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Posts Tagged ‘Knowing God’

Desert Song & Jill McCloghry’s Testimony

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 31, 2009| 3 Comments »

Good morning!  I was just skimming through a few Youtube clips this morning and I was really touched and encouraged by this particular clip and testimony.  You know, there are so many contemporary Christian songs that we sing that lack the content and depth and truth of the older hymns.  This song isn’t one of them. Enjoy!

Desert Song

– Brooke Fraser (Hillsong)

-VERSE 1-
This is my prayer in the desert,
When all that’s within me feels dry,
This is my prayer in my hunger and need,
My God is the God who provides,

-VERSE 2-
And this is my prayer in the fire,
In weakness, or trial, or pain,
There is a faith proved more worth than gold,
So refine me Lord through the flame,

-CHORUS-
I will bring praise,
I will bring praise,
No weapon formed against me shall remain,
I will rejoice, I will declare,
God is my victory and He is here,

-VERSE 3-
This is my prayer in the battle,
When triumph is still on its way,
I am a conqueror and co-heir with Christ,
So firm on his promise I’ll stand,

-CHORUS-
I will bring praise,
I will bring praise,
No weapon formed against me shall remain,
I will rejoice, I will declare,
God is my victory and He is here,

-REFRAIN- x 4
All of my life, in every season,
You are still God,
I have a reason to sing,
I have a reason to worship,

-CHORUS-
I will bring praise,
I will bring praise,
No weapon formed against me shall remain,
I will rejoice, I will declare,
God is my victory and He is here,

-VERSE 4-
And this is my prayer in the harvest,
When favour and providence flow,
I know I’m filled to be emptied again,
The seed I receive I will sow

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The Lord wants to Sing Over Us

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , on October 17, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Zephaniah has three chapters mainly speaking about ‘the day of the Lord‘ when the Lord pours out His fierce anger and wrath on those who worship other gods, those that don’t seek Him, those that place their wealth in material things, the proud and arrogant and haughty, those that falsely represent Him, those that refuse to accept His correction, etc.

And then He says this in Zephaniah 3:17 to His people…

“The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you with singing.”

The Lord’s whole ‘mood’ swings (if you would allow me to crudely put it this way) from fierce anger and wrath to great love and tenderness and delight.

You see, here is the Lord’s great desire.  He wants to to be close to us and save us.  He wants to take great delight in us.  He wants to quiet us with His love  And He wants to rejoice over us with singing!  Say what?   He wants to rejoice over us with singing! This is His hearts desire!

The only thing that gets in the way of the Lord singing over us is US.

‘Even now,’ declares the LORD,
‘return to me with all your heart,
with fasting and weeping and mourning.’
Rend your heart
and not your garments.
Return to the LORD your God,
for he is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and abounding in love,
and he relents from sending calamity.

Joel 2:12-13

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Access Granted

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , on October 16, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Have you ever experienced or seen a security system where when you enter the right code it says “ACCESS GRANTED”.  Maybe I am getting a little old fashioned.  I mean, it used to be a code.  A few years back it was your fingerprint that gave you access.  Nowadays the latest thing is the eyeprint to give you access.

I want to share a verse and a revelation.  It comes from Ephesians 2:18…

For through Him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit

So let’s make things clear.

We have acccess to whom? = We have ACCESS TO THE FATHER.  Who?  OUR HEAVENLY FATHER!

Through whom? = THROUGH HIM.  Who?  JESUS!   Jesus is the gate or the door!

What is the requirement (or the password)? = BY ONE SPIRIT.  Who?  THE HOLY SPIRIT!

There is one more thing.  We can have the correct password and we can have the door open but we have to walk through that door.

What is that walk?  FAITH!  Romans 5:1-2 says…

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we  have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access BY FAITH into this grace in which we now stand

We have ACCESS TO THE FATHER!  WOOOO HOOOO! We can come into the presence of the King!  I believe this is why Paul says in Ephesians 2:6…

And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus

But aren’t we still down here on earth?  Yes but can’t you see, through prayer and faith there is no longer any barrier or emnity between us and our Heavenly Father.  So, in reality, through prayer and faith we are IN THE PRESENCE OF THE KING.  We are seated with Jesus IN THE PRESENCE OF THE KING – communing with them!

