Revival in my Soul

I feel so fatigued.. yes I am tired, physically.. but I think I am also fatigued spiritually... trying so hard in studies.. and I forget to sit back relax... and meditate on His word.... I don't want to just know the word.. but I want to actually be closer to God.. in His love....experiencing God on a daily basis.. I'm tired of trying to prove myself to others.. I need to seek my approval from God, and not men.

Where is my faith? Where is my trust in Him? Where is that deep personal relationship with God that I so desire? Where is the love for God that stirs my heart? Lord, rekindle the fire that You started in me.. and bring about a revival in my soul!

JESUS is the WORD

John 1:1-3 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

So here we see that Jesus is the Word, and that through Him all things were made.

So let's go back to Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Through Jesus, the Word, all things were made. The Word was in the beginning, Jesus being in the beginning.. Jesus was with God, and Jesus was God.

During Bible study we were discussing a bit on the Ten Commandments.. A thought occurred to me. Since Jesus is the Word, and that through Him all things were spoken into existence.. and since He has existed since the beginning.. All occurrences where God came down and spoke to man.. even the commandments.. were spoken by Jesus.. When God came and spoke to Moses through the burning bush.. that was Jesus who spoke to him.. since He is the Word..

John 1:10-17
10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God — 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) 16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.

these verses have JESUS' name written all over them.. as it has been since the beginning.. all things point to Christ.. all things in the Old Testament are a foreshadowing of things to come.. He has always existed.. even before He manifested in the flesh 2000 years ago.. He is the Alpha and the Omega.. the Beginning and the End...the First and the Last.. He is Lord.. and He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.. Amen.

Walk Not in the Ways of this World

Psalm 1 

 

Psalm 1:1 How blessed are those
who reject the advice of the wicked,
don’t stand on the way of sinners
or sit where scoffers sit!

Proverbs 4:14 says:
"Don’t follow the path of the wicked
or walk on the way of evildoers."

The world has its' own wisdom, yet the worlds wisdom is not God's wisdom. The world's wisdom is this: "Doing good is all that matters. So long as you do what you feel is right, you are okay." Yet God teaches that our own righteousness is as filthy rags compared to God's righteousness.

I had a conversation with a guy at work. He follows the Sikh religion. He said that in his religion they believe that everyone has their own path, but that all paths lead to the same destination. He said that we all believe in the same God, whether it's Mohammed, or Jesus, or whoever. His belief is that as long are you do good and love one another, then you are achieving the basic principle of all religions. I told him though, that though he is partly right about loving others, the Bible says that Jesus (Yeshua HaMaschiach) is the only way to Salvation. I also told him that out of all the other religions, Jesus is the only one who was crucified and then rose again on the third day. He is the only way to salvation, and only the Bible teaches that. No other religion teaches that. So therefore, Jesus cannot be the same as Mohammed, or Brahma, or Buddha.. or whoever...

The world will follow whatever sounds appeasing to them. They will turn to other gods and worship them. They will turn to even worship themselves. This is not the way of Yah. There is only one way to salvation, and that is through Yeshua, our Lord and Savior.

^{Psalm 1:2} Their delight
is in Adonai’s Torah;
on his Torah they meditate
day and night.

Our delight is not in the ways of this world. We must put our hope and trust in God's Word. We must meditate on His Word, day and night.

Psalm 119:14 says
"I rejoice in the way of your instruction
more than in any kind of wealth."

We put our trust in the way of His instruction on how to live. Our trust is not in money. All things belong to Him. He gives, and He rightfully takes away. All things are under His control. Therefore, we put our trust not in the things of this world, but in Him.

Psalm 119:16 says
"I will find my delight in your regulations.
I will not forget your word."

Just as there are regulations for every household, God has set regulations for His house. In the same way that any parent would instruct his/her children, the same God instructs for us. We are expected to be obedient to His Word as long as we live in His house. God laid down the Ten Commandments, and instructed His children to obey them. 

There are also rules of conduct that we are to obey. This is why God said to 'honor thy Father and thy Mother." I am sure that it would not go to well if the child back-talks his mom. Surely, it would not go to well if we talked to God the same way that many kids today talk to their parents. People are so disrespectful to their parents, especially in these days, because there is a lack of discipline in the homes. Parents will not rise up and bring discipline in their homes. I believe that is the reason why our generation has gone so far astray.

