Tag: Heaven

Fallibility of FEAR (Anger/ 2 of 10)

thHRWJT5KU

Fear as Anger

Anger is a ‘go-to’ emotion. It’s easy. It takes the inward fear and reflects it outward, it makes other people victims of your fear. The majority of the time we are angry, it is fueled by another emotion that we are choosing to not deal with. We avoid dealing by covering it with anger and focusing out fear outward. There is justifiable anger described in the bible and shown in the actions of Jesus (flipping the tables of the money changers in the temple). We must be careful to accept the real emotion and deal with it instead of letting it turn into anger, and if we feel angry: stop, and be honest enough with ourselves to find the source. Our God is not an angry God! He is a God of love. Be a representation of God: exemplifying a love that cannot be explained. That love drives out anger, whose source comes from fear. (1 John 4:18)

Fallen Wisdom of Man

th9MN0GIKX

(Colossians 2:8) See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.

                Man has created its own version of wisdom. They are label as science and given names like: Philosophy/ Psychology/ Sociology. These professions serve to attach man’s fallen wisdom to God’s design. Science attaches theories which change and evolve into suitable ideas that last for a while before being disproven later. They fail to see that God and His design doesn’t have to change. God’s approach to His creation doesn’t have to vary. God’s word has been around longer than all of this fallen wisdom and still is without blemish. Science looks to explain sickness and pain, which didn’t exist before sin. Instead of recognizing sin they look for another reason/ cure. When they fail in their endeavor to attach reasons, they make it acceptable and normal to be fallen. They don’t seek The Healer, they attach a long name and prescribe it a medication.

Not Meant For Darkness

th4NLBXKS9

                It is clear that our world is falling into chaos. As people turn away from God and toward their own abilities the deceiver gains a bigger foot hold on this world. We can rest assured that our God is victorious over death in the end, but we must endure the consequences of sin while we sojourn on earth. We have to remember that we were created in God’s likeness, as children of light. We were never meant to live in a world of darkness. We were never meant to experience death and fear. Sin made those things come into existence after man had been created to flourish in direct relationship with God. Sin created separation, darkness, and death. Knowing that we weren’t meant for this type of life we have to rely on the provision of God to live abundantly. The ruler of this world is the deceiver; he takes the people who have become lost in sin and convinces them that this is all there is. He keeps their eyes toward the earth so that God is never in focus. We were never meant to see hell either. The deceiver is meant to be there with his followers. (Matthew 25:41) Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

                As you struggle through this life, always focus on the path lit by the light of God. That is, the path He designed for you. Leaving that path puts you in an environment where you were never designed to live. We are God’s children and meant to live in relation with Him. Stand close to your Protector, Provider, Sustainer, Creator, and Father. Be a child of light and refuse to live in darkness. You aren’t meant to experience that life, only what God chooses for you as you serve His kingdom.

Missing Piece / Peace

 

 thTP5WYB9U

                Each person has a missing piece/peace. In those who ignore the creator God, the missing piece is Him. In those who are walking with the Lord I believe God leaves another missing piece. The missing piece in both believers and non-believers is meant to bring that person closer to God but in different ways. In the unbelieving God leaves in them a yearning for His presence that many fill with the things of this world, which fall short of the Glory of God. In His faithful I see that God leaves a missing piece that helps us to serve His kingdom while here on earth. I feel that people can identify their missing piece by discovering which activities bring their heart in closest communion with God. For some it’s music that brings them to worship. For some it’s serving others. Personally it’s studying His word and opening the scripture in new ways that help other identify with their God.

