Day 4 - The Mystery Revealed - 30 Days of Grace

We have seen that grace moved God's heart to give us a gift, Jesus earned it for us, and the Holy Spirit reveals it to us.  So what is this gift, this great mystery that God had planned and has now revealed?  What is the great gift of His grace?

²⁵ Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God, ²⁶ that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, ²⁷ to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. ²⁸ We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. ²⁹ For this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me.

<sup>Col. 1:25-29

Paul the apostle is speaking here about the ministry or stewardship God gave him to preach the word of God.  What does he call this word he preaches?  He calls it the mystery that had been hidden but is now manifested to the saints.  Why did God make this mystery known to His saints (believers like Paul)? He told them about it because it was His will and desire that they share the glorious riches of this mystery with the Gentiles.  That means God revealed the mystery to the early Christians, who were Jews, so that they could share it with the rest of us, the Gentiles.  This is a mystery, which isn't a mystery any longer but a wonderfully revealed message of God's gift to us, is</sup> meant to be known by the whole world! 

^{I notice how this mystery is described as glorious, full of riches, full of glory!  It is something wonderful, a wonderful gift that is glorious, a gift that makes one rich and full!  What is this mystery gift of grace?} It is Christ in you, the hope of glory!  What is the effect of having this gift in us, revealed to us - what is the effect of Christ in us?  He gives us hope or expectation of glory, the glory of being in and radiating God's presence!  And it makes people complete and whole!

<sup>The wonderful secret gift and plan hidden for ages but now revealed is the gift of Christ to be in us, giving us hope of glory!  Christ in us is what makes us rich!  Christ in us gives us the glory of God!  Christ in us is the wonderful gift given freely, that we don't have to work for, earn, merit or deserve!  Christ is the gift given on God's initiative, not because of anything we'd done to make Him give, but just because of His heart of love and kindness toward us!  He favored us!  That is grace!  He was on our side and wanting to do us a favor, to bless us and do us good, without there having to be any merit or works by us to bring it to pass.  He brought it to pass and gave it to us, not by our doing, but by Christ's doing.  Christ became poor so we could be rich.  And the Spirit was sent to show us how this was done and to reveal to us the One who is inside us, Christ Himself, and to help us understand all that it means to have Christ in us!

Christ in us, the hope of glory!  This is the fulfillment of God's grace plan for us, this is the message of the gospel of grace, this is the heart of God for all people!  There is so much to know about what it means to have Christ in us.  We have truly been made rich by this gift of grace, and there is so much to unwrap and enjoy in this treasure that has made us so rich, Christ Himself!  The gospel is just the good news of Jesus, what He's done to bring about the gift of Himself being in us, all because of God's heart of love that wanted to give this wonderful gift.  For now that Christ is in us as a free gift, God has what He has wanted and longed for all along - communion with man in perfect harmony and fellowship! He has longed for this deep and intimate relationship with man, and He has given it to us freely through Christ and in the gift of Christ to be in us!  This is all done by grace and shows me the way God acts in grace toward me!

The good news of grace is all about Jesus Christ.  He is the free gift. He is what it is all about.  He is the grace gift God has given us.  I can't wait to spend much more time unpacking and reveling in this gift, the process Jesus went about to deliver it to me, and all that is within this gift!</sup>    We are rich indeed in Christ!

^{But first, I would like to study a little more on what the word grace means, beginning with the idea of grace in the Old Testament.  This will shed light on grace in the New Testament and help me understand even better God's nature and the gift of Christ in me.} 

Day 3 - The Spirit's Revelation of Grace - 30 Days of Grace

Grace is the Father's heart toward us, and grace happened when Jesus worked on our behalf to make us rich...but what about the Holy Spirit?  How is the Holy Spirit involved in the ministry of grace to us, and how does the Holy Spirit demonstrate what grace is?

7..We declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. ⁸ None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. ⁹ However, as it is written:

“What no eye has seen,
    what no ear has heard,
and what no human mind has conceived”—
    the things God has prepared for those who love him—

¹⁰ these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.

The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. ¹¹ For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. ¹² What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. ¹³ This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.

1 Co. 2:7-13

What does this passage tell me about the work the apostle Paul (the speaker here) is doing?  His work is to declare God's wisdom, a mystery once hidden but now revealed.  How does the passage describe the greatness of this mystery?  It tells me that it's so wonderful, no mind has ever imagined the greatness of it, so beautiful that if Satan and his demons had known about it, they wouldn't have crucified Christ, because the crucifixion brought the whole mystery/plan to manifestation!  

What is this mystery?  It is the things God has prepared for those who love Him!  It is the gifts God wants to bestow on us!  The passage says the mystery was hidden.  Is it hidden any longer?  NO!  This passage tells us a main reason the Holy Spirit is given to us - what is it?  He reveals the things God has for us, the gifts He gives, this mystery that is a wonderful gift given to us by God!  He is sent to us to share God's heart with us and show us how generous and loving and gracious He is, that He would give us some wonderful things!  The Holy Spirit reveals these things to us and brings us to understand what God has freely given us.  That's the whole message that Paul declares - He declares this spiritual reality that he understood from the Holy Spirit, declaring the mystery now revealed of all the wonderful things God has freely given us!

A big word standing out to me that shows me more of the definition of grace here is the word 'freely.'  God has freely given us gifts.  Freely means without charge or payment required.  There are no stipulations or requirements to be met on our part.  A gift is just plain free.  So this tells me that God's grace has to do with gifts He gives for free, with no strings attached.  Nothing is required on my part.  I do not have to 'do' anything to qualify to get these things.  They are gifts.  And they are emphasized to be free.  Grace stresses the freeness of God's giving, that He gives just because of His heart of love, not because we've earned it somehow.

What does this passage say about the Holy Spirit's work of grace?  It shows me that the Holy Spirit's part is to reveal God's grace and gifts of grace to us.  He sees into God's heart and knows the deep things there, the deep love and kindness and goodness, the plans for a future and a hope, the marvelous gifts He has for us that no mind could ever imagine or conceive.  And then He shares God's gracious heart with us and reveals to us all the gifts He's given us through Jesus' work.

So I can sum up these thoughts by saying that grace is the Father's heart and nature - He is gracious.  And this graciousness moves Him to give us gifts and bless us, all of us, without distinction.  So He has a plan to give us wonderful gifts and make us rich, actually, and Jesus is the One who brings this about through His work - He does it, He works out the process of bringing the gift to mankind, without our initiation or works.  And then the Holy Spirit reveals to us and makes us understand what God has freely given us through Christ's work - He reveals what is freely given, without our having to qualify in some way.