Psalm 119:35 says
"Guide me on the path of your mitzvot,
for I take pleasure in it."

"Mitzvot" is Hebrew for commandments. David's plea was that God would guide him on the path of His commandments. David sought to walk in His commandments, because He took pleasure in God's commandments. How many here can say that we have taken pleasure in obeying our own parents commandments? A child who serves his mother or father because he loves them will take pleasure in doing so. In the same way: We who are servants of the LORD will serve Him because we love Him, and we will serve Him because we take pleasure in doing so.

^{Psalm 1:3} They are like trees planted by streams —
they bear their fruit in season,
their leaves never wither,
everything they do succeeds.

When we put our trust in God, He will sustain us. His Word is like the water that nourishes us. By His Word, we grow and bear fruit. By His Word, our leaves shall not wither. And by His Word, everything we do will succeed. We will not be anxious, worrying about what tomorrow will bring. For as long as we remain in His Word, we will be blessed.

Jeremiah 17:8 says,
"He will be like a tree planted near water;

it spreads out its roots by the river;
it does not notice when heat comes;
and its foliage is luxuriant;
it is not anxious in a year of drought
but keeps on yielding fruit."

^{Psalm 1:4} Not so the wicked,
who are like chaff driven by the wind.

Those who are rooted in God's Word will remain strong, unshaken by the wind. But those who have cut away from the root, which is God's Word, they will be carried away by the winds of this world. They will be driven about by the winds of doctrine, the ways of this world.
Job 21:18 says,

"to make them like straw in the wind,
like chaff carried off by a storm?"

^{Psalm 1:5-6} For this reason the wicked
won’t stand up to the judgment,
nor will sinners
at the gathering of the righteous.
⁶ For Adonai watches over
the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked
is doomed.

The righteous will live by faith. Though it may seem like the wicked prosper in this life, in the next to come they will surely be doomed to perish. All things in this world will perish, so it is wise that we do not put our trust in the ways of this world. We put our trust in the Lord, for He will bless us with great inheritance that exceeds far above the gains of this world. The wicked will perish in their ways, but the righteous who put their faith in Him will prosper.

Psalm 37:18 says,

"Adonai knows what the wholehearted suffer,
but their inheritance lasts forever."

So be of strong courage, do not lose heart, and remember His word. Keep it stored in our hearts, for if we abide in His Word, we will prosper in all things that we do. God bless and Amen.

Shalom :)

He is Coming With the Clouds

 Today's blog will be on Revelation 1:1-8.  
I have entitled this blog: "He is Coming With the Clouds."
Now much of Revelations is a bit hard to understand, and without an intense study on this book, much of what is to be understood will be either missed or misinterpreted. I will only be giving a day's worth of study into this portion from Revelation, so my interpretation of this prophecy will only come from a direct insight based on my immediate knowledge of the Scriptures.

Revelation 1:1-8

 

Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

REV. 1:1-3 This is the revelation which God gave to Yeshua the Messiah, so that he could show his servants what must happen very soon. He communicated it by sending his angel to his servant Yochanan, ² who bore witness to the Word of God and to the testimony of Yeshua the Messiah, as much as he saw. ³ Blessed are the reader and hearers of the words of this prophecy, provided they obey the things written in it! For the time is near!

The testimony of Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) is this:
Those who accept and believe that Jesus is the Son of God. When we believe that He is the Son of God, and that God sent Him to die on the cross, then we also bear witness to His testimony. We testify to the truth that He is the Son of God who died and rose again, and that He lives! By believing in the Son we testify to this truth as witnesses, and he who believes will have eternal life.

^{REV. 1:4-6} From: Yochanan

To: The seven Messianic communities in the province of Asia:
Grace and shalom to you from the One who is, who was and who is coming; from the sevenfold Spirit before his throne; ⁵ and from Yeshua the Messiah, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead and the ruler of the earth’s kings.
To him, the one who loves us, who has freed us from our sins at the cost of his blood, ⁶ who has caused us to be a kingdom, that is, cohanim for God, his Father — to him be the glory and the rulership forever and ever. Amen.