                I have trouble identifying with people who are overcome by worship music on Sundays. I love singing in worship but feel discouraged that I can’t be as close to God as they are in that moment. I expressed this concern with a close friend and He smiled and told me that I better get used to it because that kind of worship is all we will do in paradise. Heaven is never ending praise to God. I sat quietly later that day and had something fill my heart. I believe that God left a void in me that leads me toward His scripture and subsequently He bestows discernment and understanding that sometimes surprises me when I read my own thoughts. I think we all have that void that gives us a place to serve in His kingdom. I think coming into His kingdom involves God filling that void in each of His children. He completes each of us and allows us to enter heaven whole. It is at that point we will have nothing in our hearts but love for God and the inexpressible praise described in Revelation. Everyone will be overcome with His presence and will spend eternity in complete awe of our creator, the sovereign God.

thRO8T5H1A

Fruits of the Spirit (Intro)

th0ZFK44GN

Galatians 5: 22-23

 NIV But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

KJV But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

ESV But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

  NIV KJV ESV
1 Love Love Love
2 Joy Joy Joy
3 Peace Peace Peace
4 Forbearance Longsuffering Patience
5 Kindness Gentleness Kindness
6 Goodness Goodness Goodness
7 Faithfulness Faith Faithfulness
8 Gentleness Meekness Gentleness
9 Self-control Temperance Self-control

 Before Jesus is crucified He tells His disciples that: (John 14:15-17)   “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.  And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. (John 14:25-26) “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

God tells His people: “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant… I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and teach his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”(Jeremiah 31:31-34)

thC2KRELO3

 God gave us His Holy Spirit so that He may be written on our hearts, and that we may be filled as vessels created by God. When we allow God to lead our lives through the guidance of the Holy Spirit a change takes place within us. We begin a process of change which focuses on Jesus Christ and becoming like Him. This process is called sanctification, and is only possible with the help of God through the Holy Spirit. The indwelling (planting) of the Holy Spirit (seed) causes us to mature (grow) and show the qualities of our savior Jesus (produce fruit). These qualities are an absolute depiction of God incarnate, His word made flesh. These qualities are what the work of the Spirit should become in a mature believer. When the word of God spells out the qualities He desires from the indwelling of His Spirit, we as believers must take notice and strive with the help of the Holy Spirit to become a fruit bearing disciple. If we imagine the fruits as colors, they create a rainbow that is Heaven. All of these qualities existing in all people is exactly what Heaven will be. A world of people made exactly in God’s image. Let’s take a look at each of the fruits given by God Himself to discover the depth of His desire for us.

Plagues of Egypt (7)

th

Hail

                God sent hail with fire to destroy everything that was left in the fields. The people of Egypt were warned this time so that those you had started to believe in the God of Israel might escape this plague. Those who had contained with hardened heart were left to destruction. Verse 31 indicates that the Pharaoh might see a way for this plague to leave wheat and emmer which had not yet sprouted. The Israelites and the believers among the Egyptians were spared from the destruction of the storm. We know that all things are in God’s hands, in His control. Verse 16 shows that although He could have made a swift end to Egypt He had purpose in Pharaoh and “raised him up” so that God’s name could be proclaimed in all the earth.

th3USU03S5

PLAGUES OF EGYPYT (INTRO)

Exodus 7:14-12:32

th

PLAGUE REFERENCE GOD
Nile Turned to Blood Exodus 7: 14-25 Khnum: guardian of the Nile

 Hapi: spirit of the Nile

 Osiris: giver of life (river was his blood steam)
Frogs Exodus 8: 1-15 Heqt: god of resurrection (form of frog)

 Hapi: frog goddess of Egypt
Gnats (Lice) from dust Exodus 8: 16-19 Seb: Earth god of Egypt

 Kheper: god of beetles an flies
Flies Exodus 8: 20-32 Uatchit: fly god of Egypt

 Kheper: god of beetles an flies
Plague on Cattle Exodus 9: 1-7 Hathor: mother goddess (form of cow)

 Apis: bull of Ptah, symbol of fertility

 Mnevis: sacred bull of Heliopolis

 Amon: god associated with bulls
Boils Exodus 9: 8-12 Imhotep: god of medicine

 Sekhmet: goddess of epidemics

 Serapis: god of healing
Hail Exodus 9: 13-35 Nut: sky goddess

 Isis: goddess of life

 Seth: protector of crops

 Shu: god of the atmosphere
Locusts Exodus 10: 1-20 Serapia: protector from locusts

