​Romans 6
You do not have to keep sinning. I know so many of us use the excuse that we can’t help it, can’t control ourselves, or are compelled to sin. But the truth is, if we are believers that is just a cop out. We do not have to keep sinning. Self-control is an ability the Holy Spirit gives us, it is a fruit, a result of having Him in us making us over (Galatians 5:22-23). Sin no longer holds the sway over us in any way at all. You were once a sinner, but now you are under God’s overflowing beautiful grace. Jesus gave you a new life. That new life is not about law, sin, and death; it is about grace, righteousness, and life.
To begin Romans chapter 6 in context we need to read the last verses of chapter 5. Romans 5:17-21 reads,
For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.
18 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. 19 For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous. 20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
 
God, our Holy Righteous Lord forgives sin. There is no sin too big for Him, no sins too many for Him. Sin cannot overcome grace because God’s grace is boundless. So does grace give us free reign to sin? Since we do not follow the law, does that mean we can just do whatever we want and then proclaim God’s grace to the world as an excuse for our debauchery?  Chapter 6 verses 1-4 say,
What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
 
Jesus didn’t go to the cross as a pretty little picture, He died quite horrifically and painfully in order to put sin to death. When we believed, we died too to our old lives, identities, and nature. Jesus resurrected to end death forever and give us a new life, identity, and nature. When we believed we raised up to a new life. We were re-born. To continue to walk, act, and be the sinful person we used to be just trashes what Jesus did for us on the cross. We are new! We are born again! We are alive! We have the promise of unity with God and the hope of eternal life. We have His Holy Spirit within us working out our sanctification, that is He is making us into Jesus’ image. Verses 5-11 read,
For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 7 For one who has died has been set free from sin. 8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. 10 For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. 11 So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
 
To be saved, to call ourselves believers means we call Jesus our Lord. We give him dominion (rule, authority, and power) over us. He is in charge, the king, master, and owner of our lives and hearts. Jesus put sin to death, He even put death to death! (Revelation 20:14). In Revelation 1:17b-18 Jesus said,
“Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.”
Do you understand that when Jesus laid down His life and rose from the dead, He made it so we do not have to be under sin’s rule any longer? We don’t have to sin! Sin is a choice, not a compulsion. Verses 12-14 read,
Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. 13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. 14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.
 
We are not under the law now, sin does not have to rule over us. There are so many people who call themselves Christians and yet still live as citizens of the world. They give in to sin constantly, they are bitter, wrathful, and hateful. They revel in depravity, drunkenness, and decadence and claim freedom in Christ. But their lives don’t reveal freedom, their lives reveal the chains holding them to sin. Their lives do not show deliverance from sin by Jesus Christ, they show bondage to sin. Who would ever choose to follow such a weak god who cannot liberate a person from the mire of wrongs she lives in? Who would follow a god who makes his followers no different than anyone else on the earth? Just because we are not under the law, does not mean we should flaunt it by sinning and acting like the rest of the world. Verses 15-16 say it this way,
What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! 16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 
If we keep choosing to sin, we are proclaiming sin as our master. We cannot claim Christ as our Lord and yet obey the basal desires, gratify our every whim, and exalt our selfishness. We are not slaves to sin if we call Jesus Lord and mean it. We are free from the tyranny of self-seeking, self-gratifying, life-killing sin. Freedom in Christ is much more than liberation from the law; it is more profound than escape from wrath and Hell. If Jesus has ahold of your heart, will, desires, and soul, if His Spirit reigns in you, you are free to live in love, conform to His image (be like Him), and be who you are meant to be. You are free to do good, free to glorify (reflect and direct attention to) God, and free to enjoy the world on a level people without Christ cannot imagine. We are free to give our lives completely to God and let Him do with us as He chooses. Verses 17-19 read,
But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. 19 I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.
If the idea of being sanctified does not flood you with joy, then perhaps you are still enslaved to sin. Being sanctified, conformed to Christ’s image is wonderful, it is being made into who you were made to be. The more you grow, the more you mature in Christ, the more wonder and joy you find in this life He has given you.
What good did sinning ever bring you? What good did it do you to satisfy your urges, fill your stomach, or vent every capricious thought? It did you no good, and it did no one else any good. Those nights of drunken partying may have been fun in the moment but the celebration of Jesus is so much better, eternal, and purposeful. The old party led to death, the new celebration brings life. Verses 20-23 read,
For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
 
Believer, do not give into the excuses, the lies of sin. You are freed from sin, free to be the righteous child of God you were born to be! You are free to live this amazing life for God. Choose life.