Yochanan (John) wrote to the seven churches in Asia the vision that God gave him. I find it interesting that he writes "Grace and shalom (peace) to you from the One who is, who was and who is coming; from the sevenfold Spirit before his throne; and from Yeshua the Messiah, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead and the ruler of the earth’s kings.


Now I am a firm believer that God is one, but here we see that Yochanan (John) notably speaks of God on three accounts: (1) the One who is, who was, and who is coming; (2) the sevenfold Spirit; (3) Yeshua the Messiah. Now, many people think that there are three separate beings of deity. Contrarily, I believe that He is one, just as the Bible says, and that these three accounts are aspects used to describe who God is. 

(1) Father, (One who is, who was, and who is coming); 
(2) Holy Spirit (the sevenfold Spirit); 
(3) Son, (Yeshua the Messiah).


The sevenfold Spirit is what caught my attention the most, so I began to look into this to understand what he means by "sevenfold Spirit". I found many topics on this, but I was not looking for an essay on this. I just wanted a simple explanation of what John means by this.

From what I have found, Isaiah 11:1-2 speaks of the sevenfold spirit: "And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;

1. LORD: Spirit of divine government.
2. WISDOM: Knowing the Mind of God
3. UNDERSTANDING: Knowledge of the Holy
4. COUNSEL: Knowing the plan and purpose of God
5. MIGHT: Power, valor, or victory
6. KNOWLEDGE: Divine knowledge of the Truth
7. FEAR OF THE LORD: Divine Reverence

It is amazing to me. The many aspects used to describe God truly show His splendor, His majesty, and His wonder. His divine nature is sought out, and revealed to us. The sevenfold Spirit portrays God as a God of authority, wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, and one to be feared. And to think, that He loved us so much that He would send His only begotten Son for us, that we may have eternal life with Him.

He has freed us from our sins at the cost of his own blood, and he was chosen us to be his elect. He has made us to be cohanim (priests) for Him. He has made us witnesses to His very power, that we may proclaim the glory of God! Amen.

^{REV. 1:7} Look! He is coming with the clouds!
Every eye will see him,
including those who pierced him;
and all the tribes of the Land will mourn him.

Yes! Amen!

Yeshua (Jesus) is coming, as Daniel 7:13 says:

“I kept watching the night visions,
when I saw, coming with the clouds of heaven,
someone like a son of man.
He approached the Ancient One
and was led into his presence."

Jesus is coming with the clouds, and all will see Him. Everyone, even those who pierced Him will see Him, as Zechariah 12:10-14 says:

"and I will pour out on the house of David
and on those living in Yerushalayim
a spirit of grace and prayer;
and they will look to me, whom they pierced.”

They will mourn for him
as one mourns for an only son;
they will be in bitterness on his behalf
like the bitterness for a firstborn son.
When that day comes, there will be
great mourning in Yerushalayim,
mourning like that for Hadad-Rimmon
in the Megiddo Valley.
Then the land will mourn,
each family by itself —
the family of the house of David by itself,
and their wives by themselves;
the family of the house of Natan by itself,
and their wives by themselves;
the family of the house of Levi by itself,
and their wives by themselves;
the family of the Shim‘i by itself,
and their wives by themselves;
all the remaining families, each by itself,
and their wives by themselves."

Every eye will see Him, even those who persecuted Him 2000 years ago. Just as the rich man who was in torment looked up to see Lazarus with Abraham, so will those who persecuted Him look up to see Jesus coming with the clouds. And they will mourn, for they will know that He is Lord.

 

^{REV. 1:8} “I am the ‘A’ and the ‘Z,’” says Adonai,
God of heaven’s armies,
the One who is, who was and who is coming.

He is the 'A' and the 'Z', the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. He is Lord, God of Heaven and all it's host, and He is the One who is, who was, and is to come.

The Righteous Shall Live By Faith

For today's portion I will be reading from Romans 1:1-17. I have entitled this blog: "The Righteous Shall Live By Faith".

Romans 1:1-17

Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

Rom. 1:1 From: Sha’ul, a slave of the Messiah Yeshua, an emissary because I was called and set apart for the Good News of God.