So grace has to do with God blessing humanity out of His loving heart toward us, blessing us through Jesus' work to bring the blessing/gift to pass in our lives, and then He sends the Spirit to us to reveal the blessing/gift to us!  What is this gift that is so wonderful that no human mind could conceive?  Let's talk about that next, so we can unwrap and enjoy this gift of grace that God has freely and lovingly given us through Jesus! 

Prayer:  Dear Holy Spirit, thank You for Your work in me to share with me the things God has freely given me.  Make me to understand all that God has given me. Thank You!  In Jesus' name, amen.

Day 2 - Jesus' Work of Grace - 30 Days of Grace

We've seen how God the Father is gracious in all He is and does, and that has helped me see into the meaning of grace.  But I also wonder, how does Jesus show and personify grace?

" For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.  (2 Co. 8:9)

This verse is in a passage about giving financially to help others, but I think it applies in a broader way as well, as I think about what grace is in general.

What does this verse tell me about who Jesus is?  First, it tells me that He was/is rich, that He has an abundance.  Yet it also tells me that He is very kind and self-sacrificing, thinking of us more than Himself, because He gave up His riches to become poor for our sakes.  It tells me He has a loving heart, and that He must think we humans are pretty important and special, since He was willing to give up so much in order to bless us! It also tells me that His heart is that He doesn't want me to be poor or lacking in any way, but that He wants me to be rich and abundantly provided for.  He wants me to have more than enough.  He even wants to give me His own richness, it would seem!

What does this verse tell me about what Jesus did?  It tells me He gave up a lot for me, all His riches. It tells me that He became poor for me.

What does this verse tell me about why He did what He did?  It tells me He did it so I, through His poverty, could become rich!  And it tells me He did it out of GRACE.  Grace motivated Him.  Grace caused Him to do this!

So what does this verse tell me about the meaning of grace?  Grace must be the love and kindness that would cause Christ to give up everything in order to bring me up from poverty to riches with Him!  That shows me how great His love is for us!

I have heard that grace described as "love that stoops."  I like that, and with the verse above in mind, I would even say it is "love that stoops and lifts us up".  His love stooped down to where we were, but we weren't meant to stay down, no!  It was all so He could lift us up to where He is - in a rich and abundant place!  A place of blessing and plenty!  A place of overflowing and being well off!  So grace has to do with being given something really good, being put in a much better state than you were before.

Maybe you have heard Grace defined by the acronym, with one word for each letter - God's Riches At Christ's Expense.  That really fits in well with our verse! And it points out another thing mentioned in our verse, which is how this blessing comes to us. How are we made rich, according to the verse?  We are made rich at Christ's expense and by His work, His sacrifice of becoming poor for us.  He has done a work to make it so.

What is our work and what do we do, according to the verse?  This verse doesn't list anything that we 'do', except to be poor!  We are just sitting there poor, that is all it says about us!  Jesus is the One who did all the work to make us rich.  He is the One who gave up everything and became poor, so that through His poverty we might become rich.  Grace, then, must mean getting something you didn't have to work for.  We get something Christ worked for!

So Christ has provided riches for us through what He has done.  But what exactly did He do, and what exactly are the riches He provides?  These things will come out as we dig into some other wonderful scriptures.  And knowing all that will give us a fuller definition of grace!

Till next time,
Sparrow

Day 1 - The Father's Heart of Grace - 30 Days of Grace

I have been wanting to kind of do a Bible study on Grace, and thought I would just put my thoughts here.  God is reawakening me to the truths of His grace after I've come through a dry time, and I want to just soak in the truth of GRACE!  Sometimes I feel like I'm learning it all over again, just what grace means!  I feel like the Spirit is impressing truths into my heart one by one, just revealing the beautiful image of Jesus before me, revealing the beautiful finished work to me!  I want to share what He's showing me, and I thought I'd call it "Thirty Days of Grace".  I'm going to try to write some things He is showing me and scripture passages He's illuminating for me.  So this is Day 1!

Grace, the Loveliest Word!

To me, grace is the loveliest word there is, besides "Jesus" - and grace really is who Jesus is.  Grace describes Jesus perfectly. He is the embodiment of grace and the extender of grace to us!  In fact, He IS grace!  But how exactly is Jesus grace?  How does grace describe God and who He is?  And what exactly IS grace?  Sometimes I stumble over describing it, when someone asks me to do so.  I find it hard to put into words something that has changed my life and perception of God and myself so much!  But grace is God's nature, so to look at what Grace is, we can look at who God is and see that's grace!

  From Ps. 145 we read:

4One generation commends your works to another;
    they tell of your mighty acts.
⁵ They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty—
    and I will meditate on your wonderful works.^[b]
6 They tell of the power of your awesome works—
    and I will proclaim your great deeds.
⁷ They celebrate your abundant goodness
    and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

⁸ The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
    slow to anger and rich in love.

⁹ The Lord is good to all;
    he has compassion on all he has made.
¹⁰ All your works praise you, Lord;
    your faithful people extol you.
¹¹ They tell of the glory of your kingdom
    and speak of your might,
¹² so that all people may know of your mighty acts
    and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
¹³ Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
    and your dominion endures through all generations.

The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises
    and faithful in all he does.^[c]
14 The Lord upholds all who fall
    and lifts up all who are bowed down.
¹⁵ The eyes of all look to you,
    and you give them their food at the proper time.
¹⁶ You open your hand
    and satisfy the desires of every living thing.

¹⁷ The Lord is righteous in all his ways
    and faithful in all he does.
¹⁸ The Lord is near to all who call on him,
    to all who call on him in truth.
¹⁹ He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
    he hears their cry and saves them.

I know this is a long passage, but I love what it says about God, describing who He is.  How does it describe God? What adjectives are used?  Well, I see that it says He is good, righteous, gracious, compassionate, patient, and loving!  Wow!

This passage tells me that He is gracious in all His ways..and then it lists many of the things He does that exemplify His grace.  What things can we find in this passage that exemplify His graciousness, that tell us what kind of God He is?  Well, I can see that He is RICH in love, He is ABUNDANT is goodness, He is good to ALL, that He has compassion on ALL He has made, that He is trustworthy in His promises, that He is faithful in ALL He does, that He uphold ALL who fall, and lifts up ALL who are bowed down, that He gives ALL their food at the proper time, that He satisfies the desires of EVERY living thing, that He is righteous in ALL His ways and is near to ALL who call on Him.

What I see is a God who is consistently, faithfully GOOD and GRACIOUS and LOVING.  He loves to give, to bless and to help.  He provides for all, answers every prayer, lifts up all who fall or are bowed down.  Is there any stipulation on these promises?  Are they only for a certain kind of people or only for those who do a certain thing/act in a certain way?  NO, they are unconditional!  They are for any and all!  They are for good and bad people, smart and not-so-smart people, sinners and saints!  God doesn't make any distinction!  He is loving and good to ALL!