 Isis: goddess of life

 Seth: protector of crops
Darkness Exodus 10: 21-29 Re, Aten, Atum, Horas: All sun deities

 Thoth: god of the moon
Death of the Firstborn Exodus 11: 1- 12-32 The deity of Pharaoh

 Osiris: giver of life

egyptian-gods-1-638

Everyone remembers the stories of the plagues of Egypt from Exodus. My first encounter was cartoon pictures on the wall of a Sunday school classroom! For the longest time I saw this part of the bible as God trying to open the eyes of Pharaoh. After some thought and a very enlightening bible study I saw God in a whole new light. The plagues served so many purposes. They showed the Israelites the power of the God they were about to follow out of Egypt. God showed Moses His power and instilled a faith in Moses that would last 40 years in the wilderness. God showed the Egyptians that the Israelites were sacred (set apart) to their God. My favorite and the reason for this post is God’s defiance of the gods of the Egyptians. They had faith that the gods they served and worshipped controlled their existence. I picture God with a little smile as he picked at the false gods of the Egyptians.

Continue on to the next 10 posts as we look into each of the plagues one by one and how each belief of the and the attachment to their gods were put on full display as futile, and how God’s Glory out shined them all.

Conclusion to The Beatitudes

th006S2DX4

In the Sermon on the Plain Jesus again speaks of the contrast between the life of this world and the life that awaits those you live a life in His light. People who find this life to be one of absolute pleasure and happiness are receiving the rewards of this world as opposed to the infinitely better reward that is promised to those who are saved by the blood of Jesus Christ.

(Luke 6:20-26)

20b “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.

24 “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.

 

21 “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied.

25 “Woe to you who are full now, for you shall be hungry.

 

21b “Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.

25b “Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.

 

22 “Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man! 23 Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.

26 “Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets.

thOL3AMGJU

There is a great deal of danger in losing sight of the ultimate prize found only in God through Jesus. The pleasure of this world is nothing in comparison to the place God has made for His people. Stepping back from the reward of heaven I like to sit and think about how a life lead by Jesus Christ is a better life in general. Even without the reward of paradise the blessing we have the opportunity to be to this fallen world is right in front of us. How much more satisfying is it to give happiness to someone that needs your help? How wonderful is it to give a part of yourself to people knowing that will make an impact that stands the test of time? Imagine the legacy that all of us are capable of leaving if we use our time on this earth to shine as much light on this darkness as we possibly can. What joy is there in blending in? I feel that when people can’t understand why I’m not angry when people persecute me, or I give away gifts the Lord has blessed me with in excess of what I need; they are seeing me reflect the light of my savior to this world. The harder it is to shine the harder we must persevere. Darkness is the absence of light. If we allow our light s to dim in adversity the darkness will take over. In the end Jesus has already claimed victory at the cross. I’m here as a Christian soldier to represent my God who saved me from this darkness and adopted me as His child of light. In the end, representing God and my salvation is being a living version of the Beatitudes, a living version of my savior Jesus Christ.

thKVJMW5VA

The Beatitudes (8)

thUO41WFT6

10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

It is inevitable that a life in Jesus Christ will not be easy as the world looks to destroy the things they do not understand. A world full of hardened hearts who groan as they are overtaken by sin look upon the faithful with contempt and hatred. The deceiver works in those people to cause trouble in an attempt to destroy faith. The easiest way to persevere is to cover the light of God in you and blend in to avoid attacks. This decision will help you blend into the sin of the world while you slowly lose touch with God. Over time people of great faith find life uncomfortable and painful as a heart once filled with the Holy Spirit grows hard as it blends with the other hardened hearts. A life of persecution should be smiled on as you realize you are becoming “set apart” (holy) in Christ likeness. At the same time we can rejoice knowing that discomfort here proves that we are better prepared for eternity in our real home, for ours is the kingdom of heaven.

th1IR2L40V

(Romans 8:35) 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?

th