Read the whole of Ephesians chapter 2.  We are no longer under the wrath of God.  Jesus is our peace.  Jesus has destroyed the barrier between us and God and us and our brothers and given us ACCESS TO THE FATHER.

Ephesians 2
2:1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature  and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions — it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

11 Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of men)— 12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.

14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. 17 He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. NIV

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Nuggets II

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , on October 10, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Hi!

As you can see, the title of my blog is Enlightened Hope: Captured Thoughts about God and His Word.

Well, here are some thoughts in a different form.  You see, as I drive along, praying and worshipping the Lord, I am now capturing some of my God thoughts on audio (via my Pocket PC).

Here is another nugget, with all of the road noises as well.

Enjoy!  And God bless you!

The Joy of the Lord & The Slow Fade

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Nuggets

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , on October 9, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Hi!

As you can see, the title of my blog is Enlightened Hope: Captured Thoughts about God and His Word.

Well, here are some thoughts in a different form.  You see, as I drive along, praying and worshipping the Lord, I am now capturing some of my God thoughts on audio (via my Pocket PC).

Here are a couple from this week, with all of the road noises as well.

Enjoy!  And God bless you!

Power & Joy & Salvation

Eternal Thinking and Prayer

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Working the Works

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on September 7, 2009| Leave a Comment »

In John 6:28 Jesus is asked a question…

“What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”

This is a great question BUT, in the context of the passage, what was the heart behind the question?  What was the heart of these ‘Jesus chaser’s?  Was it a genuine seeking of God’s Kingdom come here on earth as it is in Heaven?  I feel the answer to this has much relevence for today’s Christian culture as well.

Before we look at the answer to this and also Jesus’ response let’s have a look at a similar situation in Acts.  This is where Simon the Sorcerer (or ex-sorcerer) sees what the apostles were doing and wanted to do the same.

Acts 8:18-23
And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, 19 saying, “Give me this power also, that anyone on whom I lay hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
But Peter said to him, “Your money perish with you, because you thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money! 21 You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God. Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity.”  NKJV

Wow,  Peter doesn’t mix his words here!  Simon wants to ‘work the works of God’ and will pay money for that priviledge.  Simon saw what the apostles were doing, he was focussed on the power of the Holy Spirit and he wanted that for himself.  Is this a bad desire?  NO, the desire in itself is not a bad desire BUT when it comes from a self centred desire to have the power instead of a God centred desire it is completely wrong.   Coming out of a life of sorcery, Simon saw the Holy Spirit as a power he could add to his ‘ministry’.  That is, the plans and purposes of the Kingdom of God came in a poor second to the kingdom of Simon. 

The Lord will not share his glory with another!

“I am the LORD; that is my name!  I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols. [Isa 42:8]

But hold on a minute, didn’t He give His glory to Jesus?  Answer: Jesus was God, God wasn’t sharing His glory with Jesus.  Jesus was God and God was Jesus!  He and His Father were one.

John 14:9-14
9 Jesus answered:  “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? ANYONE WHO HAS SEEN ME HAS SEEN THE FATHER. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I AM IN THE FATHER, and that THE FATHER IS IN ME? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, IT IS THE FATHER, LIVING IN ME, WHO IS DOING HIS WORK. 11 Believe me when I say that I AM IN THE FATHER AND THE FATHER IS IN ME; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. 12 I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

But hold on another minute, doesn’t God share His glory with us?  Isn’t He changing us from glory to glory?  Answer: As we become less, God becomes more, so it is God shining through us, not God sharing His glory with us.