So I have learned three things:  

I have learned that God is described as good, loving and gracious.

I have learned that the way He shows His nature is by doing good things for people and blessing them.

I have learned that He does good to all without any distinctions or anything required from our side to do.  In other words, no works are required, no level of being 'good enough' to qualify or obtain these blessings.  They are freely given to all.

Wow, this passage is really showing me what it means to say God is a God of grace!  It means He loves and is good to us all unconditionally!  That is His heart!  All this study is starting to help me form a picture of who God is in my mind, and it's also helping me to understand what grace means!

More tomorrow!

Love to all,

Sparrow

On Christian Perfection - by Vicki Hong

I read this reply to a post about a book by John Crowder called Mystical Union.  It seemed the post author misunderstood some things in the book, like Christian perfection, sanctification, and Christians not having a sinful nature.  This reply was given to address those confusions and I thought the reply was so amazing!   Vicki gives us some wonderful insights into the finished work of Christ and how we are perfect now as new creations in Christ!

When we speak of perfection we talk about it the way that is defined as “excellence; without any flaws; no defects; no shortcomings; exact; correct, etc.” Aka, never missing the mark and never sinning because sinning is breaking some code of conduct. Aka, moral perfection. But according the Thayer’s Lexicon, the word perfect means “to be complete, lacking nothing from purpose, finished.”

This makes sense because the goal of a Christian life isn’t moral perfection. It isn’t trying to become more like Christ. Why is it so hard? Because it was never meant to be our job. We thought it was. And mankind tried. But we only failed and always will fail. What you think as moral or as “perfect” even misses the standard. And that’s why He came. We couldn’t do it right to save our lives. Literally. We were ruled by sin. Sin isn’t just the dirty act you do. Sin was a governing entity, a master that ruled from the inside of us (you can look it up.) But that’s why Christ came. He came not only to forgive you, but to set us free from sin. He did that by making us NEW in Him by allowing us to die with Him and to rise again with Him inside of us. Now that’s good news. His life became my life. And my life is Him living through me. If I died with Him, then every part of me that was ruled by sin is now gone, and now I am free to live by His Spirit because now I am a completely new creation. And all of this is not something I did unto myself, but what Christ did for me. SO now, by faith, by His grace, by my dependence on what HE did, I am now free. Now that He lives in me, I am righteous, I am perfect, I am good, I am holy, I am free. So now the real definition is true. I am lacking nothing in Him because my faith has made it so. He made me complete when I couldn’t do it on my own. And now, as the Bible would support, we are transformed into His image by the work of His Spirit, not by our own efforts.

Recap: Christian perfection is dependence and faith in Jesus, the one with whom we were made one on the Cross. He ran the race we couldn’t run and won it for us when we weren’t even looking. Why? Because we could never achieve it on our own. Never could. Never have. Never will. 

Sanctification is a person. 1 Cor 1:30 says that He became to us righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. That’s why we can only boast in Him. Because it was all by grace. It was a gift. God Himself was the gift given to us. It was never about what we could do, what we did, or what we didn’t do. And so it remains that way. And now He lives inside us.

So what is our role? Christ did it all and now do we sit back and do nothing? We can do whatever the heck we want? No. Paul addresses this. People are afraid that grace allows people to sin. But it is quite the opposite. Grace is what gave us freedom and keeps us from sinning. Actually, it has made me not want to sin any longer! Why would I want to? 

Now just because I believe in this and have faith in Him it doesn’t mean I don’t make mistakes. It doesn’t mean I don’t need to grow either. But those mistakes aren’t what disqualifies me anymore because nothing can separate me from His love. My feelings of acceptance and closeness and of His presence aren’t dependent on me anymore, but on Him. Because it was never about me in the first place. Knowing that it isn’t about my performance, sets me free.

This gives you freedom. Freedom to know that you’ve been made new. Made good. Freedom to trust your heart and your imaginations and your creativity. Freedom to believe, to dream, to be pure, to be righteous. Sure, I will stay away from the things that I know are “sins” as much as I can, not because I don’t want to sin, but because I don’t need to anymore. I’ve found something that satisfies, something that lasts, something more real, something I can trust with my whole life. Because if you think about it, sin isn’t a rule you break and it’s not just disobedience from a list of “don’t's”. Sin is ultimately all a form of DISTRUST. Faith is what pleases Him. Faith is what qualifies us. Faith is what makes us righteous. Not our moral excellence.
Believing in a certain doctrine, or not believing in one, isn’t going to make all your problems go away or explain your imperfect actions. But I think if you really know what Jesus did for you on the cross and accept His gift, you’ll see that it is easier than you ever dreamed to truly be free. 

I think all that Crowder was saying is that if you believe yourself to be a sinner, never to be truly free, you’ll behave that way, but if you believe that there is greater reality – that Christ truly made you new, that He didn’t just forgive you and then gave you second chance with the old self, but gave you His very life to life, then you’d live by this reality. That’s all that faith really is. Seeing the real reality. 

It might seem to easy. It might seem dumb, even. But I believe there is a greater reality. A better one. A true one. The Christian life has to be more than fighting and wrestling with sin, trying to control our thoughts and actions, analyzing ourselves so we can fix ourselves, feeling good ‘cuz we read our Bibles and prayed and then feeling crappy because we didn’t, doing things because we know it’s right, and trying to be “good” so that God will be pleased, and so we can feel close to Him. It’s gotto be more than calling down fire from heaven and crying out for revival, too. What if really the Christian life is about enjoying our lives and what God has done for us? Because He has already made Himself one with us? What if everything we ever needed to do and be fulfilled was done through Christ, and now all we have to do ENJOY it and live in His love, expressing His goodness on this planet? What if God truly did set you free and made you holy? What if God is really that good? What if Him saving us meant a living a life so much better than what we thought? Wouldn’t being a Christian be more FUN?! What if Christians were actually happy about being Christians because it’s the best thing in the world?!

Wahoooo! I dunno, but I’m having fun!

                                                                                                                    Vicki Hong

The Wonder of the New Creation - the Old is Really GONE!

To me, the Gospel of Grace is that He has taken away our sin and given us innocence like in the Garden of Eden, so we can enjoy partaking of the Tree of Life...He has removed our sin, blown it away with His holy dynamite (that's how I see God's wrath - as holy dynamite that blows up our sin so it can't harm, control, ruin, poison or kill us anymore!) and reconciled us to God (restored us to harmony and friendship), so we are face to face with Him - now there is NOTHING between us and God, nothing holding us back from Him, nothing to keep us apart, ever!

