Honest God Truth

Paul shows us what it means to love God and love your neighbor as yourself.  Pray constantly can’t mean you are to go in a closest and pray because we could not do anything else that shows love.  So I believe it means to have God on our minds all the time.  By his grace it is possible to live the way Paul is describing and when we forget who we serve we will turn and start serving ourself. So when we begin to become angry, upset, depressed, prideful we need to repent in our minds and turn to Jesus who forgives and strengthens us to love others.  May the grace of God overpower our selfish heart today and each day after.  Amen

Starting in Romans 12 Paul takes a turn from theology to action, from thinking to doing. Why did God give us eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ?  He loves us and desires to use us for his glory. How does it look?  Well the first thing we need to do is be a living sacrifice to him by renewing our mind daily.  If we serve him selflessly we need his word daily and we need to serve others with the gifts he gives us.  It is all about God, his salvation, his word, his gifts, and his power through the Holy Spirit.  What a wonderful God we have in the Lord God almighty.  Let us rejoice and praise him today!  Amen 

Ephesians 4: 25-34 Speaking the truth with grace is giving people who have taken from you the anger that your lost produced.    Allowing the anger to be expressed is healthy if you don’t respond in retaliation but by the power of the Holy Spirit you show kindness.    Let the anger out without sinning and respond with love thinking of the other person.    In this way we are acting like Jesus by while we were yet sinners he died for us.  

“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:38-39‬ ‭ESV When we are convinced every morning that Jesus is with us and loves us it changes everything.  There are many times when life situations are difficult, sad, confusing and evil.  During those times it is easy to doubt God’s love.  That is when meditating on God’s word becomes the rock of our faith.  Trusting in the Lord with all your heart can only happen when the Holy Spirit has the words in your heart to help you overcome the daily doubt.  As we read texts from our loved ones we should read Jesus words the same way with all our hearts.  I pray you have a wonderful day in God’s love.  Don’t forget to read the text from Jesus. It is full of love.  Amen

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭8:1‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Laws or commandments are a part of being a righteous God. Without laws in nature there would be uncertainty in every act.  Laws bring order and directions and peace.  God’s commandments give us the path of doing right but because of sin our ability to obey them is not possible. The consequences of breaking the law is condemnation.   Therefore God needed to come and save us by coming as his son.  Jesus was able and willing to live a perfect life of obedience and was a perfect substitute for us when he died for our disobedience.  We by faith in Jesus’ work in living perfectly and dying for the payment of our sins are now free from condemnation.  Living with that reality should allow us to praise Jesus everyday in every way!

These verses have caused much discussion throughout history.  Is Paul talking about his actions before conversion or after?  Knowing to do right by the law but not being able to do it because of sin. Having the desire to do right but not the ability on his own seems no relationship with Jesus.  But the last few verses he claims help from the Lord from this helplessness.  The closer we get to Jesus the more we realize we need him.  So when Jesus said to pray lead us not into temptation and deliver us from evil he knew we would be in the battle with our flesh unto we see him face to face.  We need his help daily to win!  Amen

“But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭7:6‬ ‭ESV‬‬ The law that causes our passions to increase is written outside our heart.  It lets us know we are sinners and cannot keep the law because we don’t want to.  We know we should but our sinful nature will not be controlled.  Once we die to the flesh by belief in Jesus death and resurrection we are born by the Spirit.  The Spirit wants to obey the laws or wants to please God.  When we walk by the Spirit we fulfill the laws because our nature is submissive to God and is controlled by God.  Our new decision maker “heart” chooses correctly because it loves Jesus.  The wonderful gift of grace that allows a sinner like me to love and serve God out of a willing heart.  Maybe not always but by grace more each day! Thank you Jesus

Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”  Romans 5:3-4. Why would anyone rejoice in suffering?  If we know it is for our good then it my be ok.   All great athletes suffer in there training for they have a goal of winning.  Most of the time they have the choice if they want to suffer or not.  When we have problems with suffering is when we don’t choose it.  When it doesn’t make sense.  Paul tells us that because with have the Holy Spirit in our heart then we know for certain that he is controlling our life for God’s glory and our joy. Why, because God loves us. James says count it all joy!  As children of God we will overcome because the God of the universe is living in us.  A...

Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.” This verse and all the fulfilled prophecy is boldly stating that Jesus life, death, and resurrection was planned perfectly. There was no chance, luck, change in God’s plan.  Our life, our future is in the hands of a mighty God that loves us so much.  This truth must motivate us to live our life’s praising him though loving him and others more than ourselves.  I pray that this truth that we know will set us free to love unconditionally.  Amen

Jesus said in this chapter “Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.” Peter said that Jesus had the words of eternal life. Listening and obeying are the same thing except like Peter we don't obey all the time! If you hear Jesus voice and do not harden your heart you are of the truth. God is your father and you are a child of God. Count it all joy when you desire to obey and please Jesus. Your desire and ability to act are gifts from God. So is your morning over you sin which leads to repentants. Thank God for his wonderful gift of grace.

This chapter is so full of truth that it is overwhelming the love the Trinity has for us. If we believe that the disciples represent us and what Jesus said to them he is saying to us then we are truly blessed.  Jesus sending the “Helper” to remind the disciples Jesus’ teachings and actions gave us the New Testament.  What a treasure to have God’s word written for our help. The truth of scripture brings us so much hope about our present circumstances and our future that the peace we obtain by our faith in its words is supernatural.  Jesus saying do not let your hearts be troubled are words that lead to joy incomprehensible!  Knowing and believing God provided a way for us to be with him forever is truly amazing grace!

Setting time each day to read scripture and reflect on it by writing has been to me very beneficial in keeping Jesus on my heart.  When you receive the truth of God’s love through reading the Bible it fills you with the desire to love, both God and others.  When we do what Jesus commanded us to do by the power of the Holy Spirit we receive more of the Father’s love.  So Jesus is glorified when we trust him, ask him for forgiveness of our sins, and loving others more each day!  What a wonderful savior we have in Jesus.  He provides the way and the truth and the life.  We just need to know him and trust him. Amen

“to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭2:7-8‬ ‭ESV‬‬ So after reading these verses many times I believe Paul is making a case that no one enters eternal life on their own ability.  God’s requirements are so great that if we mess up once we are lost forever.  God is totally righteous and we have some righteousness in us but no where close to the perfection God requires.   That is why Jesus said to be perfect like your Heavenly Father is perfect!  All of scripture points to Jesus perfect life, death and resurrection.  We may at times believe we are doing what it takes to receive salvation and eternal life on our own.  But what is required is learning and trusting that we can do nothing apart from Jesus and his love for us. Nothing!! These verses at first se...

This chapter is so full of life. Jesus is revealing more of himself and receiving praise from God and some humans. Others are condemning themselves because they choose not to believe in him. Yet scripture tells of them not being able to see Jesus’ truth because their eyes are blinded!  The passion that is seen is amazing and yet God’s plan is being executed perfectly. It may seem chaotic with so many unusual events occurring some would say that Jesus was only reacting to the events.  But it seems more that he and his father are working perfectly together to defeat Satan and his power over death.  So I believe when we find our life out of control we should stop and give praise to the Lord who loves us and is in control of our life.  He will finish the work he started in us for eternal life with him!

“And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:15‬ ‭ESV‬‬ What is the peace of Christ and how can we let it rule in our hearts?   Our hearts are the decision maker in our lives and it controls our thoughts and actions.  If we allow the peace of Jesus to be the ruler of our decisions than he must be Lord over us.  What he says about us, what he commands of us, and what he promises for us, will control our thoughts and decisions. When we allow these truths to deeply penetrate our minds and souls we will follow and obey Christ.  The process is an amazing peace and joy called sanctification that we experience and nothing can hinder it. I pray that we grow deeper into Jesus each day.  Amen

Revelation 3 is about the lukewarm church that Jesus wants to spit out of his mouth!  Here is my thought on it. God’s kindness is always with us to breath, eat, laugh, love.  Without trouble people don’t know they are frogs slowly boiling in water. It feels so good.  The gift of God is to have eyes to see and ears to hear how much God loves us and how sinful we are against him.  I pray we are more aware of both our sinfulness and Jesus’ graciousness each day.  Amen