Sha'ul (Paul) referred to himself as a slave, or servant of the Messiah Yeshua (Jesus). This means that he served the Messiah. A slave is someone who is bought with a price. Yeshua bought us with a price. He paid the price by sacrificing Himself on the cross to redeem us of our sins. He took us out of bondage (our sin) that we may no longer be slaves to sin but slaves to righteousness through Him. It was by His blood that we are bought, and if we have been washed clean by His blood, then we too are slaves of the Messiah Yeshua.

Just as Sha'ul was called and set apart for the Good News of God, we too are called and set apart for the Good News of God. The Good News is that He is Salvation. We have received salvation through Jesus Christ. So therefore we must act in servitude to Him, and do as He commands. His command is that we go unto all the world and preach the gospel. We are called to make disciples of men. We are to pronounce that the Messiah Yeshua (Jesus Christ) is Lord, and that He came to set the captive free!

 
^{Rom. 2:2-5} God promised this Good News in advance through his prophets in the Tanakh. ³ It concerns his Son — he is descended from David physically; ⁴ he was powerfully demonstrated to be Son of God spiritually, set apart by his having been resurrected from the dead; he is Yeshua the Messiah, our Lord. ⁵ Through him we received grace and were given the work of being an emissary on his behalf promoting trust-grounded obedience among all the Gentiles, ⁶ including you, who have been called by Yeshua the Messiah.

To those who have accepted the Messiah as Lord and Savior, we too become emissaries, just as Sha'ul was an emissary for the Lord. This means that we, as born again believers, are representatives of Christ who is the Ambassador. We must carry out this mission, as slaves to Him, to spread the Gospel (Good News) of Yeshua. If you have come to trust in the Lord, and have put your faith in Him, then you are called out for a purpose. As Christ is the Ambassador, we are to carry out His orders. Through Yeshua, we have received grace, and just as Paul states: We, as emissaries on His behalf, must carry out His message: That He is Salvation! We must, in our obedience to Him, promote to others this same faith/trust.


^{Romans 2:7} To: All those in Rome whom God loves, who have been called, who have been set apart for him:
Grace to you and shalom from God our Father and the Lord Yeshua the Messiah.

Sha'ul presents the Good News to Rome, as we see here. This message is not just for Rome though. The Good News is for all to hear, and to all who receive Him. We have been called, and set apart for His purpose. 

A blessing Sha'ul gives to the people of Rome: "Grace to you and shalom (peace) from God our Father and the Lord Yeshua the Messiah." I also pray this blessing to you all, grace and peace from God. Amen.
 

^{Romans 1:8-15} First, I thank my God through Yeshua the Messiah for all of you, because the report of your trust is spreading throughout the whole world. ⁹ For God, whom I serve in my spirit by spreading the Good News about his Son, is my witness that I regularly remember you ¹⁰ in my prayers; and I always pray that somehow, now or in the future, I might, by God’s will, succeed in coming to visit you. ¹¹ For I long to see you, so that I might share with you some spiritual gift that can make you stronger — ¹² or, to put it another way, so that by my being with you, we might, through the faith we share, encourage one another. ¹³ Brothers, I want you to know that although I have been prevented from visiting you until now, I have often planned to do so, in order that I might have some fruit among you, just as I have among the other Gentiles. ¹⁴ I owe a debt to both civilized Greeks and uncivilized people, to both the educated and the ignorant; ¹⁵ therefore I am eager to proclaim the Good News also to you who live in Rome.

 Our own faith and trust in Yeshua will serve as a good witness to those around us. We put our trust in the Messiah when we accepted Him as our Savior. Though do not let our faith die there. Yeshua is the Author and the Finisher of our faith, and He will finish the work that He started in You. Throughout life, as a born again believer, we will be put under many trials. These trials will be the testings of our faith. How we handle these situations will make all the difference, and people will notice how we react as well. Do we crumble under pressure? Or do they see the faith that strengthens us to endure through the trials of life? 

Therefore we must proclaim the Good News of Yeshua, our Lord and Savior. We must serve Him with all diligence and vivacity, to make known the good name of Yeshua (Jesus Christ). One day every knee shall bow and every tongue confess, that He is Lord. The question is, will they have come to repentance before the judgment? Or were they like the rich man who was tormented in Sheol who confessed and it was too late? So we must proclaim His Name, that He is God, and that He brings Salvation to the world. Let us be servants of Christ, proclaiming the Good News of salvation! Let us proclaim His Name! Glory to God, our Rock and our Redeemer! Our trust in Him will strengthen us, that we may be able to endure through all things, and will give to others encouragement as we should be doing.

