The Truth Shall Make You Free

John 8:32 is one of the most widely misrepresented verses used by people who have not a clue as to what they are speaking or doing. Often only misquoting part of the verse, as well: the truth shall set you free. I have news for you: God's Word is not to be taken lightly. 

You say, then, 'What is truth?' I tell you now that Truth is not a what it is a Who, and His Name is Jesus Christ The Holy One of Israel, The Messiah, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. His Name is Wonderful, Counselor, Prince of Peace, Everlasting Father, The Mighty God. His Name is Alpha and Omega, The Beginning and The End. His Name is Faithful and True. His Name is The Word of God.

His Name is Deliverer, Strength, Lamb of God, The Bridegroom, Bread of God, Living Water, The Light of the world, Son of God, The Good Shepherd, The Resurrection and The Life. His Name is The True Vine, The Root of David, The BRANCH. King of glory, O Most High, Refuge, Fortress, The Rock of my Salvation is His Name.

Immanuel is His Name: God With Us. Carried in a womb, laid in a manger, followed by crowds, believed on by few. Nailed to a cross, buried in a tomb not His own, risen from the dead. Do you believe yet? Are you free?

John 8:31 & 32 “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on Him, “If you continue in My Word, then are you My disciples indeed; And you shall know The Truth and The Truth shall make you free.” Continuing in God's Word not only makes us His disciples, but we shall know Him and He will make us free.

John 14:6 “Jesus said unto him (Thomas, see verse 5), I Am The Way, The Truth, and The Life: no man comes to The Father but by Me.” If you really truly want God to hear you and see you, you MUST go through JESUS to get to God. If you not believe that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God, God cannot hear your prayers, receive your offerings nor accept you gifts.

Isaiah 61:1 speaks of the anointing on Christ's life and ministry. “The Spirit of The Lord God is upon Me; because The Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.” Jesus sets us free.

You say you are free, yet you live in sin. Sin lives in darkness and knows not The Light, unless The Light is shined into it, revealing that it is, indeed, dark. What kind of Light reveals the darkness of sin? God's Light, for it is holy and righteous. God's Word, God's Truth, not only reveals what sin is, but has the cure for it: Jesus Christ.

When Jesus prayed in the garden before He was arrested, He prayed for His disciples, He prayed for us. And in John 17:17, He speaks of Truth again: “Sanctify them (disciples and us) through Your Truth: Your Word is Truth.” God's Word is Truth. God's Word is Jesus. Jesus is Truth.

The Truth was sent by God to save the world from perishing in the judgment against sin, against the works of darkness and spiritual wickedness in high places. The Truth of God's Word is Love. It is in God's Love that we are to love each other. It is in God's Truth that we are to live. It is God's Truth that makes us free, indeed. How can we really live if we are not in God's Truth? We cannot.

While our lives are but a vapor, here and then gone, it is not true that your life does not matter. It is what we do in this life regarding Christ that makes all the difference in you and I. It is The Truth which makes us free when we believe that Jesus Christ is God's only begotten Son. We call Him Lord and Savior, because He saved us and we look to Him to lead us and guide us. We call Him Love and Life and Light.

The Truth of God's Word shines its Light into our lives, into our hearts and minds, and reveals our shortcomings, our selfishness, our faults, our weaknesses, our sin. The Truth of God's Word is demanding but not pushy. He waits to be asked into our hearts and lives: Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in unto him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.” The doorknob of our hearts is on our side of the door: when we believe, we are turning the doorknob, opening the door of our hearts to the Light of God's Truth.

The Truth has made me free. I opened the door of my heart, where Jesus had been knocking. I let Him come into my heart, take up residence there, so to speak. It is good here with Jesus. What about you, though? God is calling your name, Christ is knocking at your door. What will you do with Jesus? What is your response to God's Truth? 

Unto Us

Nothing in The Word of God is ABOUT us. It's all ABOUT JESUS.
Everything in The Word of God is FOR us. JESUS CHRIST IS The Word of God.

It is for us He came. It is for us He was sent. Christmas is not about the gifts the wise men brought. It is about The Gift God gave to the world we live in. And it was His most valuable gift: He gave of Himself, God gave us Jesus, His only begotten Son.