​Galatians 5
Have you ever seen someone who was recently released from a long term in prison? Sometimes, although he no longer lives behind the iron doors of a cell, he still looks and act like a prisoner. He walks quickly with his head down so as to not gain unwanted attention. He makes his bed according to the rules of the penitentiary. He may go to bed at a strict and early hour every night. He often hides away his belongings. And he has a hard time making his own choices. He is used to the warden making his decisions and the guards and the telling him what to do. He hasn’t learned that he is no longer a convict, he is a new person, a freed man. There are times when these men actually think they miss incarceration and they will commit crimes just to go back to the familiarity of confinement.
Believer, you are free! You were once a slave but now you are the son or daughter of God. You are a king or a queen. But so many Christians cannot grasp the idea of being free that they are swayed by the people who come in and give them the long list of rules and rituals they must obey in order to be saved. Or others believe the list of rules that don’t appear to be rules, rules that give a false freedom. They still look and act like the slaves they were before. Whether following the teacher of legalism or the teacher of antinomianism (an extreme liberalism in which no laws, ethics, moral codes, or otherwise are followed), these people are not following Christ, they are slaves to the law. Verses 1-6 read,
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
2 Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. 3 I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. 4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace. 5 For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.
It is not that circumcision is a sin, it isn’t. Circumcision for the sake of obliging religious leaders is saying that we must do certain acts, obey laws to be saved. If we choose to obey the laws for our salvation then we are required to keep all of it. And that is impossible since the Temple in Jerusalem is no longer standing. Today we might change the requirement for circumcision to something else, for instance a requirement to abstain from alcohol.
There are people in our churches who preach that drinking is a sin, that Christians cannot drink. They set up lots of rules like that, no drinking, dancing, cussing, whatever. They teach that Christians must follow these rules and if they do not they are at the least not ‘good Christians’ and at the worst going to Hell because they are sinning. Sadly there are also people in our churches who claim grace, grace and more grace. They say we should not conform to the image of the church, we should drink as much as we like, cuss like sailors, and dance like strippers. They claim that as long as you call yourself Christian you should not have to change and that sin is fine because grace abounds! Slavery is slavery whether to laws or lawlessness.
Both of these sides though seemingly opposite are actually opposed to Christ and for Satan. Conformity to the religion or conformity to the world is not conformity to Christ. Why are we letting people teach these lies and lead people straight to Hell? Paul had some strong words for those false teachers.  Verses 7-11 read,
 You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? 8 This persuasion is not from him who calls you. 9 A little leaven leavens the whole lump. 10 I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view, and the one who is troubling you will bear the penalty, whoever he is. 11 But if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed. 12 I wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves!
If Paul were saying, “Yes, here is the list of requirements for Christians and it includes a, b, and c (anything other than faith in Christ as Lord) then he would not be hated so much by the world. Satan would want him to keep up his work. But He was preaching the whole Gospel of Christ and so he was being persecuted. He even said that he wished the people teaching circumcision would cut off their own penises! Not very ‘Christian’ of him, right? The believers in the church need to get these liars out so that it is they and only they who will face the penalty of Hell and not the many who they would lead or the few who allowed it.
We were made free. Free men do not wear chains. We are free from sin because we are the sons and daughters of God. We have His blood covering us and we have His Spirit indwelled in us. We are new, no longer slaves but royalty. Kings and queens are not slaves, but they do have a responsibility to be Kings and queens. They may be free to do whatever they choose to do but the truly noble do not go slumming. Verses 13-15 read,
For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.
Did you know that for the believer there is no such thing as sin? (1 Corinthians 10:23). I mean nothing counts against us, we’ve already been forgiven and God has given us his grace. For the non-believer everything is sin, meaning nothing he does will earn him salvation (Titus 1:15). But the Spirit within us, God, He is love, He loves and He transforms us to love. We don’t have to be concerned with this rule and that rule. If we live out loving one another and loving the people of this world, then we are living as the image of Christ.
Coming in to a church and trying to teach believers anything other than the sound doctrine of Jesus Christ is not love. I’ve seen both the legalists and the antinominalists criticizing believers for not being the image of who they believe the church ought to be. “Hmmm, don’t you require the women to wear skirts and the men to wear suits? How disrespectful!” “Hmmm, don’t you think that dressing so nicely will turn off people who don’t have nice clothes? Shameful!” Those biting remarks are the beginning of the meal where the church is the main course and ends when only the carcass remains.
Christianity is not proven through the length of the skirt or disproven by the number of tattoos. Faith is not exhibited by abstinence from wine or drunkenness from wine. It is proven and exhibited by the Holy Spirit in us. We either walk according to God’s Spirit or we walk according to the flesh (the desire to gratify the self). We either walk in the Spirit and exhibit His love or we walk by the flesh and exhibit our selfishness. Verses 16-26 reads,
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
 
The love of God in us causes us to live in love of one another and love of our neighbor. That is the law of Christ. The flesh and the Spirit are opposed to one another. God imbued us with His Sprit, His character comes through and we please him by love. We are not slaves to law anymore, we live out His love, love for others not love for us. We exalt God, not ourselves. We glorify the Lord, not ourselves. We serve His will, not ours.
Believer, live free! You are not a slave to the law, you are not a slave to sin. You are free to love, free to be the image of Christ, and free to live as the radiating beautiful child of God He has made you to be. Choose to walk in the Spirit and crucify the flesh.