John 17:20-23
“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that ALL OF THEM MAY BE ONE, Father, JUST AS YOU ARE IN ME AND I AM IN YOU. MAY THEY ALSO BE IN US so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I HAVE GIVEN THEM THE GLORY THAT YOU GAVE ME, THAT THEY MAY BE ONE AS WE ARE ONE: I IN THEM AND YOU IN ME. MAY THEY BE BROUGHT INTO COMPLETE UNITY to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

Getting back to the John 6 passage, these ‘Jesus chasers’ were focused on the ‘works of God’.  In other words, they were focused on the ‘Spiritual tricks’ Jesus was doing rather than on God Kingdom come.  They saw it and they wanted it.  Looking at the context (check it for yourself) maybe they were looking for their ‘miracle’ breakfast.

It any case, Jesus used the situation to give the Spiritually correct answer…

Jesus answered and said to them,

“This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”

Sounds easy doesn’t it – just BELIEVE!  Believe in miracles?  NO!  Believe in Jesus!

Let’s move down chapter 6:

John 6:53-69
53 Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, UNLESS YOU EAT THE FLESH OF THE SON OF MAN AND DRINK HIS BLOOD, YOU HAVE NO LIFE IN YOU. 54 WHOEVER EATS MY FLESH AND DRINKS MY BLOOD HAS ETERNAL LIFE, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 FOR MY FLESH IS REAL FOOD AND MY BLOOD IS REAL DRINK. 56 WHOEVER EATS MY FLESH AND DRINKS MY BLOOD REMAINS IN ME, AND I IN HIM. 57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so THE ONE WHO FEEDS ON ME WILL LIVE because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59 He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. 60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” 61 Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! 63 THE SPIRIT GIVES LIFE; THE FLESH COUNTS FOR NOTHING. THE WORDS I HAVE SPOKEN TO YOU ARE SPIRIT AND THEY ARE LIFE. 64 Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. 65 He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him.” 66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. 67 “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve. 68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.” NIV

On the surface this seems a hard (and offensive) teaching but Jesus gets to the heart about what belief in Him really is.

To understand what Jesus is saying let’s go over to the woman at the well…

John 4:31-38
31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something.”
32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?”
34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Do you not say, ‘Four months more and then the harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the reaper draws his wages, even now he harvests the crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”

What was Jesus’ food?  Answer: To do the will of His Father and to do it now (not in 4 months time).  To live, breathe, eat the Kingdom of His Father.

What is our food?  Answer: to eat, drink, live and breathe Jesus.  To completely consume and be consumed by Jesus and therefore be Jesus and do His will (which is the Father’s will)

May the Spirit bring you understanding.

Blessings

Steve

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Doing Nothing!

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on September 5, 2009| Leave a Comment »

I have a thought (or rather a question) this morning…

How often do we do nothing for Jesus?

How often do we do ‘nothing of eternal value’?

Well, I believe, that would be everytime we do not REMAIN IN Jesus.  Jesus said in John 15:5:

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man REMAINS IN ME and I in him, he will bear much fruit; APART from me you can do NOTHING”

And what does that NOTHING mean?  It means NOTHING!  It means we can do absolutely nothing of eternal significance apart from Jesus.  That is, all our ‘righteous acts’ are like filthy rags [Isaiah 64:6] to our Heavenly Father.  By ‘righteous acts’ I mean ‘self righteous acts’ of our flesh that come out of our pride / our spiritual pride / our religious pride.

Further, Jesus gives us this warning in verse 6:

“If anyone DOES NOT REMAIN in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned”

And in verse 7 He gives us this promise:

“If you REMAIN in me and my WORDS REMAIN IN YOU, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you”

Now there are some words that could appeal to our flesh!  “Ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you”.  Hmmm, I’ll have a new car and a new house and a new stereo.  SPEW!  What am I saying!  These are Spiritual Words for our spirits!  It is a conditional promise based on us REMAINING IN Jesus and HIS WORD REMAINING IN us.