Believing this wonderful fact has opened the door for God to manifest the work of Christ in my life, making me come alive to it!! I partake of the tree of Life, Jesus, and the fruit is sweet indeed, through His Spirit coming in me I am born again into a whole new existence as a whole new person - I am a new creation, the old me is gone and the new me has come.

And amazingly, any hangups, struggles, sinful thoughts, fears and oppressions coming at me are seen for what they are - lies of the old existence..they don't represent me anymore! They are part of the old self, and that self died with Christ on the cross..I am now a new self, who was raised with Christ in the resurrection!

Hey, what a revelation that I don't have any hangups, problems, issues, or sin struggles. The person who had those problems is dead! When God made the new creation, He didn't make a flawed and messed up person with sin issues, no, He made a righteous, beautiful, pure and lovely new creation, created in righteousness and true holiness after the image of Him who created it (Eph. 4:24-5).

I guess I don't have any problems then! I guess I'm not a messed up person! I guess I am pretty wonderful, pretty amazing, because I'm a new creation in Christ, and He is pretty wonderful and amazing in me!

You've Been Surrounded!

My dear friend Julie and I were talking one day about some of the verses in the Bible that talk of how God surrounds us with His love and care.  This was so uplifting to think about!  So I decided to do a little study of all the ways God surrounds us.  Of course, the beautiful glory of the New Covenant is that He not only surrounds us but is also IN us, and greater is He that is IN us, than He that is in the world!  Christ is IN us, that is so wonderful!  So I think we have it so good, He's covered us coming and going - surrounded by God's presence and filled from the inside to overflowing with God's presence!  It doesn't get any better than this on earth, and heaven will be the complete physical manifestation of His glory on, in, and around us!  Heaven will be where the whole atmosphere is the presence of God, and He fills every cell in even our physical bodies!  But even now, we have eternity here with us, around us, and in us through the Spirit of Christ in and upon and filling and flowing forth from us!!

So here are some of the ways I found that God just surrounds and is in us:

God surrounds us like the mountains surround Jerusalem..

He surrounds us, so the enemy cannot swallow us up..

His love will envelop and enfold us, His unfailing and steadfast love ever surrounds us, keeping sorrows away..

His peace is a guard on my heart, protecting me from worry and fear..

He wraps me in a robe of His righteousness, clothing me with eternal beauty..

He has covered me with His feathers like a mother bird warming, shielding and protecting her young..nothing will harm me..

Not only am I safe UNDER His wings, but He also has carried me on His wings to His bosom, and He bears me on His wings and makes me fly free, always with His wings under me to catch me and keep me from falling..

He lays His hand upon me to bless and protect me, and also He puts His arms underneath me to bear both me and my burden and to keep me from falling..underneath me are the everlasting arms!

He hedges me in safely from behind and before..so He is always with me, protecting me as my rear guard and going before me to clear the way into a safe and beautiful future..

He surrounds me with songs of deliverance..sings over me and puts a song in me..

He encamps around me and rescues me from al my troubles, sorrows, afflictions and fears..

He is a wall of fire around me to protect me and is also the glory in my midst..

He is a wall on both sides of me, keeping back the raging floods of life so they can't consume me or pull me under, thus allowing me to walk forward in victory and in my destiny with Him..

He spreads His protection over me and covers me with favor, goodwill and pleasure as with a shield..

His beauty is upon me and He has made me beautiful from within..

On troublesome days, He hides me in the shelter of His presence and I rest there till the disaster passes by..

He fills me with His Spirit who pours out His love in my heart, and He also makes His Spirit of glory to rest upon me and crown me with love and compassion..

He Himself is a shield to me, and He shields me with His faithfulness..

His glory covers me, His tabernacle, and Christ is also in me as the hope of glory, for He glorifies me by shining forth the glory-light of Christ from within me..

Even in my weeping and dryness, He covers me with His Spirit showers of blessing and makes His spring of living water, the Spirit, gush forth from within me full of life and joy..

He covers my head and protects me in the day of battle, and He is also in me  - the power that raised Jesus from the dead, and greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world..

He's put me in grace, under grace, filled me with the Spirit of grace, and made me full with His fullness which is full of grace and truth! 

We're In Right Relationship With the Father, Just Like Jesus Is!

Because we have been made righteous with the very righteousness of Christ, all that is true about His righteous state and standing with the Father is true for us, too, for we have His righteous state and standing with the Father:

Jesus never has any hindrance in His relationship with His Father..
and so we never have any hindrance in our relationship with God!

There is never any barrier between Him and His Father..
and so there is never any barrier between us and the Father!

The Father never has any problem with Jesus..
and so the Father never has any problem with us!

The Father is always well-pleased of His Son..
and so the Father is always well-pleased with us!

Jesus is always approved and acceptable before the Father..
and so we are always approved and acceptable before God!

Jesus exists in a state of being totally sinless in nature..
and so we exist in a state of being totally sinless in nature!

There is never any sin in Jesus nature, never any wrong attitude..
and so there is never any sin or wrong attitude in our nature!

Jesus is totally right and righteous before the Father..
and so we are totally right and righteous before the Father!

Jesus is always in the Father's favor and good opinion..
and so we are always in the Father's favor and good opinion!

Jesus always has all His prayers heard and answered..
and so we always have all our prayers heard and answered!

Jesus is qualified for the blessing and inheritance from the Father..
and so we are qualified for the blessing and inheritance!

Jesus and His Father have a perfectly right relationship..
and so we and the Father have a perfectly right relationship!

Favorite New Grace Books I Am Reading

I just wanted to share some new grace books that I have really been enjoying..there are so many new books on God's gospel of grace coming out in recent years, which is so awesome!  I pray that the good news of grace would spread like wildfire around the world and awaken many, many people to the love of God and the good news of the gift of righteousness  and a union relationship with God apart from our works!!

This first one, Pure Grace, is really special to me, because I first started reading it when I was coming out of a really dry period in my life.  I had somehow fallen into a lot of self-condemnation and didn't even realize how much I was living under law, feeling my performance was terrible and feeling down on myself.  As I read Pastor Clark Whitten's explanations of the gospel of grace, it was like a fresh wind started to blow, clearing away the cobwebs of confusion and guilt!   It was like waking up after a bad dream, you know, and remembering and coming back into the real world again.  I still remember so vividly how it hit me all over again as I read this book that "I am righteous"!!  We are righteous in Christ, which Pastor Whitten describes as a state of being, not something we attain by works.  This wonderful book is good for anyone interested in the 'grace' definitions of words like repentance and confession.  He has a beautiful chapter on "God's House" and how we are the new dwelling place of the Spirit!  And another favorite chapter is the one on how we are Saved Completely, which gives lots of encouragement for any who have ever doubted their salvation or worried they could lose it - Clark helps us see that our salvation is safe because it's in God's hands, not our own, and held in place by a perfect new covenant based on Christ's performance, not ours!
 



