks we have touched on the precious and magnificent promises of God frequently.  I must confess I have lived much of my Christian life bound and crippled by my past, looking backward...when I should have been looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of my faith...my strength, my hope and encouragement comes from living in the light of my future with Christ in the heavenlies and not being bound by my past.

1 Co 3:16  Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

1 Co 6:19-20 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

This is a mystery, but you and I are an epistle or a letter of Christ to the world.  Paul writes in 2 Co 3:3  clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart."  It has been well said that there are 5 gospels...Matthew, Mark, Luke and John AND your life...most people will never read the first four, but if you claim to be a follower of Christ they will read your life...they are watching.  What is my wife and my children reading as they read me?  What are the people that I encounter reading in my life?  Do they encounter Christ in me the hope of Glory?  Do they encounter Christ incarnate in me?  Or do they encounter the best Mark has to offer...I don't mind saying if they encounter my best they receive nothing.

As HIS children we astoundingly are the temple of the living God...HE longs to make HIS home with us and reveal HIMSELF to us so that HE may REACH OTHERS THROUGH US!  HE get the glory and we get the JOY!

Father in heaven,

please finish the good work you began in me...I AM DESPERATE FOR YOU!

love,

m

I know that some of you will want to pick up stones and stone me with what I am about to say...and that is OK:)  A blog is one huge advantage that the Apostle Paul did not have...he would say radical things for God and get into immediate trouble!  Don't worry, I'm not lumping myself into a category with Paul...However, I am enjoying the distance between us as I say this. 

In Revelation 3:20-22, when Jesus says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’ ”   When HE says this HE is talking to those in the church, specifically to those in Laodicea.  Contrary to popular belief this is NOT an evangelistic passage!  Jesus is not talking to the lost, HE is talking to HIS church and HE is rebuking HIS church.

Hold on to this image of Jesus knocking, seeking entrance to HIS own church, seeking entrance to HIS own temple, HE cries out, open the door and I will come in and make my home with you and I will reveal myself to you!    Remember Jesus words in John 14:23  “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.  HE said something similar in John 14:21  He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”

Let this hit you like a freight train!  QUESTION...if you get run over by a real freight train traveling at 90 miles a hour would you look different after the experience?  If you are not sure the answer is yes!  How then can someone have an encounter with the GREAT I AM...JOHN 8:58 "BEFORE ABRAHAM WAS I AM...IS IT POSSIBLE TO RUN INTO HIM AND NOT BE RADICALLY CHANGED?  I don't think so!  Remember who HE is!  “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).  “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).  “I am from above” (John 8:23).  “I am the gate” (John 10:7).  “I am the door” (John 10:9, NKJ).  “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11).  “I am the Son of God” (John 10:36).  “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25).  “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).  “I am the true vine” (John 15:1).

So the GREAT I AM is dwelling in you, HE is dwelling within those who are children of the Most High God.  We are the temple of the living God!  The GREAT I AM longs to be intimate with you, longs to have a relationship with you, longs to show you more of HIS glory.  Your creator, sustainer and maker is inviting you to a relationship with the triune God!  If you really believe that, if you are not just playing church...you cannot walk away unchanged...it is not possible!

2 Co 6:16-7:1  And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” 18“I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty.”

2Cor 7:1     Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Over the last several weeks we have touched on the precious and magnificent promises of God frequently.  I must confess I have lived much of my Christian life bound and crippled by my past, looking backward...when I should have been looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of my faith...my strength, my hope and encouragement comes from living in the light of my future with Christ in the heavenlies and not being bound by my past.

1 Co 3:16  Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

1 Co 6:19-20 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

This is a mystery, but you and I are an epistle or a letter of Christ to the world.  Paul writes in 2 Co 3:3  clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart."  It has been well said that there are 5 gospels...Matthew, Mark, Luke and John AND your life...most people will never read the first four, but if you claim to be a follower of Christ they will read your life...they are watching.  What is my wife and my children reading as they read me?  What are the people that I encounter reading in my life?  Do they encounter Christ in me the hope of Glory?  Do they encounter Christ incarnate in me?  Or do they encounter the best Mark has to offer...I don't mind saying if they encounter my best they receive nothing.

As HIS children we astoundingly are the temple of the living God...HE longs to make HIS home with us and reveal HIMSELF to us so that HE may REACH OTHERS THROUGH US!  HE get the glory and we get the JOY!

Father in heaven,

please finish the good work you began in me...I AM DESPERATE FOR YOU!

love,

m

Hurricane Gustav came ashore yesterday around 11:00 in the morning.  I saw one report that indicated that almost 2 million people had been evacuated from the Gulf coast the previous day.  Hundreds of buses and several trains filled with refugees poured out of New Orleans and surrounding areas threatened by Hurricane Gustav.  One local news station showed refugees departing the trains, and trying to figure out where to go and what to do next.  Here in Memphis families were loaded onto MATA busses and taken to local Red Cross shelters.

Bellevue opened the GRACE building (gym) yesterday at 2:00 as a shelter for up to 150 refugees.  I went with my oldest son, Zach, to see if any help was needed in getting the shelter ready about the time Gustav was coming ashore.  Three families had already arrived are were allowed to enter the shelter early.

