WORLDWIDE INTERNET EVANGELISM

Mark 16:15 Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

Tag Archives: joy of our Lord


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BUILDING STONES FOR CHRIST

Have you become petrified or, are you a living, building stone for Christ?

Christians are all part of the body of Christ and have an important role to play in God’s plan. Ask Jesus everyday what He wants you to do? Seek His guidance in everything. Be a useful stone in the building of the Church. Even in the wilderness the Israelites relied on a Spiritual Rock.

1 Cor. 10:3-5 All were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. FOR THEY DRANK OF THAT SPIRITUAL ROCK THAT FOLLOWED THEM, AND THAT ROCK WAS CHRIST!

When Christ started His ministry and began building His Church, He selected twelve apostles to train in building His Church. Jesus chose Peter as the chief apostle and rock of the Church to start His building!

Matthew 16:18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church.

The Church has grown in two thousand years to about two billion Christians on the earth. It is still growing as you the building stones of the Church are spreading the gospel of salvation to reach the lost of the world.

Again I ask are you petrified or are you a living stone for Christ? Are you using your life to reach others who are lost? Are you planting and watering so God can give the increase? That is what He commands!

1 Corinthians 3:6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.

Ephesians 2:20 Having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF BEING THE CHIEF CORNERSTONE. Thess. 1: 6 You became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, WITH JOY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.

Be moved by the Holy Spirit! The Holy Spirit dwells in you! Let Him use you as a fruitful building stone for Christ.  

 

 


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HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT YOURSELF?

What is the most important thing to you in life?

God, love, family, health, friends, happiness, knowledge…..?

The following comment was made by an individual responding to a recent poll about how important God is in our lives:

“What has he done for me? Is my life depending on him or is my life depending on what I’m doing with it? My life is well without believing in him. I really don’t care about someone I never knew, because if I do I should care for all people I don’t even know. And doing that is something not very sane. It’s not normal. I don’t care for people I don’t know because they can be all bad as far as I know.”

Proverbs 30:3 I neither learned wisdom Nor have knowledge of the Holy One.

WOW! Do you see what this person is saying? IT IS NOT NORMAL TO CARE ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE! He does not want to be abnormal and care about God, who he does not know, may mean that he would have to care about other people, who this person does not know. How sad! This is the epitome of an unsaved person who does not want to know the God who sent His only Son to take on the flesh of a man of this world and sacrifice Himself on the CROSS spilling His blood for the sins of the world so that person can be saved from eternal judgment. Why would he want that?

Ecclesiastes 6:12 For who knows what is good for man in life, all the days of his vain life which he passes like a shadow? Who can tell a man what will happen after him under the sun?

Those who do not know God and say that He does not exist and like to make disparaging remarks about those who do believe in God are scared to the core to actually try to know God because they are intensely afraid that they may find out that God really exists. They only think in terms of an entity of God in a single dimension.  They identify God as a mythical entity. In other words they don’t know much about the subject of God, only what they imagine He is like in their own minds.

Job 18:21 Surely such are the dwellings of the wicked, And this is the place of him who does not know God.”

How do you feel about yourself?

Are you normal or abnormal? Down deep inside where only you know how you think and feel, do you have a perfect feeling about yourself? Have you successfully fulfilled your dreams in life? Have you been a failure about any important things? Are you so filled with joy that there is no room for more? Do you feel an emptiness that needs filling? What do you really care about? These are all important questions that anyone should be concerned about! It doesn’t make any difference where on earth you live; they are all pertinent to you.

Job 42: 2, 5-6  ” I know that You can do everything, And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You “. I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You. Therefore I abhor myself, And repent in dust and ashes.”

Revelation 3:20 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.

You are hearing His voice now! This is how God speaks to your heart! Today is a day of salvation! God wants more than anything to give you His blessings. He will share His glory with you if you will receive Him into your heart.

I pray that your response will be to allow God into your life so he can pour out His grace upon you, that you may have eternal life from this time forward. Great rewards await you. Let this be the beginning of your new life.

 In the name of Jesus, Amen!

 


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FROM UNSAVED TO CHILDREN OF GOD

Matthew 19:14 But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”

Jesus described what the very character of a Christian should be. Like a little child! Energetic, happy, innocent children!  After all a Christian is a child of God.