Jesus, the Risen Christ is the Lord of my life. What does that mean? It is not just a title I give Him, it is a way of living. For Jesus to be my Lord means I am free to obey Him, I am free to belong to Him completely. My life is not my own. How can belonging to someone else possibly be freeing? Isn’t that more like indenturement than freedom? No, you see before I let Jesus be my Master, I was a slave to fear, pleasing people, and my natural tendencies toward self-preservation and pride.
John 8:31-38 reads,
“So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?”
34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.”
The truth is Jesus, my God, bought me with His death and saved me with His resurrection. He rose from the dead and obliterated every sin I have ever or will ever commit. I belong to Him. He paid the price for me and it was not cheap. The price was His life. The price was costly, that makes me precious. And it frees me up to be able to live freely for Him. I can easily give up anything in this earthly life, because my life belongs to Jesus and it is eternal with Him in the Kingdom of Heaven. (Acts 20:24, John 3:16). I can give up honor, possessions, money, and accomplishments with no fear. They are not mine. They are God’s, and whatever I give up, He replaces with better and more. (Luke 6:38, Malachi 3:10-11). Romans 3:21-26 describes what it means that Jesus paid for and bought me,
“But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”
Propitiation means appeasement, or recompense (payment) of a debt as an act of goodwill from one for another. Because I belong to God, I understand and want to obey Him. His ownership of me in such a loving and gentle manner, His friendship with me, and His generous sacrifice for me causes me to want to please Him. In my pleasing Him, I no longer concern myself with pleasing people. As I please God it becomes natural for me to do good things for people. He loves them so much, He loves us so much that I know it makes Him happy when I do good things for anyone. That takes away my fears. If someone thinks I am strange for wanting to pray with her, it doesn’t hurt me and it could not only help her, it could change her life. I am no longer a slave to fear, I’m free to be this amazing new person God made me when He became my Lord and adopted me as His daughter. Romans 8:12-17 says it this way,
“So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”
Believer, is Jesus really the Lord of your life? Do you grasp the freedom of obedience to Him? Do you obey Him or do you obey yourself? Do you follow God’s will or your own? Who is your God and Lord, you or Jesus?
If Jesus is not your Lord and you want to know more, contact me and I would love to answer your questions and help you understand more about Jesus. You can also find out what it means to be saved by reading here.
​

Leviticus Chapter 26

This chapter tells about two opposing lifestyles for Israel and for the child of God, obedience and disobedience. First the Lord gives two statutes that exemplify a relationship with Him. Verses 1-2 read,

“You shall not make idols for yourselves or erect an image or pillar, and you shall not set up a figured stone in your land to bow down to it, for I am the Lord your God. 2 You shall keep my Sabbaths and reverence my sanctuary: I am the Lord.”

We know looking at Israel’s history that they couldn’t and wouldn’t stop worshipping false gods. They made idols every chance they got. Even at Mt. Sinai they made a golden calf. Even then when The Lord was so obviously present with them and doing miracles for their redemption. We also know that Israel turned the Sabbath from a celebration of rest and peace with God into a ritualistic job. They put a huge amount of effort into keeping His rest. That was never the intention of the Sabbath.

Both of those laws were about keeping the Lord first in their hearts, communing with the Almighty in love and fellowship. But they missed the boat. How many of us missed it?

Next The Lord told them how obedience would lead to blessings. He is referring to Israel and today to Believers. He doesn’t expect the gentile or the lost to obey Him, because they don’t know Him or His proclamations. Verses 3-5 read,

“If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, 4 then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. 5 Your threshing shall last to the time of the grape harvest, and the grape harvest shall last to the time for sowing. And you shall eat your bread to the full and dwell in your land securely.”

He gives His obedient children everything we need and more. He makes sure we have plenty. He gives His compliant children peace and security. We let Him deal with those who would hurt us and with the enemy. That isn’t our concern. Our enemy will be afraid of us because The Lord of Angel Armies fights for us. Verses 6-8 say it this way,

“I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid. And I will remove harmful beasts from the land, and the sword shall not go through your land. 7 You shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. 8 Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall chase ten thousand, and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.”

His security goes beyond fighting the enemy for us. It is in the fruit of our wombs, the fruit of the land, and the fruit of The Spirit. Obedience is possible because of faith and faith is fortified by obedience. Obedience, faith, and peace form an unending circle as each strengthens each.  The Lord gave us freedom, not so we could be enslaved by the law, but so we could freely worship and adore Him and so we could unreservedly fellowship with Him. Verses 9-13 read,

“I will turn to you and make you fruitful and multiply you and will confirm my covenant with you. 10 You shall eat old store long kept, and you shall clear out the old to make way for the new. 11 I will make my dwelling among you, and my soul shall not abhor you. 12 And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people. 13 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves. And I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect.”

Believer, is your relationship with the Lord like that? He wants you to know Him intimately. If your faith is too small to let you obey Him, is your fear is too great to let you give yourself wholly to Him, He will do what He must to bring you into that complete and lovely dependence on Him. His discipline is for your benefit. Verses 14-17 describe it like this,

“But if you will not listen to me and will not do all these commandments, 15 if you spurn my statutes, and if your soul abhors my rules, so that you will not do all my commandments, but break my covenant, 16 then I will do this to you: I will visit you with panic, with wasting disease and fever that consume the eyes and make the heart ache. And you shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. 17 I will set my face against you, and you shall be struck down before your enemies. Those who hate you shall rule over you, and you shall flee when none pursues you.”

With each disciplinary action He allows, He gives the opportunity for us to turn to Him and repent. And each time we refuse to give up our pride and submit to Him the correction becomes more severe. If we choose not to trust in His provision and instead toil away for ourselves, He allows it. But without Him our laboring comes up empty. If we choose to fight our enemy ourselves, He permits it, but without Him our fight is futile and our hearts are filled with fear.

If we keep walking against Him, He will allow others to come in and fight us, harm us, and dominate us. How many times was Israel sent into captivity when they disobeyed? He will do what He must to restore us into a relationship with Him. Verses 21-22 read,

“Then if you walk contrary to me and will not listen to me, I will continue striking you, sevenfold for your sins. 22 And I will let loose the wild beasts against you, which shall bereave you of your children and destroy your livestock and make you few in number, so that your roads shall be deserted.”