^{Romans 1:16-17} For I am not ashamed of the Good News, since it is God’s powerful means of bringing salvation to everyone who keeps on trusting, to the Jew especially, but equally to the Gentile. ¹⁷ For in it is revealed how God makes people righteous in his sight; and from beginning to end it is through trust — as the Tanakh puts it, “But the person who is righteous will live his life by trust.”

In the Tanakh (Old Testament), in Habakkuk 2:4 it reads:"Look at the proud: he is inwardly not upright;

but the righteous will attain life through trusting faithfulness."

Those who exalt themselves with pride, who generally do so by knowledge, will be considered unrighteous. Many people think that they are justified by knowledge. They belittle others, because they are more superior in knowledge in others. But this is not the way to righteousness. Our righteousness is faith. Putting ourselves in any superiority above others is not true righteousness, but self-righteousness, and God will abase the prideful. But the one who humbles himself, and says "Lord, in You I put my faith in, and not my own...", him, will God consider righteous. It is this righteousness that we are given life. By trusting not in our own righteousness, but in God's righteousness, can we receive life. 

Do you trust God? or do you rely on your own self-righteousness to be justified?

Purpose: To Know God

My purpose in life is to know God more. I want to search His Word, in and out, and know His Word like the palm of my hand. I want His Word to be the very beating of my heart. My soul longs for Him. My heart cries out to Him. I feel this growing desire to be with Him. There is nothing that I want more in life than to be in His Presence. More than the food that I eat, the water that I drink, and the air that I breathe.. My soul hungers for His Word, and thirsts for His Spirit.

Matthew 4:4 "But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’"

Psalms 84:10 says "For a day in your courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness."

But, even a second without Him is a second that I dread. I don't wanna go one day, let alone one second without being in His will.

Paul writes in Philippians 3:10-11, words that ring so true for me. This is from the Amplified version, and I love the way the text is enriched herein:

¹⁰ [For my determined purpose is] that I may know Him [that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly], and that I may in that same way come to know the power outflowing from His resurrection [which it exerts over believers], and that I may so share His sufferings as to be continually transformed [in spirit into His likeness even] to His death, [in the hope]

¹¹ That if possible I may attain to the [spiritual and moral] resurrection [that lifts me] out from among the dead [even while in the body].

Life is incomplete without God. Before I was saved, I thought that I knew a lot. But then after I got saved, and gave my life to Christ, I realized how little I really know. I want to be closer to God, and continually grow daily in Him. There are so many things I still don't understand, but I pray that God will continue to draw me closer to Him, that I may come into a fuller understanding of the things of God.

James 4:8 says "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded."

I also know that it is the Father who draws us to the Son. The closer we get to God, the closer He will get to us.
Also note, the second part of this verse: "Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded." Picture God as a Light that shines in a darkened room. Darkness hides our sins. We cannot see in a pitch-black room. The brighter the Light shines within that room, the more apparent our sins will become.

Now, back to Philippians 3:10-11. The more we understand God, the more we will come to know the power of the resurrection of Christ. In that way, we may overcome our flesh, so that we may be more equipped in the Spirit. For we must do away with our flesh because our flesh cannot inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. Therefore, we must walk in the newness of life. We must walk in the Spirit.

Galatians 5:16-23
¹⁶ I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. ¹⁷ For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. ¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
¹⁹ Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, ²¹ envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. ²⁴ And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

To be wholly submitted to God, living in the Spirit, we must rid ourselves of the flesh and it's desires. We have to walk in the likeness of Christ. The less we become of ourselves, the more we become in His likeness. We are to be slaves of God, and not to sin. For sin is separation from God, and the more we put our own wills above God's, the further we become from God. We have to keep our thoughts on Him, seeking His Presence daily, praying continually. We must seek to be with Him.. the more we lose focus on that.. the further we go astray from the things of God. However, God is a faithful God, and He will always leave the 99 sheep to go searching for that 1 lost sheep that went astray.