 I have never subscribed to a belief that many Christians maintain about children saying that they are born in sin with a carnal nature. Why do they not believe Jesus? Why does Jesus make such a big point about this subject? Is because He knows how adult carnal nature thinks (Hey! God created me this way)!

But Jesus teaches just the opposite about little children. What does He say in the scriptures about this subject?

Matthew 18: 2-5 Then, Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.

“Open our eyes Lord” as the words to a certain song are most appropriate at this time. Be like a little child without bias, prejudice, and color blind. Little children always seem to enjoy the company of other children no matter who they are.

Christians desire to go to heaven but there are many people who are not saved who think they may go to heaven also because they believe themselves to be good people and there are people in this world who are downright mean and don’t have clue to what they could have from a God who loves them. Through one righteous act of Jesus the free gift came to all men cleansing them from all sin past present and future then died in their place so all me could live. The question was asked of the Apostles what men could do to be save? The answer was, “Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ and you would receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”. God is waiting for the unsaved to give them a new robe to wear, a new body, a new name, a new home, a great reward, and a new job as they live in glory in the presence of God for eternity.

We need to be like the little children, humbling ourselves and expressing joy and kindness without bias or prejudice to those who are unsaved and as color blind as little children. By expression show the love of Jesus to every unsaved person you meet, in doing so you plant a seed for God to nurture into a productive righteous child of God.

Pray that all people will be saved to the glory of God!


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PRAY WITH LOVE IN YOUR HEART

Ten verses to guide you in prayer

Who do we pray to? Matthew 6:6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place.
  • Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation…. Mark 14:38
  • Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man…. Luke 21:36
  • Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered…. Romans 8:26
  • I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting… 1 Timothy 2:8
  • Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed…. James 5:13-16
  • Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer; … Romans 12:12
  • … pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you… Matthew 5:44
  • Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; … Philippians 4:6
  • pray without ceasing…1 Thessalonians 5:17
  • And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive. … Matthew 21:22
Prayer creates an intimate relationship with God the Father AND HE ALWAYS TAKES IT TO HEART.
I pray a blessing from God the Father for you!

 

 

 

 

 


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THE SECOND FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS JOY

 

The joy of thr Lord

On June 4, 2016 I wrote about the first fruit of the Spirit which was love. Now I write about the second fruit of the Spirit which is joy.

The fruits of the Spirit are very important to God and He wants us to know what they are for a reason. They are expressly about the Spirit, the character of the Spirit and we should imitate Him, have His character. The ways of the Spirit are Holy to God and He expects us to reverence the Holiness of the Spirit.  Jesus severely chastised the Pharisees about being disrespectful of the holiness of the Spirit in Mark 3:29 “but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation”

Believers are temples of the Holy Spirit for the Spirit dwells in them. The fruits of the Spirit should be our nature as we follow the Spirit of Christ in us. Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

What more joyful thing could you want than that? Jesus says in John 17:13 “But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.”

Later after the church had grown in the Spirit and increased in numbers we find in Acts 13:52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

The Apostle Paul gives us more insight to how joy is an important aspect of our lives when he says in Romans 14:17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

Paul tells us what our joy should be like in Philippians 2:2 fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.

Then Paul sums up the spiritual meaning of our joy as being like a crown in the hope of glory. 1 Thessalonians 2:19 For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? 20 For you are our glory and joy.

The fruit of the Spirit is Gods holiness in believers and should be on display and shared with everyone.

 


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WHO AM I?

 

Who am I? Really, who am I? I was born in iniquity and conceived in sin!  (Psalms 51:5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.) When I grew up and experienced the world I was saturated with its unholy, immoral, and materialistic system. Believing this to be the norm I immersed myself in its carnal ways.  (Romans 8:7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.) Mistakenly I thought the ultimate joy was having all the immoral and carnal things of this world. (2 Timothy 3:2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy) After some time I found myself miserable and unhappy, unable to attain the freedom to do as I wanted in the world. I looked at my beautiful wife and wondered why I treated her the way I did. I looked at my baby son and wondered what kind of life waited for him. I suddenly felt like the lowest of the lowest of men.  I was sick of everything I knew. Something inside me caused me to do something I had never done before. I grabbed my wife’s hand and knelt beside our bed and said: “God, there has got to be something better than this. Please show us what it is.” My heart was hurting! (1 Corinthians 1:9 God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.)