 Revelation to Transformation is by Paul White, a wonderful grace preacher.  I have enjoyed reading his daily devotions over the years, and I thought I would enjoy a book by him also - and I did!  This book is great.  I love the questions and answers Pastor White scatters through the book as he is writing about different topics, so he can address questions that might be going through your mind as you read!  For example, in a chapter discussing how the Bible says "All things are lawful", he lists a question that might be raised: "Even though all things are lawful for us, shouldn't we set some boundaries in our Christian walk?" and then he addresses the question.  He has a great knowledge of scripture!  I also love the section on the Holy Spirit's ministry to believers.  He addresses the idea of transformation, and says it basically happens effortlessly as we gaze on the loveliness of Jesus and His finished work for us - Amen!




 Perfect Love:  Too Good To Be True?, by Dan Robins, is such an awesome book on the love and grace of God!  I am in the midst of reading this right now.  Last night as I stuggled with just feeling 'off' spiritually, I picked this book up and began reading at different spots.  I was really encouraged and refreshed by God, and went to sleep happily knowing all was well between me and God because of His wonderful grace and the finished work of Jesus that made me righteous and close to God forever!!  One quote I read really stands out in my mind:  "You can never fail in God's eyes."  With God, we can't fail, because we are the righteousness of God in Christ!  All our sins have been taken away at the cross, and we are just loved, accepted, righteous, holy, and embraced by God now and forever, all because of what Christ has done, which we simply see as true with the eyes of faith.  I love how this book talks about faith as seeing what is already true and has already happened, as in seeing that Jesus already reconciled us to God.  The author makes a great point:    Why try so hard to get something you already have?  Why labor so hard to get God's acceptance and closeness when you already have all that through Christ?  Yes, why indeed!  This book is very joyful, speaking of God's great love and how we already have that love, can't ever lose that love, and can just sit back and enjoy that love!




Glimpses Into a Love Beyond Words, by Danny Randall, is another great book on the wonderful love of God!  I haven't gotten very far into it yet, but what I have read I have really loved!  The author is very warm and joyful, and I know God is going to refresh me with reminders of His love and grace through this book!  The author talks about the great affection of God for us as our Father, and how He brings us into the family circle as equals, letting us share in the fellowship between the Father and Son.  He also talks about how God is close to the broken-hearted and how our value to God is equal to that of Jesus Himself!  I really want to have a deeper revelation of God's love, and this book will be great for just basking in that love that is so great we could never get to the end of it!

So I hope you enjoyed this little post sharing some of my new favorite grace books! 

A Little Boy Tells Us Our Identity in Christ

I love this video of a child telling of our identity in Christ! We, His dear children, can stand up and declare as confidently as little Isaiah Jackson, that we are His and therefore victorious, whole, righteous, loved, free, etc. and etc. and etc.!!

You and I are SAFE under His wings forever!  Shielded, protected, kept safe, warmed, nurtured, embraced, cared for, tenderly hugged, held close, LOVED!

Under His Wings

Psalm 91:1-4

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. 3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. 4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

Under His wings I am safely abiding,
Though the night deepens and tempests are wild,
Still I can trust Him; I know He will keep me,
He has redeemed me, and I am His child.

Refrain

Under His wings, under His wings,
Who from His love can sever?
Under His wings my soul shall abide,
Safely abide forever.

Under His wings, what a refuge in sorrow!
How the heart yearningly turns to His rest!
Often when earth has no balm for my healing,
There I find comfort, and there I am blessed.

Under His wings, oh, what precious enjoyment!
There will I hide till life’s trials are o’er;
Sheltered, protected, no evil can harm me,
Resting in Jesus, I’m safe evermore.

William Orcutt Cushing

The Healing of Our Shame

I have been raised thinking in such a legal/performance way that when I fail, I am vulnerable to feeling I deserve punishment or seem to want to peanlize myself with shame or condemnation. Of course this is a lie from the enemy, because really, I already got punished for that sin and can't be punished twice! Christ didn't just die FOR me, He died AS me, and that means, as I read somewhere once, that "the old self you loathe is on the cross'!

The person who did the wrong got punished on the cross! There is no need to beat myself up about my sin, because the sinner has already been beaten and executed for that sin! The old man that I hated, that I felt so ashamed of for being so wrong and ugly and misshapen and ruined and hideous - is dead and buried and GONE! That person got what he/she deserved - death - when Christ died as me on the cross! That person is gone forever and doesn't exist anymore! That person is not coming back!

Justice has been served, so I can rest my case against myself! I am not that person anymore, and just as much as I hated that old self, I am now freed by Christ to love the new, true me that came out of the grave with Him, the new me He brought up with Him in the resurrection! Now I can love myself, because I am new, I am lovely, I am good, I am holy, I am pure, I am innocent, I am righteous, I am just like Jesus, being made of His holy and divine DNA and nature!

Thre isn't any shame or condemnation left...all of it was taken away at the cross when both my sins AND my old sinful self were wiped off the books! The new me that came forth is beautiful and lovable, and made just like Jesus! 

I'm glad to be rid of that old sinful self, yet somehow grace helps me to even love the old self I used to be!

The most amazing thing is that though I hated my old self and wanted to punish it and get rid of it, Jesus showed how amazing His love really it because it was that sinner that He loved, that sinner that He died for, that sinner that He came to rescue, that sinner that He saw as a wayward child lost from the Father's house!

And His death was a way to bring that child home and back into the Father's embrace, by freeing that child from all that bound him/her in shame and ruin, and giving that child a new and clean heart that would never turn away from the Father and never ever have sin come between them and the Father ever again!

He loved us at our worst and saw the Father's image there, distorted by sin but still there! He loved the sinner and rescued us from all that sin did to us! He wasn't ever vindictive or harsh. He wasn't ever wanting to punish or harm us. He only wanted to kill off the sins and the sin nature that had caused all the problems, being at its source just full of the enemy and his lies. God saw us at our worst and called us lovely and worth saving, precious and beloved, of high value and wanted!!! He saved us when we were at our worst, and He made us into His best through Jesus...

And so He made a way for us to even give grace to ourselves when we see any old sinful habit trying to resurface...we can give ourselves grace if we have a bad day, forget what grace means, or even get caught up in the lie of performance to earn acceptance!  We can give ourselves grace on our worst days, not only because those are just vestiges of the old man who got what he deserved and is gone, not who we really are now..but also because Jesus loved us when we were sinners, and we can even somehow love ourselves when we fail.  We don't have to be perfect to be graced!  We are loved with our failures, not in spite of them!  They are already taken care of and aren't who we are anyway.  And we can know that God loved us as sinners, so of course He'll love us as saints who sometimes don't act like their true identity!