Purpose of the Gifts ~ Prayer for Revelation

 Purpose of the Gifts

Ephesians 4:15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—    

Prayer for Revelation

Ephesians 1:22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 

`~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~`

Ephesians 4:12-16

¹² for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, ¹³ till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; ¹⁴ that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, ¹⁵ but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— ¹⁶ from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

Ephesians 1:15-23

Prayer for Spiritual Wisdom

¹⁵ Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, ¹⁶ do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: ¹⁷ that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, ¹⁸ the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, ¹⁹ and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power ²⁰ which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.
²² And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, ²³ which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Christ Abides with Zacchaeus ~ Parable of the Lost Sheep

Christ Abides with Zacchaeus 

Luke 19:10 for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Parable of the Lost Sheep

Matthew 18:11  For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.

 

`~*~*~ *~ *~ *~ *~ *~ *~ *~`

Luke 19:1-10

Jesus Comes to Zacchaeus’ House

19 Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. ² Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. ³ And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. ⁴ So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way. ⁵ And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” ⁶ So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. ⁷ But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.”

⁸ Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.”
⁹ And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; ¹⁰ for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Jesus did not come to receive fortune or fame, or to be respected among men. He came to seek out the lost and to save them. Here is an excellent picture of a man who desired to see who Jesus was. Jesus looked, and saw this man, Zacchaeus, and made stay at his house. The crowds that were around Jesus obviously did not agree with this, even so much that they complained because he was a sinner. This is a perfect illustration of how some people are. For some reason, people think that God will only accept you if you are perfect, but that is not so. Jesus came to restore the broken, heal the sick, and save the lost.


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Matthew 18:11-14

¹¹ For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.
¹² “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying? ¹³ And if he should find it, assuredly, I say to you, he rejoices more over that sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not go astray. ¹⁴ Even so it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.

This is how much Jesus really loves us. He does not want to see one of us go astray. No matter what, He is always searching us out looking for that one lost sheep that has gone astray. He does not wish to see one of us perish. A stray sheep will surely be devoured by the wolf, but a herd of sheep led by their Shepherd shall not perish. The Shepherd will guide us, and protect us. His rod and His staff shall comfort us.

Imperfection in Aaronic Priesthood ~ Doxology of Jude ~ The Spirit Assures of Final Victory

Imperfection in Aaronic Priesthood

Hebrews 7:25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

 Doxology of Jude

Jude 1:24 Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling,
And to present you faultless
Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,

The Spirit Assures of Final Victory

Hebrews 8:34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. 

 

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Hebrews 7:11-28

Need for a New Priesthood

¹¹ Therefore, if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron? ¹² For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law. ¹³ For He of whom these things are spoken belongs to another tribe, from which no man has officiated at the altar.
¹⁴ For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, of which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood. ¹⁵ And it is yet far more evident if, in the likeness of Melchizedek, there arises another priest ¹⁶ who has come, not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life. ¹⁷ For He testifies:

“You are a priest forever
According to the order of Melchizedek.”

¹⁸ For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness, ¹⁹ for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.

Greatness of the New Priest

²⁰ And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an oath (for they have become priests without an oath, but He with an oath by Him who said to Him:

“The Lord has sworn
And will not relent,
‘You are a priest forever
According to the order of Melchizedek’”),

²² by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant.

²³ Also there were many priests, because they were prevented by death from continuing. ²⁴ But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. ²⁵ Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.
²⁶ For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; ²⁷ who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. ²⁸ For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.

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Jude 1:24-25

Glory to God

²⁴ Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling,
And to present you faultless
Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,
²⁵ To God our Savior,
Who alone is wise,
Be glory and majesty,
Dominion and power,
Both now and forever.
Amen.