After a short time my wife and I became associated with a church and God took complete charge of our lives from that time to the present. We went through a transitional period from an old way to a new way and looked down upon by some who knew us. (1 Peter 4:4 Wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you) But now we have a loving family of Godly friends in great abundance. (Ephesians 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God)

Someone might read this and decide to find out for themselves how to be released from the world as we have and be filled with a joy immeasurable by letting Jesus take the weight of the world’s sin off of their shoulders and putting it all on His shoulders. (John 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!) Just follow the message in the Apostle Peter’s first sermon: (Acts 2: 38 Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.) By the grace of God you will be raised up a new creation and walk in newness of life, no longer of this world, but your citizenship will be in heaven from that time forward with a residence in heaven waiting for you to occupy.

Who am I? Who are you? We are all the children of God!

Praise the Lord God and give Him all the glory! Amen!


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DO YOU KNOW WHERE GODS TREASURE IS?

 

The treasure of ChristSometimes we tend to think we will not see Gods treasure until we are in heaven where it is stored up. But that is not all the treasure that God has for us. It is astounding news to find out what other treasure He has given us here right on earth and we have access to it 24/7.

2 Corinthians 4: 7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.

8 We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;

9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed —

10 always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.

The greatest treasure is in our own bodies now! THAT TREASURE IS Christ! What we do with that treasure is of paramount importance.

Luke 6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good.

That “GOOD” is what distinguishes believers from the rest of the world. That “GOOD” fulfils the second great commandment of loving our neighbors as ourselves.

Isaiah 33:6  Wisdom and knowledge will be the stability of your times, And the strength of salvation; The fear of the LORD is His treasure.

So believers are filled with the most awesome treasure in all of creation long before they ever get to heaven.

Praise the lord for His love and generosity in sharing Himself with us now. AMEN!


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HELPING THOSE IN NEED

Feed the hungryIf we, the people of this world (and the Church), would only follow the blueprint that God has made for us, the poor, the orphans and the widows could easily be taken care of. But…

Deuteronomy 24:17     “You shall not pervert justice due the stranger or the fatherless, nor take a widow’s garment as a pledge.

19 “When you reap your harvest in your field, and forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.

20 When you beat your olive trees, you shall not go over the boughs again; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow.

21 When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not glean it afterward; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow.

Psalms 68:5    A father of the fatherless, a defender of widows, Is God in His holy habitation.

James 1:27     Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.

Pray that we will turn back to God!


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ENTER INTO THE JOY OF YOUR LORD

ENTER INTO THE JOY OF YOUR LORD

 There is a day coming when we shall see Jesus as He is and we will be as He is. (1 John 3:2) We will be in the Kingdom that He promised to us and He said that He was going to prepare a place for us in heaven. The joy we will have is really beyond human description because we cannot grasp the awesome difference between heaven and earth. His appearance will be vastly changed. Giving us an idea of what is in store for us.

Ezekiel 1: 26 And above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness with the appearance of a man high above it. 27 Also from the appearance of His waist and upward I saw, as it were, the color of amber with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw, as it were, the appearance of fire with brightness all around. 28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD.

Why do I say, this is what is in store for us? Because Jesus said that He is going to share His throne  with us as His Father shared His throne with Jesus. (Revelation 3:21) We have an exceedingly high calling of joy to look forward to. Jesus reveals to us His thoughts of how great a joyful gift it is to be in heaven and sit on the throne of God. He felt so strongly about it that He literally gave himself as the supreme sacrifice to make it possible. (John 10:17,18) Why is that important? The apostle Paul said, “1 Corinthians 15:14 And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. 17 And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! 20 But now Christ is risen from the dead…

Hebrews 12:2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

How much should we sacrifice? How much do we want it? Are we willing to follow Jesus example and give our life wholly to Christ? Doesn’t the scripture say we are to be “living sacrifices”?

1 Thessalonians 2:19 For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?

We must pray that we will be counted worthy to escape what is about to come to this world and by enduring we will be able to stand before Jesus Christ when He comes again for redemption. (Luke 21:36)

Dear Lord, I pray to You and tell You how much I really enjoy and delight in You. I long for that day when I will be filled with joy to see Your face. In Your Holy Name, Amen!

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