Protected by the Power of God

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." 1 Peter 1:3-5

What a powerful message Peter shares with us! Our Father's great mercy gave us new life with hope! We have an inheritance (the Holy Spirit being the deposit, living and dwelling in us) and we have reseverations in Heaven!!! The Adversary wants to attack the confidence and trust we have in God. We all fall short of perfection ... we sin (hamartia in Greek), so it is easy to buy into the lie that we aren't good enough to have such a love given to us!

The power (dunamis in Greek) we have, the authority (exousia in Greek) we have ... these are to help us mature in Christ to be powerful soldiers for Christ! God is doing the work in our lives ... no matter what the circumstances. We can't allow circumstances (seeking riches, being poor, society's influences, institutions, entertainment, pleasure) dictate how we feel aout loving and seeking our God; we must know He is making all things work together for our good, to those who love Him!

The Messiah has risen! If you have doubts about His role in your life, ask Him for understanding. He promises to fill us and help us to become one with Him, just as He is one with our Father!

Read Ephesians 1:13-14, 2 Timothy 2:3 and 4:7-8, Romans 11:29, 2 Corinthians 5:5 for more illumination.

Crucified with Christ

"I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me." Galatians 2:20

I do not feel I am a worthy advocate for Christ; I have sin still couched at my doorstep, and I sin or miss the mark (hamartia in Greek, an archery term). As Paul said, "For the good that I wish, I do not do; but I practice the very evil that I do not wish," Romans 7:19. Herein lies the conflict of the spiritual and natural realms.

The evil (kakon in Greek) makes us retreat in battle (jobs, society, mates, etc.) and sin (hamartia) is the result. Getting a bull's eye (truth) is the desired goal. Alēthēs/Alēthinos (adjectives indicating the type of content), alētheuō (the verb which indicates the action of dealing truly with), and alētheia (the noun that is the reality and essence of the matter) are the Greek words that portray hitting the bull's eye, or being true to the fact! Only Jesus Christ has hit the bull's eye!

Hitting the bull's eye is difficult when past training teaches us to rely on worldly goals, activities and actions (that continually change) for us to do our best; I know I'm not perfect. I have wonderful parents that trained me up to look for truth, to do "what is right" and doing it to the best of my ability. Yet, Jesus is the only person that has achieved that perfection. So now, I no longer need to rely upon my own strengths that continually let me down; I just don't know enough of the future to make all the right decisions ... except for one. I believe that God is in control! He sent His Son, Jesus Christ (who lives in us) who hit the mark for all of us! He does for all of us! Believe this one truth, and you will always have two-way access to Him!

Read John 3:33-36, Romans 7:14-25, 1Thessalonians 1:9-10 for more illumination

Every good and perfect gift ...

"Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation, or no shifting shadow." James 1:17

Our Father gives only good things and perfect gifts. It's a truth we rely upon. What is James saying, though, about being deceived? Knowing dokimē and dokimazo in Greek helps answer that question. Examine, test, experience and prove/approve are the English words used to explain the term. The meaning depicts removing impurities from valuable metal we are to examine and inspect for purity. The reference is self-examination (we are that precious metal!), an honest inspection of how we are progressing in our walk with the LORD. Examples of this examination are in 1 Corinthians 11:28, "... but let a man (person) examine himself ...," Philemon 1:10, "approve the things that are excellent" and Romans 5:3b-4, " ... knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;"

The next verse is a perfect example of God's good things ... "Hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." Romans 5:5. How incredibly awesome!!!

Satan, society, worldly ambition, social ambition, personal ambition ... anything that gets in the way of our pure worship can deceive us! Tribulations help us to understand how we are to rely upon God. In this way, we're able to fully understand and utilize every good thing that our loving Father bestows upon us. That is His promise; He will never change! He always give us every good thing and perfect gift. Our daily job is not to be deceived by the attempts to pull us away from God's good gifts! Believe me ... God's gifts are everywhere, if we but seek, knock and ask!