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Romans 8:31-39

God’s Everlasting Love

³¹ What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³² He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? ³³ Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. ³⁴ Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? ³⁶ As it is written:

“For Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”

³⁷ Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, ³⁹ nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Reason for Gentile Guilt -- The Works and Words of God

 (Romans 1:20 - Reason for Gentile Guilt)
For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,  

(Psalm 19:1-6 - The Works and Words of God)
The heavens declare the glory of God;
And the firmament shows His handiwork.
Day unto day utters speech,
And night unto night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech nor language
Where their voice is not heard.
Their line has gone out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world.
In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun,
Which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
And rejoices like a strong man to run its race.
Its rising is from one end of heaven,
And its circuit to the other end;
And there is nothing hidden from its heat.

~~~~~~~~~~

Romans 1:18-23

God’s Wrath on Unrighteousness

(v. 18-19) For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.  


There is not one who is ignorant of the truth of God, for we all have a conscious inside. People know what is right and what is wrong. People know what is morally good and what is immorally wrong. The problem is, people suppress the truth in their own unrighteousness.


(v. 20-21) For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 


Everyone knows that this is a wicked world we live in, yet people are so foolish to continue in the ways of their wickedness, ignoring the truth that God provides for us the way of Righteousness. Why is this?


 (v. 22-23) Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.


 They have turned away from God and instead they have come worship an image made like unto themselves.  They perverted the truth of the incorruptible God into an image like unto themselves, that they may be justified in their sins. 


~~~~~~~~~~


 Psalm 19

The Perfect Revelation of the Lord

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

(v. 1-4) The heavens declare the glory of God;
And the firmament shows His handiwork.
Day unto day utters speech,
And night unto night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech nor language
Where their voice is not heard.
Their line has gone out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world.

 The heavens proclaim the glory of God. All of His creation declares the wonders of His works He has done. Each passing moment, from the rising of the sun until the going down, all of creation praises His name. All of creation spells out His name and speaks of all that He has done.

(v. 5-6) In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun,
Which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
And rejoices like a strong man to run its race.
Its rising is from one end of heaven,
And its circuit to the other end;
And there is nothing hidden from its heat.

The sun reveals it's light unto all the world. There is not a single one who is hidden from its' source.

(v. 7-11) The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;
The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold,
Yea, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.
Moreover by them Your servant is warned,
And in keeping them there is great reward.

All of His ways are perfect. If we live accordingly unto His righteousness by His law, the rewards will be great. The law of the LORD will make known what is right to the wicked. By our testimony of what God has done for us, not one soul proclaiming to be wise will be able to fool us, for we know of the truth because we hold witness to the truth. If we hold true to what is right, our hearts will rejoice in gladness, and our eyes will be enlightened. Love rejoices in truth. If we hold dear to what is true, His word will remain in our hearts forever, and darkness shall not deceive us for we know that His Word has said, "Let there be light". And so it was good. And His light he has shone forever in our hearts.

Fear of the LORD is the beginning of Wisdom. We know that He is a just God. His judgment upon us will be right. No one will have an excuse for our actions in the day of judgment, for we know deep down inside whether we reject the truth or not, what is right and wrong. God has made His judgments known. God has made His righteousness known to all of us.

His Truth shall be treasured even more than gold. His Word shall not fade, but remain in our hearts. If we cling on to His ways and keep them, we will not be put to shame.

(v. 12-13) Who can understand his errors?
Cleanse me from secret faults.
Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins;
Let them not have dominion over me.
Then I shall be blameless,
And I shall be innocent of great transgression.

Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." We know not why we do the things we do at times. We are born into sin, and that is our nature. A man will sin even before he is aware that he sins. But the law is for correction, making known what is wrong in God's sight, that we may be able to know what is also good in His sight.

Let not these sins have dominion over me, that I may walk blameless before Your sight, Lord, for I know that Your ways are righteous and Your ways are true. 

(v. 14) Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer.

Bodies of the Translated Living ; Israel's Continuing Sin ; Conclusion: All Are Guilty Before God ; Abraham's Righteousness Apart from the Law ; Law Cannot Deliver from Sin

Bodies of the Translated Living 


1 Corinthians 15:55-57
“O Death, where is your sting?
O Hades, where is your victory?”
The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Israel's Continuing Sin  

Hosea 13:14 

“I will ransom them from the power of the grave;
I will redeem them from death.
O Death, I will be your plagues!
O Grave, I will be your destruction!
Pity is hidden from My eyes.”

Conclusion: All Are Guilty Before God

 Romans 3:20 

Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

Abraham's Righteousness Apart from the Law 

Romans 4:15
because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression. 

Law Cannot Deliver from Sin 

Romans 7:8 

But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead.