So Jesus heals our shame by not only dealing with the old sinful self and his sins, but also by loving us while we were sinners, proving that He'll love us no matter what! 

One Thing Remains - Kristian Stanfill (Passion)

This is one of my favorite worship songs, for it states a deep truth our hearts long to hear:  His love won't ever leave us!  It won't ever run out, no matter what happens!  We never have to be afraid because His love will always be there, He will always love us, always hold us, always care for us, always keep us, always accept us, always be with us...thank You, Dear Father, for the grace You showed us through Your Son in paying our debt so we could be with You in this love relationship with You for all eternity!  There is nothing that can separate my heart from Your great love!

One Thing Remains  (Passion, Kristian Stanfill)

Higher than the mountains
That I face
Stronger than the power
Of the grave
Constant in the trial and the change
One thing remains
One thing remains


Your love never fails
It never gives up
It never runs out on me
Your love


Because on and on and

On and on it goes 

It overwhelms

And satisfies my soul

And I never, ever, 

Have to be afraid 

One thing remains 

One thing remains



Your love never fails
It never gives up
It never runs out on me
Your love


In death, in life

I'm confident and covered 

By the power of Your great love 

My debt is paid

There's nothing that can separate 

My heart from Your great love

A Real-Life Illustration of Grace

I read this on a website called "Exploring Christianity" as I was studying the meaning of the word 'grace' in scripture.  It made me cry to read it and think of the gracious love and acceptance God has for me, for us, for everyone!  So I wanted to share it here:

[To illustrate the meaning of grace, a] story is told by Rob Parsons in ‘Low on Grace’, an article in Christianity. Some years ago he was invited by Dr R. T. Kendal, then pastor of Westminster Chapel in London, to hear a guest preacher at the morning service and have lunch with him afterwards. On inquiring who the mystery preacher was, he was told, “It’s Jimmy Bakker—the disgraced American television evangelist who was jailed for fraud.” Parsons continues:

The man I heard preach that day had been broken by his experiences. He has lost his reputation, his ministry, his wife and his living. And he expressed deep sorrow and repentance, not only for what he had been charged with in court, but for some of the ways he had gone about raising money in the first place. He told a little of what life had been like for him in prison. One of his jobs was to clean the toilets, a task for which he wore a special set of old clothes. One day a guard came to his cell and announced that he had a visitor. Bakker was dirty, unshaven and had just got back from his cleaning job, still wearing his latrine duty clothes. He asked the guard if he could have a moment to make himself presentable, but his request was denied.

As he made his way down the corridor towards the governor’s office, Bakker wondered who was there to see him. At that time of his life most Christians wouldn’t have crossed the street for him, let alone come to visit him in prison. When he entered the room his visitor strode towards him and Bakker found himself engulfed in the warm embrace of Billy Graham. And it was the Graham family who, when he was released, asked him to join them for church. He remembers that they kept a seat for him, next to them, at the front.

That is grace!

He comes to us as we are, dirty and ashamed and ruined, and He loves us..He embraces us...and He gives us value and worth...He considers us important...He considers us clean and right...and He gives us a place of honor beside Him, the Ruler of the Universe!  Grace loves us when noone else will...grace gives us dignity..grace gives us hope...grace gives us a place of belonging...grace sets us free from our past, free from ourselves...grace forgets our messes...grace nurtures something wonderful inside us...grace gives us back what sin had stolen from us...grace makes everything sweet and fresh and new...grace makes life worth living again...grace makes us a carefree and innocent child again...grace frees us to be real, loved, and valuable...grace makes us a whole person..grace loves us back to life!

I Receive Your Love, I Know I Am Accepted - Hillsong London

Here's a great song from Hillsong London that makes me rejoice in His wonderful grace!

I Receive (Hillsong London)

Accepted, highly favored of the Lord
Forgiven, by Your love I am transformed
It's not what I do but what You've done for me
And by Your grace, oh God, I stand with my head held high

I receive Your love
I receive Your love for me
I receive Your love
I know I am accepted

Established, ever blameless in Your sight
Forever I am chosen to be loved
It's not by my works but by Your work in me
And by Your grace, oh God, I stand with my head held high

I receive Your love
I receive Your love for me
I receive Your love
I know I am accepted

Behold, all things have been made new
My past has gone, my shame removed
You gave Your Son, Your love for me
Now at the cross I've been made free

I receive Your love
I receive Your love for me
I receive Your love
I know I am accepted

Esteemed, Valued, Well-Pleasing, BELOVED!

Think of it, He who made the whole universe, who is so big and majestic that time and space can't contain Him and so wonderful and beautiful that words can't describe Him, THAT  ONE loves you, loves you, loves you!  He adores you!  He couldn't stand to be without you so He gave up His heart of all hearts, His own Son that dwelled in His bosom, to bring you into that same place of resting in His bosom!

He has pressed you to Himself, He holds you close, He will never let you go..and so you dwell in Him and He in you! You've got the Most Wonderful and Loving and Kind and Sweet and Gentle and True and Faithful and Dear and Gracious Being of all in you!

He loves being with you!  He loves everything about you!  He cherishes every moment with you!  Wow!

Just to think of that is mind-boggling...if all that is so, and it is, you must be pretty special!!  You must be worth a lot!  You must be so precious and valuable, like a rare gem!

No matter what the world or the enemy says, or even what your own words or feelings sometimes say, you are not worthless, not a nothing...you are who God, Your Father, says you are, and He says over you just as He said over His Son (For as He, the Son is, so are WE in this world!) - "This is My beloved son/daughter, in whom I am well-pleased!"  Well-pleased means He thinks so well of us, He approves of us, He esteems us highly!  It is similar to the way He calls us beloved, for to love someone is to esteem them highly, think very highly of them, and value them as precious.

So He values us as precious and He also approves of us and esteems us as pleasing to Him!

I love how God said that of Jesus BEFORE Jesus had even started His ministry, BEFORE He had done even one miracle or given even one teaching!  It is the same with us!  We are loved (valued) and well-pleasing (approved) before we do one thing, apart from any works at all!

We are loved and approved out of the Father's heart of pure love, just because He made us and is so proud of His kids...just like a parent is so pleased with his newborn baby, and values that baby as if it were the most precious being in the world!  The parent will do anything for that little one!

I remember as a new parent, even dreaming of my baby and how I wanted to take care of her and make sure that nothing would ever harm her...I was even loving her and doting on her and concerned with taking care of her in my sleep!  So much more does the God who never slumbers or sleeps watch over us, love us, and do everything to meet our every need and take care of us!