If we choose to walk without Him, He will let us go the road alone sweating and striving to meet our needs and fighting our own battles. Not because He doesn’t love us, but because He does and He will not force Himself on us. He takes His hands off our lives in those desperate times so we will turn back to Him. But He never spurns us, He never forsakes us. Verses 27-28 say,

“But if in spite of this you will not listen to me, but walk contrary to me, 28 then I will walk contrary to you in fury, and I myself will discipline you sevenfold for your sins.”

God doesn’t send discipline to us for no reason. He loves us deeply. He wants a friendship with us. He wants a union with us that is so profound that we have His nature and His heart and that we bear His image. All we ever have to do is turn to Him with repentant submissive hearts and He restores us to His intimacy. He prefers to be our tender loving Father instead of our wrathful God. Verses 40-42 read,

“But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers in their treachery that they committed against me, and also in walking contrary to me, 41 so that I walked contrary to them and brought them into the land of their enemies—if then their uncircumcised heart is humbled and they make amends for their iniquity, 42 then I will remember my covenant with Jacob, and I will remember my covenant with Isaac and my covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land.”

Verses 45-46 read,

“But I will for their sake remember the covenant with their forefathers, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God: I am the Lord.”

46 These are the statutes and rules and laws that the Lord made between himself and the people of Israel through Moses on Mount Sinai.”

Are you being disciplined? Is the Lord calling back to obedience? Examine your heart. Is it beginning to harden against your adoring Father? Is your neck too stiff to turn to your loving Lord? Let His discipline break your pride. Find your faith and use it to bow to The Lord God Almighty.

Leviticus Chapter 25

The Lord commanded two special years of commemoration for Israel. The first is the Sabbath Year. As a reminder to the people that the Land they would enter was His land and not theirs, they would plant crops and work the land and vineyards for six years, but on the seventh they would enter a year of solemn rest. They would not plant, prune, gather or harvest from their fields and vineyards every seventh year. Instead they would rest in the Lord and trust Him for their provision. In verses 6-7 the Lord promises this provision.

“The Sabbath of the land shall provide food for you, for yourself and for your male and female slaves and for your hired worker and the sojourner who lives with you, 7 and for your cattle and for the wild animals that are in your land: all its yield shall be for food.”

He further promises provision in verses 20-22.

“And if you say, ‘What shall we eat in the seventh year, if we may not sow or gather in our crop?’ 21 I will command my blessing on you in the sixth year, so that it will produce a crop sufficient for three years. 22 When you sow in the eighth year, you will be eating some of the old crop; you shall eat the old until the ninth year, when its crop arrives.”

For an entire year the people rested, they depended wholly on God for their food and care. They were reminded that He is The LORD, He is their Provider, Sustainer, Comfort, Peace, and Joy. He is Sovereign and He is Sufficient. They were reminded that the Promised Land is His and they themselves were His.

Believer, you and I have entered God’s rest permanently. We no longer work to earn God’s favor, we have it. We can’t warrant His grace. We are redeemed because we are His. We are saved because He chose us and called us into His rest. Hebrews 4:9-10 tells us,

“So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God,10 for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.”

Israel practiced a day of rest on the seventh day, and a year of rest on the seventh year, but it was not eternal. Many didn’t have faith and they didn’t enter the Promised Land and they didn’t enter God’s rest. They were given the chance to have faith and only a few were faithful. Salvation is by faith. It cannot be earned. We do not merit salvation, God gives it freely to those who call on Him. Israel turned the Sabbath into a ritual rather than a rest. They went out of their way to make God’s rest into a list of rules that were difficult to keep instead of a time to enjoy friendship with Almighty God.

The Lord also commemorated a special year every 49 years, the fiftieth year was The Year of Jubilee. It too was a year of rest and began on The Day of Atonement when the trumpet sounded. It was much like the Sabbath Year but in this year although they couldn’t plant or prune, they could eat the produce the land produced. Verses 8-12 describe it.

“You shall count seven weeks of years, seven times seven years, so that the time of the seven weeks of years shall give you forty-nine years. 9 Then you shall sound the loud trumpet on the tenth day of the seventh month. On the Day of Atonement you shall sound the trumpet throughout all your land. 10 And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to his property and each of you shall return to his clan. 11 That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; in it you shall neither sow nor reap what grows of itself nor gather the grapes from the undressed vines. 12 For it is a jubilee. It shall be holy to you. You may eat the produce of the field.”

The Year of Jubilee was very special. Not only did the people rest for that entire year and celebrate The Lord, they also were able to be redeemed from debts, sold property, and slavery. Whoever had become poor and sold property could get the property back if he or a close relative could pay for it. Verses 23-24 say,

“The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine. For you are strangers and sojourners with me. 24 And in all the country you possess, you shall allow a redemption of the land.”

Those who had become poor and sold themselves as bond-servants and slaves could also be redeemed. Verses 47-49 read,

“If a stranger or sojourner with you becomes rich, and your brother beside him becomes poor and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner with you or to a member of the stranger's clan, 48 then after he is sold he may be redeemed. One of his brothers may redeem him, 49 or his uncle or his cousin may redeem him, or a close relative from his clan may redeem him. Or if he grows rich he may redeem himself.”

As long as the debt was paid, the slave would become free. The Lord didn’t allow Israelites to enslave Israelites. So an Israelite who chose to become a slave had to be a slave to the sojourner, the stranger, or the Gentile.