Let’s skip over to the amazing prayer of Jesus’ in John chapter 17.  Note also that Jesus’ prayer was not only for His disciplines but it is also for US [John 17:20-23]:

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that ALL OF THEM MAY BE ONE, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. MAY THEY ALSO BE IN US so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, THAT THEY MAY BE ONE AS WE ARE ONE: I IN THEM AND YOU IN ME. MAY THEY BE BROUGHT INTO COMPLETE UNITY to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

OUR GOAL: is to be ONE with Jesus and therefore ONE with the Father through Jesus.  Of course, this is enabled by the Spirit of Jesus living in our hearts.  Listen to verse 3:

“Now THIS IS ETERNAL LIFE: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”

Your eternal life, my eternal life starts today.  Throughout all of history til today the choice that man has had has always remained the same:

Are we going to choose life or are we going to choose death?

From the tree in the Garden [Gen 2:16-17]

“You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”

to Moses and the Israelites [Deut 30:19-20]

“This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”

to Jesus’ words and prayer in John 17.

Today, if we are listening and hear His voice Jesus wants to separate us for the work of His eternal Kingdom [John 17:17 – “Sanctify  them by the truth; your word is truth”], do we choose to be ONE with Jesus, in the same way that Jesus is ONE with the Father?  Jesus prayed it for us!  This is available to all those who are called by His name.

…”I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my JOY within them.” [John 17:13]

“I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be IN them.” [John 17:26]

May Jesus, and His joy, and His love, be IN you.

Blessing, Steve

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‘Normal’ People Doing Extremely Evil Things

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on May 9, 2009| 1 Comment »

On any given day, scan the news, and look closely at what you find – supposedly ‘normal’ people doing extremely evil things.  Take today, for example, a child sex ring has been exposed and, so called, normal people are found out to be leading double lives and the parents of the children are horrified.  Or maybe the story of the soldier in Iraq who, with his friends, killed an Iraqi family and raped and killed their daughter.  I could go on and on and on.  And all of us would be horrified.  There is so much evil lurking in the shadows, lurking in the hearts of men and women, that needs to be brought out into the light.

But here is the thought, we are quick to point the finger, but the truth be known, each one of us is inherently wicked.  Each one of us has the potential within us to be the most horrenously wicked man or woman on this earth.  Look at the atrosities of war – normal people become monsters!

It is not until we come to the fact that it is not everyone else who has a problem but we are all part of the problem. Jesus highlighted our sin condition.  He said “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder,  and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother  will be subject to judgment.” (NIV) [Matt 5:21-22]  And here, Jesus says:  “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’   But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” (NIV) [Matt 5:27-30]

We(ie: the human race) are the problem!  We all need Jesus to transform us from the inside out.  There is no other solution to our human condition.  Each one of us needs to come to the place of acknowledging our sinful condition and repenting and inviting Jesus to come into our lives and transform our very beings, from the inside out, by His Spirit.  There is no other way!

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The Day of the Lord is Coming

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , , on May 7, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Isaiah 2:6-22
[6]  Surely [Lord] You have rejected and forsaken your people, the house of Jacob, because they are filled [with customs] from the east and with soothsayers [who foretell] like the Philistines; also they strike hands and make pledges and agreements with the children of aliens.
[7]  Their land also is full of silver and gold; neither is there any end to their treasures. Their land is also full of horses; neither is there any end to their chariots.
[8]  Their land also is full of idols; they worship the work of their own hands, what their own fingers have made.
[9]  And the common man is bowed down [before idols], also the great man is brought low and humbles himself — therefore forgive them not [O Lord].
[10]  Enter into the rock and hide yourself in the dust from before the terror of the Lord and from the glory of His majesty.
[11]  The proud looks of man shall be brought low, and the haughtiness of men shall be humbled; and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
[12]  For there shall be a day of the Lord of hosts against all who are proud and haughty and against all who are lifted up — and they shall be brought low —
[13]  [The wrath of God will begin by coming down] against all the cedars of Lebanon [west of the Jordan] that are high and lifted up, and against all the oaks of Bashan [east of the Jordan],
[14]  And [after that] against all the high mountains and all the hills that are lifted up,
[15]  And against every high tower and every fenced wall,
[16]  And against all the ships of Tarshish and all the picturesque and desirable imagery [designed for mere ornament and luxury].
[17]  Then the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be brought low; and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
[18]  And the idols shall utterly pass away (be abolished).
[19]  Then shall [the stricken, deprived of all in which they had trusted] go into the caves of the rocks and into the holes of the earth from before the terror and dread of the Lord and from before the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake mightily and terribly the earth.
[20]  In that day men shall cast away to the moles and to the bats their idols of silver and their idols of gold, which they made for themselves to worship,
[21]  To go into the caverns of the rocks and into the clefts of the ragged rocks from before the terror and dread of the Lord and from before the glory of His majesty, when He rises to shake mightily and terribly the earth.
[22]  Cease to trust in [weak, frail, and dying] man, whose breath is in his nostrils [for so short a time]; in what sense can he be counted as having intrinsic worth?[ Amplified Bible]