And this is totally without our earning or meriting it, working for it, keeping it going by good behavior, etc.!  Just like with a little tiny baby.  That baby can't do any good works, can't even think clearly or form a clear word, yet that child is the pride and joy of the parent!  That child is perfect to the parent!  The parent sees that child as the best, most beautiful, most wonderful little one in the universe, and the parent loves to just look at the little one as that baby sleeps or snuggles into the parent's arms, loves to let those little fingers wrap around the parent's bigger finger, loves to watch the little one's face as he or she laughs or smiles while sleeping!  That little baby is cherished, right down to the tiny fingers and toes!  Every part of that baby is known and loved and precious to the parent!  That baby is beloved, precious, special, and perfect in the parent's eyes, and the parent is WELL-PLEASED with that baby!  The parent dotes on that baby in every way!

THAT is how the Father dotes on us, too!  THAT'S how He loves us!

Safely Held Like a Baby in His Arms

We love to dote on our babies, to just hold them against us and love on them.  We love to snuggle them into our bosom and just cuddle them, don't we....That is how God the Father is with us, His darling little ones...He loves to just hold us and snuggle us up close to His cheek!  He loves to wrap us in His arms and safely and tenderly embrace us..He loves to look into our faces and see His image there, and say, "There's the family resemblance, that's my own dear child!"  He loves to just hold us when we are agitated, too, and just calm us with His loving warm hug!  We are so safely held today, like a little baby, in His arms! 

I can remember when my little baby daughter had open heart surgery at only 5 months of age, and how nervous and agitated and frightened she was there in the hospital crib before the surgery.  It was very difficult and frightening for her right then.  We were not allowed to hold her because of the delicate wires and tubes attached, and this only made things even more difficult.  But when I was finally allowed to hold her after the surgery, she just went to sleep in my arms right away!  It was like she couldn't rest or be calm, but right when she was put in my arms, everything was okay for her and she slept!  I will never forget that...it was like she was suddenly in total peace, and everything was okay, she could relax and finally rest..

This is how God is with us, He just holds us close and we realize that we are totally safe, totally taken care of, and that everything is okay, and we can rest!  All agitation melts away and we settle down again.  We can breathe easily again.

We are loved, we are held, we are safe, we are just in His arms forever!

There Are NO Demands On Us Today!

Grace means there are no demands on you today..you do not need to 'do' anything or 'become' anything - you already ARE all you were meant to be, as a gift, by Jesus' work on your behalf. 

Jesus finished His work to make you a complete new creation in perfect relationship with God - He did His job and finished His work and sat down, because it is finished!  

You are complete!  A complete work of art, His masterpiece.  No enhancements, improvements or touchups required!

You already ARE righteous, loved, accepted, at peace with God, empowered, free from sin's power, strong, holy, pure, and ONE with God, together with Him forever.

You are His child, included in the royal family, and the inheritance is yours in Christ!

There is nothing left for you to do because Jesus did it all and will manifest it all in you! You are free! Free to enjoy a love relationship with the most Perfect Love of all - HIM!

D.L. Moody on Experiencing Grace

I loved reading this account and wanted to share it here..the great evangelist D.L. Moody shares an experience he had as a schoolboy of the difference between law and grace:

“I was one of the first to break the rules of the school. We had a lady teacher, and she asked me to stay behind. I thought the cane was coming out again; and I was going to protest against it. I was quite in a fighting mood. She took me alone. She sat down and began to talk to me kindly. I thought that was worse than the cane; I did not like it. I saw that she had not got any cane. She said: “I have made up my mind that if I cannot control the school by love, I will give it up. I will have no punishment; and if you love me, try and keep the rules of the school.” I felt something right here in my throat. I was not one to shed many tears; but they would come—I could not keep them back. I said to her, “You will have no more trouble with me;” and she did not. I learned more that winter than in the other three put together. That was the difference between law and grace. Christ says, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” He takes us out from under the law, and puts us under grace. Grace will break the hardest heart. It was the love of God that prompted Him to send His only-begotten Son into the world that He might save it. I suppose the thief had gone through his trial unsoftened. Probably the law had hardened his heart. But on the cross no doubt that touching prayer of the Saviour, “Father, forgive them!” broke his heart, so that he cried, “Lord, remember me!” He was brought to ask for mercy. I believe there is no man so far gone but the grace of God will melt his heart.”

D.L. Moody

Love Has a Name..

 Love has a name...Jesus!  When we receive His love, washing over us and into our hearts, we receive a Person, alive, personal, real, knowable...ready to fellowship with us..

We don't receive a message, we receive a Man..
We don't receive a doctrine, we receive a Dearest Friend..
We don't receive a truth, we receive a True Love...
We don't receive a program, we receive a Person..

We enter into relationship with a Person - a Person who is LIFE and LOVE, a Person who will be in a love relationship with us for all eternity..

We receive HIM who is Life and Love..to know Him is to have eternal life and to have the love we've always longed for, the relationship we've always longed for...that is what we have - we have HIM!

Life is a Person, Love is a Person, Grace is a Person - JESUS..

This is a wonderful testimony of something that happened recently to my friend Julie and her husband..she wrote it out and graciously allowed me to share it here.  Someone in her church received a word from the Lord, and it was so beautiful what the message was!  It was so full of the love and grace of Jesus!  So I really wanted to share it here to bless and encourage everyone:

We praise God that God is working mightily in us and in those around us! We want to tell you a story that happened several weeks ago at church! After several songs during worship the music changed to just instrumental music with no words. During that short time people were just speaking out praises to God, like: Praise God! Hallelujah! We love You Jesus!

Our hands were raised and we were in worship. Then, starting out rather quiet and getting louder, a lady began speaking in tongues so everyone else got quiet so that we could hear what God had to say to us. Then she stopped. The instrumental music was still playing and I stood there praying and praying that God would give someone the interpretation. Thankfully they submitted and gave the interpretation. 

It went something like this: Oh draw to Me, draw to Me. I love you, I love you. I am all you will ever need. I LONG to be with you, come to Me, come to Me. I am your everything. I love you, I love you. I want to be with you. There's no need to look elsewhere. I am your answer. Just draw near to me. I love you, I love you.

Not long after this exciting moment we left church (a little different schedule that day). As soon as we walked out the door Steve turned to me and said, "Well, that was an interesting event." I said, "What do you mean?" He said that when the lady spoke in tongues HE received the interpretation! He KNEW EXACTLY what she was saying WHILE she was saying it!! We've never experienced this before. We did not know that Steve had this gift, but we receive it from the Lord! 

So listen to the Words the Lord spoke that I wrote above and draw near to Him. He LONGS to be with you and love on you! He IS your everything! Hallelujah!                      Julie Strozier

The Gospel of Grace Is...