------------------------

1 Corinthians 15:51-58

Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
“O Death, where is your sting?
O Hades, where is your victory?”
The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Hosea 12-13

“Ephraim feeds on the wind,
And pursues the east wind;
He daily increases lies and desolation.
Also they make a covenant with the Assyrians,
And oil is carried to Egypt.

“The Lord also brings a charge against Judah,
And will punish Jacob according to his ways;
According to his deeds He will recompense him.
He took his brother by the heel in the womb,
And in his strength he struggled with God.
Yes, he struggled with the Angel and prevailed;
He wept, and sought favor from Him.
He found Him in Bethel,
And there He spoke to us—
That is, the Lord God of hosts.
The Lord is His memorable name.
So you, by the help of your God, return;
Observe mercy and justice,
And wait on your God continually.

“A cunning Canaanite!
Deceitful scales are in his hand;
He loves to oppress.
And Ephraim said,
‘Surely I have become rich,
I have found wealth for myself;
In all my labors
They shall find in me no iniquity that is sin.’

“But I am the Lord your God,
Ever since the land of Egypt;
I will again make you dwell in tents,
As in the days of the appointed feast.
I have also spoken by the prophets,
And have multiplied visions;
I have given symbols through the witness of the prophets.”

Though Gilead has idols—
Surely they are vanity—
Though they sacrifice bulls in Gilgal,
Indeed their altars shall be heaps in the furrows of the field.

Jacob fled to the country of Syria;
Israel served for a spouse,
And for a wife he tended sheep.
By a prophet the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt,
And by a prophet he was preserved.
Ephraim provoked Him to anger most bitterly;
Therefore his Lord will leave the guilt of his bloodshed upon him,
And return his reproach upon him.

Relentless Judgment on Israel

When Ephraim spoke, trembling,
He exalted himself in Israel;
But when he offended through Baal worship, he died.
Now they sin more and more,
And have made for themselves molded images,
Idols of their silver, according to their skill;
All of it is the work of craftsmen.
They say of them,
“Let the men who sacrifice kiss the calves!”
Therefore they shall be like the morning cloud
And like the early dew that passes away,
Like chaff blown off from a threshing floor
And like smoke from a chimney.

“Yet I am the Lord your God
Ever since the land of Egypt,
And you shall know no God but Me;
For there is no savior besides Me.
I knew you in the wilderness,
In the land of great drought.
When they had pasture, they were filled;
They were filled and their heart was exalted;
Therefore they forgot Me.

“So I will be to them like a lion;
Like a leopard by the road I will lurk;
I will meet them like a bear deprived of her cubs;
I will tear open their rib cage,
And there I will devour them like a lion.
The wild beast shall tear them.

“O Israel, you are destroyed,
But your help is from Me.
I will be your King;
Where is any other,
That he may save you in all your cities?
And your judges to whom you said,
‘Give me a king and princes’?
I gave you a king in My anger,
And took him away in My wrath.

“The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up;
His sin is stored up.
The sorrows of a woman in childbirth shall come upon him.
He is an unwise son,
For he should not stay long where children are born.

“I will ransom them from the power of the grave;
I will redeem them from death.
O Death, I will be your plagues!
O Grave, I will be your destruction!
Pity is hidden from My eyes.”

Though he is fruitful among his brethren,
An east wind shall come;
The wind of the Lord shall come up from the wilderness.
Then his spring shall become dry,
And his fountain shall be dried up.
He shall plunder the treasury of every desirable prize.
Samaria is held guilty,
For she has rebelled against her God.
They shall fall by the sword,
Their infants shall be dashed in pieces,
And their women with child ripped open.

 Romans 3:9-20

All Have Sinned

What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin.
As it is written:

“There is none righteous, no, not one;
There is none who understands;
There is none who seeks after God.
They have all turned aside;
They have together become unprofitable;
There is none who does good, no, not one.”“Their throat is an open tomb;
With their tongues they have practiced deceit”;
“The poison of asps is under their lips”;
“Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”
 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
Destruction and misery are in their ways;
And the way of peace they have not known.”
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

Romans 4:13-15

The Promise Granted Through Faith

For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect,  because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression.

Romans 7:7-25

Sin’s Advantage in the Law

What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.”  But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead. I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.

Law Cannot Save from Sin

Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful. For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.