Believer, we live now in The Sabbath, and one day soon we will hear the trumpet sound the beginning of our perpetual Jubilee. Our Redeemer paid our debts, when we couldn’t. He paid dearly for us, not to purchase us as His slaves but to give us freedom, to proclaim our liberty. When we hear the trumpet sound we will go to our eternal Home, New Jerusalem. The Jubilee will be forever. We will eat from the land that we didn’t harvest. We will be forever in His rest and in His joy.

Matthew 24:29-31 describes it like this,

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”

Our Redeemer is coming soon. We are in His rest now, but soon He will take us to His Home and we will celebrate the ultimate wedding feast. We are promised to Him now. We are His. On that day, we will be completely united with Him, transformed instantly, and the celebration will never have to end.

Revelation 19:6-9 reads,

“Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
    the Almighty reigns.
7 Let us rejoice and exult
    and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
    and his Bride has made herself ready;
8 it was granted her to clothe herself
    with fine linen, bright and pure”--

for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

9 And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”

John Chapter 8 Verses 31-59

Jesus was still teaching and He was saying some profound things. Some of the crowd believed Him. Immediately Jesus said some things that would stretch their new faith and test its validity. Verses 31-32 read,

“So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

The people who still refused to believe Jesus, including the Pharisees thought He was talking nonsense and they kept trying to trip Him up. They were incredulous.  The said, “We’ve never been slaves! How can we be set free?”

Jesus answered, always keeping in mind that some in the crowd believed and some were listening with open and inquiring minds. He didn’t point to the Romans guards and ask the listeners to again claim they were not slaves. He didn’t remind them of their years in Egypt or Babylon. He pointed them back to the true matter. Verses 34-36 read,

“Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

These words included the Believers in a wonderful promise, they moved from slavery to sin to becoming sons with Jesus. Now, Jesus not only told them God was His Father, but theirs as well. But He continued and His next words for the skeptical and narrow minded in the crowd. Verses 37-38 say,

“37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.”

The Jews answered Jesus with the self-importance that often covers up sinfulness. Verses 39-40 read,

“They answered him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham's children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, 40 but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did.”

Jesus pointed out their hypocrisy. ‘You claim to be children of Abraham but you don’t do what He did, you don’t have faith and you don’t obey God. You are looking for any reason to have me killed.’ But Jesus wasn’t finished. He wasn’t going to leave it, He identified their father as the devil. He told them they were behaving like the devil not Abraham. He told them the reason they couldn’t believe the truth was because they were followers and slaves to the devil. His character was revealed in them. Verses 42-46 read,

“Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. 43 Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. 44 You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. 46 Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? 47 Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.”

You either seek the truth or you seek an answer that placates you. If you want that easy answer you will believe the lies that are so prevalent. Satan makes them plentiful. He desire is to keep you away from Jesus. God’s desire is to glorify Jesus so that you will come to a relationship with Him. If you are not following Jesus, you are following the devil and you are in cahoots with him and his schemes.

That either infuriates you and makes you call me a hater and any other names you can think of, or it makes you reflect on your spirit and consider that you need Jesus. It made crowd made them grow even angrier. They didn’t want their sin exposed. Rather than recognize it and repent as people who truly wanted to please God would have done, they resorted to name calling. Verse 48 reads,

“The Jews answered him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?”

Jesus didn’t respond with defensive words or anger. He used their words to prove His point that they were not seeking to please and glorify God. He also continued teaching for those in the crowd that were willing to hear the truth. Verses 49-51 read,

“Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. 50 Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge. 51 Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.”

Those were hard words and the new believers would either hear them and their fragile faith would be strengthened as they sought to understand or broken as they joined the mocking crowd.

The crowd continued to accuse Jesus of being demon possessed and asked Him who He thought He was. His answer was revolutionary and it would make people make a choice right then and there. Verse 58 reads,

“Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”

Jesus had just said He was God Jehovah. There was nothing veiled or vague about the statement. The people picked up stones to kill Jesus but Jesus made Himself hidden and left the temple.

It may seem harsh to say that a person either follows Jesus or Satan, but it is the truth.  Your life either exalts Jesus or something else. Every else serves to keep people away from the truth, freedom and a relationship with God. Only Jesus can bring salvation. Jesus is the way the truth and the life. Everything else is satanic.

It might look good, even beautiful. The father of lies is great at making everything else seem appealing while sullying Christ. Do you seek the truth or do you seek answers to placate your curiosity? The truth doesn’t always make us feel good. The truth is we’ve fallen short, we are flawed, and we are sinners. But the rest of the truth is that Jesus forgives, saves, and makes us complete.

You have an enemy. Whether you are a follow of Christ or not you have an enemy, but if you are a follower you are in the war against him and his minions. Paul wraps up his letter with some powerful and meaty teaching about it. Verses 10-12 read,

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 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.”

Paul tells us to be strong, not in our own strength, talent, or wisdom, but in the Lord. We re exhorted to be strong in the Lord. But what does that mean? Remember this, who you are in Christ is different than who you were outside of Him. He gave you gifts. He has trained you, grown you, and moved you through trials. Exercise the faith, wisdom and discernment He gave you and use the gifts He endowed to you. Walk with God, remembering He is alongside you, within you, and you are in Him.

The next verse tells us further how to be strong in the Lord, we are to put on the whole armor of God. It is a choice to use all the gifts and tools we have been equipped with or to let them rust with inactivity. We are all in the battle, but we have a choice in regards to fighting or cowering, and to fight well or poorly.