I tried to imagine what it would be like for Diane and I and our three children to have to grab our essentials, gather what we could, and leave our home not know what would be there when we return.  Then the thought of entering a shelter with 145 strangers with our three children...I must confess the thought did not give me warm fuzzies!  The words that did come to mind were vulnerable, humbled, desperate, broken...refugee!  I can only imagine that as a refugee you would hope that no one would take advantage of you and your family, that they would treat you with kindness and hospitality and that they would provide you with a place that is secure and safe!

What does God have for us to read this morning?  God is our refuge and strength, HE is a very present help in time of trouble...praise God!  If you seek shelter with God, in and through Jesus Christ, not only are you treated with kindness and hospitality, you are treated like royalty!  Not only are you treated like royalty, but in reality you become an heir of God and a joint heir of Jesus Christ!  I know that it sounds insane, but that is why it is called good news, the gospel!  Imagine showing up at a shelter and immediately you and your family are given royal robes to wear and then you are told to wait for a short time and you will be escorted to your new mansion! 

At the price of HIS own blood, Jesus wrapped us in robes of righteousness...and then we see the one with the scars of the cross on HIS body and HE says to you...In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

Psalm 46:1-5 God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. 2  Therefore we will not fear, Even though the earth be removed, And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; 3 Though its waters roar and be troubled, Though the mountains shake with its swelling. Selah 4  There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God,  The holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High. 5  God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved;   God shall help her, just at the break of dawn.

From the Psalmist we know that God is our refuge, that makes us refugees, He is a very present help in time of trouble, regardless of our circumstances HE is unshaken and able to provide refuge for those that will come to HIM.  In Hebrews 6 we see a beautiful picture that those that run to God for refuge are indeed heirs of the promise, HE moves HIS mighty arm to encourage those who have fled to HIM for refuge.  Jesus our forerunner has gone ahead and entered the refuge, the refuge is God Himself, Jesus entered the inner place behind the curtain and we have a sure and steadfast anchor for our soul.

Heb 6:17-20  So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. 19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

There were those that chose to ride out the storm and not accept the very present help, they did not go to the refuge...praise God for most it appears that they will live to see another day!

In the same way God offers a refuge in Jesus Christ, an incredible refuge...but a day is coming when it will be too late to enter...2 Co 6:1-2 Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 2 For he says, “In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

Turn to Jesus!

love,

m

2 Corinthians 5:11 begins, "Knowing then the fear of the Lord, we persuade people."  As I read and reread those words I had to ask myself if I "know" the fear of the Lord.  My passion and my consuming desire is to know HIM, but I had to ask if my focus on knowing HIM as Abba and Father, as Daddy and Papa has been to the detriment of knowing the fear of the Lord?  I believe that HE wants us to know HIM as Abba and Father and to live moment by moment in HIS presence, but I also know that HE wants us to know the fear of the Lord.  Let's see if we can find one or two instances in scripture;)  There are more!

Job 28:28 “And to man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; And to depart from evil is understanding.’ ”

Ps 19:9  The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether.

Ps 34:11 Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

Prov 1:7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Prov 1:29 Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the Lord.

Prov 2:5Then you will discern the fear of the Lord And discover the knowledge of God.

Prov 8:13 “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverted mouth, I hate.

Prov 9:10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Prov 10:27 The fear of the Lord prolongs life, But the years of the wicked will be shortened.

Prov 14:26 In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence, And his children will have refuge.

Prov 14:27 The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, That one may avoid the snares of death.

What is the fear of the Lord?  Why did it motivate Paul to "persuade" people?

Fear of the Lord the — is in the Old Testament used as a designation of true piety (Prov. 1:7; Job 28:28; Ps. 19:9). It is a fear conjoined with love and hope, and is therefore not a slavish dread, but rather filial reverence. (Comp. Deut. 32:6; Hos. 11:1; Isa. 1:2; 63:16; 64:8.) God is called “the Fear of Isaac” (Gen. 31:42, 53), i.e., the God whom Isaac feared.

A holy fear is enjoined also in the New Testament as a preventive of carelessness in religion, and as an incentive to penitence (Matt. 10:28; 2 Cor. 5:11; 7:1; Phil. 2:12; Eph. 5:21; Heb. 12:28, 29).  Easton, M. (1996, c1897). Easton's Bible dictionary. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

If I think about it this is my goal with my children.  As an earthly father, I want my children to know me in an intimate way, I love to play and be playful with them...I love to read books or watch a movie with all three kids piled around me...that is a great joy!  However, when they disobey I want them to be filled with a fear and a dread of the consequences...I call the the "wrath of Dad."  Don't worry this is not wrath on biblical proportions.  Why would I want my children to fear me when they step out of line, why would I want them to fear me when they are disrespectful to their mother?  It is to protect and to train them! 

If Proverbs 13:24 is true...and it is...He who withholds his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him diligently.  If this is true what should we expect from our heavenly father? 

Heb 12:5-11 and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, Nor faint when you are reproved by Him; 6 For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, And He scourges every son whom He receives.” 7  It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8  But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. 11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

Father in heaven,

In the precious name of Jesus Christ we come and cry out to YOU and YOU alone, please fill us with YOUR Holy Spirit, enable us to know YOU intimately and enable us to know the fear of YOU that we may persuade people everywhere to repent and turn to the Lord and be saved...knowing you Jesus, knowing YOU and making YOU known!

love,

m