Malachi 4:1-6
[1]  FOR BEHOLD, the day comes that shall burn like an oven, and all the proud and arrogant, yes, and all that do wickedly and are lawless, shall be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.
[2]  But unto you who revere and worshipfully fear My name shall the Sun of Righteousness arise with healing in His wings and His beams, and you shall go forth and gambol like calves [released] from the stall and leap for joy.
[3]  And you shall tread down the lawless and wicked, for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, says the Lord of hosts.
[4]  [Earnestly] remember the law of Moses, My servant, the statutes and the ordinances which I commanded him on [Mount] Horeb [to give] to all Israel.
[5]  Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes.
[6]  And he shall turn and reconcile the hearts of the [estranged] fathers to the [ungodly] children, and the hearts of the [rebellious] children to [the piety of] their fathers [a reconciliation produced by repentance of the ungodly], lest I come and smite the land with a curse and a ban of utter destruction. [ Amplified Bible]

The Day of the Lord is Coming – Get Ready!

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Faith or Love?

Posted in Christian, Christianity, tagged , , , , , , , , on May 4, 2009| Leave a Comment »

In the Christian life, is faith more important or is love more important?

In answer to this question you may quote “Now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”[1 Cor 13:13] and you would be correct, the greatest is love.  But the Bible also says  “without faith it is impossible to please God“ [Heb 11:6] so, it would seem, we cannot merely dismiss faith over love.  This would be foolish, because faith is basic and essential in the Christian ‘faith’.

So what is 1 Corinthian 13:13 meaning?  Let’s read a bit more of 1 Corinthians chapter 13 verses 1 to 3 “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.” So, love is more important than faith or am I still getting this wrong?  What type of faith is 1 Corithians 13 talking about?  Is 1 Corinthians 13 talking about some of the gifts of the Spirit?  That is, the gift of tongues, the gift of prophecy, the word of knowledge, the gift of faith.  I think so.  You see, there is the gift of great faith that the Lord implants in people from time to time and, to me, faith that moves mountains is great faith or the gift of faith.  Anyway, 1 Corinthians 13:13 isn’t excluding our faith (or our hope) but proclaiming that love is greater.

In Galations 5:6 the Bible says “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” Hmmm, I think this is a key verse for me.  That is, our faith in the Lord is expressing itself through our love of the Lord.   Love, in our Christian life, is first and foremost and overrules all that we do, including our faith.  This makes sense when we remember the words of Jesus “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” [John 13: 34-35] and in Mark 12:30-31 Jesus says “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  There is no commandment greater than these.”

So, our faith comes out of our love?  I think so.  I believe this is true of our hope as well (but that is another story).  So, the love of God fills our hearts, we respond with love back to our Lord and faith (expressing itself through our love) directs our path to those the Lord wants us to love and share the love of the Father.

May the Lord bless you today and always

Steve

We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. [1 Thes 1:2-3]

But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.[1 Thes 5:8]

Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? [Jam 2:5]

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