This isn’t just any fight. We’re not fighting the lost people. They have the same enemy we do, they just don’t know he’s their enemy. It is important to remember that our enemies are not men and women. The lost the prisoners of war. Our enemy is Satan and his underlings the demons who infiltrate, do his bidding, and put the chains on those prisoners. They fight to keep you weak. They fight to keep you ineffective. They do whatever they can to stop you from breaking the POWs out of their prisons and to ensure the captives have no idea they are bound.

But know that you have nothing to fear from Satan much less his demons. You are not called to cower or recoil. You are called to be strong in the Lord and put on His protection. Paul says in verse 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.”

If we put on all of God’s protection we will withstand and if we use His strength to be active in the war, we will stand firm. We will remain effective fighting warriors allowing Jesus to set the captives free. Let’s take a brief look at the armor we are to wear. And don’t worry it isn’t cumbersome, every piece helps us to stand and fight.

Verse 14,

“Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,”

The belt of truth is the first piece of armor. The belt held up the soldiers’ tunic allowing him to run and move freely. The truth does that for us. John 8:44 describes Satan as a liar and murderer,

“You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

Satan can only lie. And he lies well. He can make lies sound truthful, good, and beautiful. His lies can trip us up, keep us from believing we can fight, leave us tangled in the web of deceit unable to join in the battle. When we know the truth, we don’t have to second guess and trip over the lies that scoundrel tells. We don’t even have to listen to them!

One lie he likes to tell you is that we are not worthy to fight with Jesus, that you are too sinful to dare fight in the Lord’s army. But he’s wrong. The next piece of armor is the breastplate of righteousness. The breastplate protected the soldier’s vital organs and kept him alive and able to use his weapons for fighting instead of trying to constantly protect his life. You do not have your own righteousness. But you do have Jesus’ righteousness. Romans 4:22-24 read,

“That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.” 23 But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, 24 but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, 25 who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.”

We were credited with Jesus’ righteousness, not because of any work, not because we fight in the war, not because we pleased God but because we had faith, believed and live with Jesus as our Lord. Jesus’ righteousness gives us eternal life. Our heart is new, it is the temple of God and it is protected. The enemy can’t have our heart. It belongs to God.

Does it bring you joy and excitement to think about your salvation? It does me. Being saved, I want the POWs to be saved as well. And freeing the captives is one of our most important missions. So our next piece of armor is used for that assignment. Verse 15 reads,

“and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.”

You need shoes to walk well and far. Walking barefoot eventually your feet become bruised and painful, causing you to limp. Your feet need shoes to allow you to keep walking with God rather than limping along. Knowing the truth of the gospel, what you believe and why you believe it keeps you walking rather than limping.

Your feet are fitted with the readiness. What does that mean? 1 Peter 3:15 says,

“but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,”

You have to know what you believe and why you believe it. You have to keep Christ honored as your Lord. Your life should show that you belong to Jesus and cause people to ask about the hope, the difference they see in you. You should be able to answer them. You should be able to point them to Jesus, to the Gospel.

The lost have no idea they can have peace with God. They don’t know that God wants to reconcile with them, heal their wounds, and give them freedom and rest. It is our mission as operatives to tell them. We can’t tell them by standing still, we have to go and on order to go, we have to move our feet and travel to them.  Romans 10:13-15 read,

“For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”

Verse 16 reads,

“In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;”

The shield allowed the soldier to stop weapons from hitting him. He kept it on him always and used it to stop the blows that might have injured him, weakened him and stopped him from being useful in the battle. Our shield is our faith. Faith means you know who God is. We trust completely in His power and strength. We believe He is our Savior, Creator, and the whole world and everything in it is His.

The enemy shoots a fiery arrow your way, but faith in God keeps it from touching you. 1 John 5:4-5 reads,

“For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?”

We know how the war ends. God wins, we win! We are already victorious and we keep fighting to complete our mission to free the captives with the gospel of peace. So as hard as the enemy wants to try and hurt us, he can’t. Keep the faith in all circumstances. All the arrows the devil throws our way bounce off the shield of faith and don’t even singe us. Satan can’t even get close to us, he has to fling arrows and hope we are not holding up our faith in order to hurt us. He only has the power to hurt us, if we let him.

Verse 17 reads,

“and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,”

The helmet is the most important part of our protection. The breastplate covers the heart and lungs, but the helmet protects the brain. The brain is the control center for our entire body. It coordinates everything in order for us to live.

We can’t be in the Lord’s army unless we have Jesus’ Salvation. That salvation is what directs the faith, gospel, righteousness and truth to work together for our victory. Without salvation we can’t have faith. We can’t reconcile people to god, if we are not reconciled to Him. We have no righteousness without salvation. We do not know the truth.

The next part of our armor is the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. The sword is the weapon of our armor. It takes training to use a sword well. It requires up close combat to use a sword. Unlike the enemy who fling mendacious arrows at us from a safe distance, we are fully involved with the sword of the Spirit, the word of God.

The Spirit is powerful and He is Truth. When we read the word, He reveals it to us and helps us to understand it. He brings it back to us when we need to hear it. He speaks to us and guides us through every circumstance. But to use the sword well, we must be trained in it. He can’t remind us what He has said, if we never read it or listened to Him. We won’t even recognize His voice if we don’t spend time with Him.

The Word of God is powerful if we use it properly. Remember our mission is to free the captives and reconcile them to God. We have to get in there and use the sword as it was meant to be used. Remember just how powerful the Spirit is. He raised Christ from the dead. He brings people to their knees. He can and does do more than we imagine. He speaks to God for us when we don’t know how.