To me, the gospel of grace is that:

God out of His grace and favor toward the world, sent Jesus to take away our sins, and He isn't counting the sins of the world against them! Wow! We are free to be friends with God again, for He's already friends with us. We can open up and receive Him into fellowship, through simple childlike faith, and He comes in and regenerates us, makes us alive again

with His very own life!

This is the good news! Repent (change your mind about your status with God) - He isn't against you but FOR you, favoring you and having mercy on you! He has already taken away your sins on the cross and isn't counting your sins against you. He has brought you into harmony with Himself (reconciled you) by exchanging your sins for His right-ness.

He is looking at the whole world through Jesus' sacrifice now! So open up your heart and agree with this and get to know Him! Faith (simple, happy confidence in Him coming from what He did for you - "wow, Jesus, You did all that for ME! Thank You!") opens the door and allows Him to make you a new person with Him as your very life source - thus, your spirit, bound as it is to God's life itself, which is eternal, will never die!

You are now one with God and have perfect fellowship with Him at all times - you can talk to Him about anything, He is the Friend you've always wanted, He will be loyal where others could not, He understands you perfectly, He delights in you.

And you are now a complete and whole person! This is the way your life was always meant to be - a living spirit filled with God's Spirit and in perfect love relationship with Him!

Nothing is required of you in this life - you are free to bask in Him and His love and be happy in Him, for He will do it all, and you'll find yourself full of new desires to love people, new hope for the future, new authority and freedom over evil, new joy and peace, new strength, new freshness of grace-gifts falling on you every day!

Every day will be a day of just receiving His love and radiating that love back to Him and being a reflection of His love to the world. They are going to want what you have, because they'll see the unconditional love, the satisfaction, the freedom and joy! They'll be attracted to the blessed, full life you have! And Jesus will be glorified and lifted up!

Hallelujah!

The Lord Is My Shepherd - Jeremy Riddle

We are in the New Covenant, called the Covenant of Peace in Is. 54:10 (my favorite verse in all the Bible!) - the word peace is shalom, and I was studying it recently. Wow, it is so awesome...shalom, I am learning, means not just a tranquil state of mind, but the tranquil state brought about when all needs are met, you are completely full, and you are in a place of complete satisfaction where all

your desires and longings are FULLY SATISFIED!

Christ fully satisfies our hearts! He meets our every need! He is God our Provider! He is the Lord our Shepherd, so we 'shall not lack (be in need, want for anything)!! He supplies ALL our needs out of His riches in glory, no matter what that need is, spiritual, emotional, physical, material, relational, - He is the COMPLETE SATISFACTION of every need, and in Him we come to fullness and rest by the still waters, because we are well, whole, complete and SATISFIED by Him!

Thank You, Jesus! We are not in lack, not missing something, not needing to get better or do better, not deficient or 'needing improvement', not broken or unusable...We are complete and full in You and all our needs are met!

You fully satisfy our souls!

We are FULL to overflowing in You!

At the Cross, At the Resurrection

At the cross: He's taken us, our old selves, and all the terrible and yucky things that weighed us down and hurt us, taken those onto Himself on the cross and then taken them down to the grave! That's where all my sin, pain, confusion, depression, fear, shame, guilt, condemnation, punishment, alienation, and struggle - and even my old, sinful self - are today! Dead and gone! Buried and forgotten!

At the resurrection: He's taken us, newly created with and full of His resurrection life, and all the wonderful things that He is, taken us and all those wonderful things up, up and up with Him into the heavenlies! And that's where we are today, filled with all that He is - peace, love, safety, authority, joy, favor, strength, fullness, sinlessness, righteousness, perfection, union with God, fellowship, acceptance, LIFE - alive and full and free! Risen indeed and with God forever!

 On this first day of the new year, it's wonderful to think of how in Jesus we have completely left the old behind and entered into a whole new day, a whole new creation, a whole new realm of grace!  We are out of the devil's realm, out of bondage to sin, out of darkness, out from under the law, out of the realm of death...and We are into the Son's kingdom, into freedom, into the light of the One who is Light, into grace and favor, into LIFE ETERNAL!  Wow!

 "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation - old things are passed away; behold, ALL things are become NEW!"  2 Co. 4:17

 We are new!  ALL new!  ALL things have become new for us, and we will NEVER be old again!  The old things like condemnation, bondage to sin, guilt, being under curse, hopelessness, emptiness, inadequacy,  etc. - these things are gone from our lives forever and no more define us!  We are now defined by HIS LIFE in us - defined by peace with God, His loving nature, His faith, His power, His righteousness, fullness of joy, perfect peace that is beyond understanding, the power that raised Him from the dead, unmerited favor, blessings upon the head of the righteous, the unconditional love of God, the companionship of the Holy Spirit, and 24/7 fellowship with God in our spirits, where we are ONE with God Himself!  THAT'S how we are defined today and forever!

Thank You, Jesus, for bringing the 'old' us with You on the cross and the 'new' us with You in the resurrection! 

Jesus Does ONLY GOOD To Us!

Jesus never burdens us - He removes burdens!

Jesus never forces or pressures us - He releases us to real freedom!

Jesus never harms or hurts us - He takes away our pains!

Jesus never makes us feel worse - He makes us feel better!

Jesus never shames or condemns us - He affirms and accepts us!

Jesus never puts conditions on His love - He loves us freely!

Jesus never withholds good from us - He freely gives us all things to enjoy!

Jesus never hides or withdraws from us - He is always open and approachable and ready to talk to us!

Jesus will never leave alone or abandon us - He gives us His heart and His loyal friendship forever!

We've Had and Identity Exchange!!

It is hitting me all over again how the Christian life is NOT about trying to change, improving, getting better so we can FINALLY be a successful Christian, worthy, and qualified for God's favor and blessing - NO!

The Christian life is a life that has already been EXCHANGED - at the point of salvation, our old life was exchanged for His resurrection Life! We have been exchanged, had a heart transplant!  We've had an identity exchange!

We are ALREADY changed, not trying to change!

We are ALREADY new, not trying to improve the old!

We are ALREADY God's Best, not trying to get better!

We are ALREADY worthy, qualified, favored and blessed!

All because we have the very Life of our dear Savior, Jesus Christ, as our actual life now! You can't improve on that! You can't get better than the perfect Life of Christ!

Thank You, Lord!

Merry Christmas!

Silent Night, Holy Night
Son of God, Love's Pure Light
Radiant beams from Thy Holy Face
With the dawn of Redeeming Grace
Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth!

Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth!

Merry Christmas with love to all, 
And peace on earth, goodwill (grace!) towards men!!