The word of God is a weapon more powerful than we realize Hebrews 4:12 describes it like this,

“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”

In Jeremiah 23:29 God describes His word.

“Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?”

That is an amazing weapon. What good is it laying by your side? Pick it up, handle it, and use it. The truth of the Gospel is in the Word. The Love of God in the Word. Read it, hear it, speak it and do it.

One of the ways we use the sword of the Spirit is through prayer. Yes! Prayer is wielding the sword of the Spirit. Speaking to the Lord and hearing His Word and doing His Word through obedience makes a difference. Verses 18-20 read,

“praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, 19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.”

When we pray we are actively exercising the powerful weapon we’ve been given. Asking the Lord to help us and help others, strengthens us, encourages us, equips us, and unites us. Paul ends this letter with verses 23-24.

“Peace be to the brothers, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible.”

Love incorruptible. Nothing can sully God’s love, nothing can damage or rust it. The armor of God, like God is incorruptible. Have faith in Everlasting Awesome God. Be strong.

Ephesians 5:1-21

Although I do not condone following a list of rules, or conforming to the image of the “Stepford Christian,” I do think that our heart condition will exhibit itself in our behavior. If we are all walking together being conformed to the image of Christ, then we will resemble one another as we resemble Jesus. There is the harvest of the Spirit, and the harvest of the flesh. I also believe that we must strive to choose which fruit will be produced.

These verses compare two types of behavior, how we as Christ Followers and imitators of God should conduct ourselves and how we should not. Our conduct has an effect on us and others.

Verses 3-4 read,

“But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. 4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.”

Dirty jokes and talk put sexually immoral thoughts in people’s minds, those thoughts if held unchecked lead to lust, and even acting on that lust. We’re better than that. We are not a bunch of sex-obsessed construction workers or hormone-ridden adolescents, we are saints, God’s children and friends, followers of Christ, and filled with the Holy Spirit.  Our behavior and words reflect our hearts. If we have Jesus in our hearts, if we have the Spirit within us, shouldn’t our behavior and words reflect Him?

Our entire lives should indicate that we are children of God. What we do in front of the church should be the same as what we do in the midst of friends and behind closed doors in secret. Verses 11-12 read,

“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret.”

If you have those shameful secrets there is one sure way to eliminate them. Confess them and give them to Jesus. Appropriately sharing them with trusted Brothers or Sisters in Christ exposes them to the light. When you no longer have to hide your shame, you can repent. You will have the Spirit helping you and encouraging you and you will have your fellow believers encouraging you as well. There is no condemnation in Christ. Baring the secrets that keep you chained to sin lets the Light of Christ shine down and show you those chains can’t hold you. You applied them after Christ freed you. Sin has no power over you when the Light of Christ shines through you. Verses 13-14 read,

“But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,

“Awake, O sleeper,
    and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”

Exposing your sin brings you closer to Jesus, glorifies Him, and because of that can actually bring others to Christ.

As saints, our behavior should be based on wisdom, love and truth, not on gratifying our whims and flesh. We are the children of God. Our manner reflects Him. Glorifying God means rather than indulge our flesh we seek to please God and fulfil His desires and will. Verses 15-16 read,

“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”

What is the will of the God? He wants us to love one another. He wants everyone to come to a relationship with Him. He wants you to know Him deeply. When we act in accordance with His will, our demeanor will be like Him. Verses 18-21 put it like this,

“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.”

This is not a list of rules to follow. 1. Address one another in psalms. Check! 2. Make melody to the Lord. Check! 3. Give thanks always. Check! It is the consequence of being filled with the Holy Spirit of being in love with Him and wanting what He wants. When we revere Christ, we not only love one another we submit to one another. We would rather satisfy one another’s wishes over our own. What is it to revere? It is show devoted deferential honor, to regard as worthy, to admire, respect and worship.

When we are filled with the Spirit rather than meet up, speak crudely, and encourage one another to sin. We meet up, greet each other in love, walk beside one another in love, and encourage one another to a deeper walk with Christ.

Read Isaiah Chapter 63

Verse 1 reads,

“Who is this who comes from Edom,
    in crimsoned garments from Bozrah,
he who is splendid in his apparel,
    marching in the greatness of his strength?
“It is I, speaking in righteousness,
    mighty to save.”

To whom is this verse referring? It is Jesus. His clothes made deep red by the blood of our enemies marching with might from His victory on the Day of Vengeance. Verse 3 describes it this way,

“I have trodden the winepress alone,
    and from the peoples no one was with me;
I trod them in my anger
    and trampled them in my wrath;
their lifeblood spattered on my garments,
    and stained all my apparel.”

In verse 5 He says he had to it alone because there was no one to help Him. Jesus is the only one qualified to defeat the enemy, to redeem His people, and have true victory.  Jesus was willing to take our sins onto Himself and become a sacrifice. His blood poured over us makes our garments pure and white. He defeated the enemy on that day. He redeemed us that day. When He returns all those who didn’t accept the gift of redemption from Jesus will pay for their sins with their blood. Revelation 14:20 describes the blood from the final battle this way,

“And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse's bridle, for 1,600 stadia.”

That is a river of blood flowing about 187 miles long and as high as a horse’s bridle.

Victory is not ours because we are good enough. Salvation is not ours because of anything we do. Only Jesus can defeat the enemy. Only Jesus can make us righteous. Isaiah thanked the Lord for His love and mercy in verses 7-9,

“I will recount the steadfast love of the Lord,
    the praises of the Lord,
according to all that the Lord has granted us,
    and the great goodness to the house of Israel
that he has granted them according to his compassion,
    according to the abundance of his steadfast love.
8 For he said, “Surely they are my people,
    children who will not deal falsely.”
    And he became their Savior.
9 In all their affliction he was afflicted,
    and the angel of his presence saved them;
in his love and in his pity he redeemed them;
    he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.”

Can you catch a glimpse of the extent of God’s love for you? He took on your affliction, your sin and forgave you so that you could enjoy Him. He is compassionate. He is kind. He is merciful. This same Mighty God who one day singlehandedly will defeat the enemy in a battle that creates a river of blood, loves you with such intensity that He lived, died, and rose again just so you could know Him.

We don’t deserve Him. We don’t warrant His great kindness. We are bad. At least I know I am. I’m envious. I’m prideful. I’m ungrateful. I’m stubborn. But God, in His Holy Spirit loves me and fills me. He teaches and guides, and changes me. He saved me. He lets me share in His conquest. He makes me better, and one day He will complete the transformation of me. I don’t merit any of that! Neither do you. Verses 11-14 describe the Holy Spirit’s steadfast love and patience with us. He doesn’t give up on us. He leads us to freedom and rest even through our rebellion.

Then he remembered the days of old,
    of Moses and his people.
Where is he who brought them up out of the sea
    with the shepherds of his flock?
Where is he who put in the midst of them
    his Holy Spirit,
12 who caused his glorious arm
    to go at the right hand of Moses,
who divided the waters before them
    to make for himself an everlasting name,
13     who led them through the depths?
Like a horse in the desert,
    they did not stumble.
14 Like livestock that go down into the valley,
    the Spirit of the Lord gave them rest.
So you led your people,
    to make for yourself a glorious name.”

Remember what God has done for you. Take account of where you once were and where you are now. Then praise the Lord for His never ending perfect and great love. 

Read Isaiah Chapter 55

This chapter begins,

“Come, everyone who thirsts,
    come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
    come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
    without money and without price.
2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
    and delight yourselves in rich food. (Verses 1-2).

Everyone, Jew, Gentile, rich and poor, are invited to salvation in Christ. It doesn’t cost a thing and it will more than satisfy your every need. You are seeking and striving to find a way to be good enough, but nothing you do can make you good enough. But if you just accept the invitation from Jesus to Salvation it is done. You are good enough, not because of anything you did, do, or will do, but because it is a lovely gift from The Lord.

It really is a good gift. Life under Jesus’ grace is not minimal, stark, or meager. He pours out His forgiveness and grace. He provides every need. He gifts and He blesses. And then there is the promise of Eternity. Heaven isn’t sitting around on clouds playing harps. Heaven is not the absence of all the “fun” you thought you had in your life. There is a huge party planned, a big wedding feast, singing and dancing and being face to face with God. All the good and wonderful gifts God gives us now in our lives, He fulfills and makes complete in Eternity.

Believer, He has made you and gifted you to tell people about His deep love and wonderful grace. You can glorify your Lord and share the beautiful news of Salvation because of all He has done and does in your life. He transformed you to His image and you can share the grace and love of God with the world. Verse 5 reads,

“Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,
    and a nation that did not know you shall run to you,
because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,
    for he has glorified you.”

Disciple, you must remember that earth is temporary and the day is coming when it will be too late. Seeker, today is the day. You do not have forever. Just at least, look into Jesus, check Him out. You’ll see He is good, really wonderfully good. Verses 6-9 read,

“Seek the Lord while he may be found;
    call upon him while he is near;
7 let the wicked forsake his way,
    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him,
    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.
9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

God isn’t like us. He can do the impossible. His methods are not what we would use. When we realize our sins have made us so widely different from His pure and perfect love and ask the Lord to forgive us, He does. He changes us. He gives us that amazing and rich salvation.

God can bring anyone to salvation. Follower, He gave you the job of being His witness and giving testimony to His goodness so that the lost could hear the truth and experience that compassion and pardon for themselves. It is not your job to convince them to believe. It is your joy to glorify the Lord and speak His truth, show kindness with His compassion, and love with His love in truth and deed. God does the saving, not you. He will get done what He means to get done. He will use you or He will use someone else. He’s used donkeys, visions, storms, and trees. He can do whatever He wants. He gives you the opportunity to live His love and experience the fullness of life in Him by choosing to use you. Verses 10-11 read,

“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
    and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
    giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
    it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

If you do not know the beautiful and jubilant truth of salvation, ask for it today, right now. Give God your wrongs and let Him wipe them away. Know that you can never be good enough to please God or get into Heaven, but God is willing to wipe every single transgression away. All you have to do is ask Jesus to forgive you and make Him your Lord of your life. God will do the rest. He will come into you and change you and satisfy you.

If you are saved. Are you enjoying the opulent life He’s given you? Are you Salt and Light to the lost? Are you glorifying God? Or perhaps you are living a stark life. Perhaps you struggle under the heavy load of trying to follow rules and laws. Maybe you struggle to convince people to turn to God. Give up the burden. Life the abundant life Jesus gave you. Delight in the wonderful gifts of the Holy Spirit. Enjoy the provision of the Father. Let your life be a witness to and reflection of your Lord. Let God do the saving.