Wrapped in flesh, placed within a virgin's womb, born in a dark place, God's gift to you and I is His Son. The Son who helped His Father create the world from the very beginning would now help His Father create salvation for the people who lived in darkness on the surface of the world. The Son who would one day be nailed to one of the trees He created, was wrapped in warm cloths and laid in a manger, a simple feeding trough filled with straw. Our Bread of Life, Bread of Heaven.

Luke 1:10, 11 "And the angel said unto them, 'Fear not: for, behold, I bring you tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ The Lord."

John 3:16, 17 "For God so loved the world, that He sent His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved."

Isaiah 9:6 "For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His Name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Prince of Peace."

Luke 1:14 "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

1 John 4:9 "In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God had sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him."

1 John 5:11, 12 "And this is the record, that God has given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that has The Son has life; he that has not The Son has not life."

John 1:1, 14 "In the beginning was The Word, and The Word was with God, and The Word was God. ... And The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of The Father,) full of grace and truth."

This is why we celebrate Christmas. This is why we celebrate Jesus. The spirit that fills a person with permanent joy is the spirit of love. This love only comes from God. Christmas spirit dissipates once Christmas is passed, but the love of God is eternal for God is love. Other spirits only imitate God's love; they soon leave the person's heart, leaving it feeling empty, alone, fearful, confused. These, too, are spirits, but not good ones. Only God is Good.

1 John 4:15, 16 "Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is The Son of God, God dwells in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has to us. God is love; and he that dwells in love, dwells in God, and God in him."

Romans 5:8 "But God commended His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." See, God did not wait for us to get ourselves cleaned up 'good enough' before He sent His Son to die for us. Otherwise, we would never have needed a Savior. But our righteousness is self-righteousness. It is only through the righteousness of Christ that we are made clean. It is only through the blood of His sacrifice on the cross that we are washed 'whiter than snow'. It is only through the sins of the world since before time and until time's reign ends being laid on Him, thereby making Him pay the penalty for our sins, that we have escaped death.

Romans 5:18 "Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of One the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life."

Romans 6:4 "Therefore we are buried with Him in baptism unto death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of The Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."

What a gift God has given us in His Son! But what a price that had to be paid for us to receive this gift. Have you received this precious gift of life which God has made available to us? Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God? Have you asked Him to come into your heart, be The Lord of your life, The Savior of your soul?

How can you not accept God's gift? Yet, many do. It is not a light thing to dismiss God's outstretched hand. The day will come when those who refused this gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ will perish for ever and be heard from no more. Please do not let their fate be yours. Kneel before The only begotten Son of God, acknowledge Him as such, believe on His Name for salvation and repent of your sins to God. Ask God's forgiveness, turn from your wicked ways and turn to God in Christ Jesus for a renewing of your heart and mind and soul. Praise His Name. For Joy is in the world now, the joy unspeakable, which is Christ The Savior lives in you now. If you believe.

Unto us was given the ultimate gift, the extreme gift, if you wish. For now, having received Jesus Christ into our hearts, we have become the sons and daughters of God. In Him we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28). Without Him we are nothing, but with Him we are everything.

Before we came to Christ, we lived in the darkness of this world. Now, having received the Light of God's Love Jesus Christ into our hearts, we live in this Light and Love; this Light and Love lives in us. Before we received God's Gift to us, we did unspeakable things and misbehaved in unseemly ways. Our hearts and minds and willfulness was all about us: what's in it for me? how do i look? i can do anything i want to do and you can't stop me attitudes. Before we repented of our sins, our sins had to be exposed to the Light of God's Word, revealing the blackness, the darkness, of our hearts and minds. Disobedience to God and God's Word is punishable by death.

"But God so Loved the world." To be saved is to be saved from death and destruction. To be saved is to live in Jesus Christ and have Him live in us. But He is holy and the holiness of God cannot be present where sin exists. Therefore the blood of Christ must be applied to the heart first that He might cleanse us from all unrighteousness and make a place for Himself. Though He is God He cannot do it forcefully. Jesus waits for us to ask Him to live in us. But we must first believe that He Is, and surrender to Him all that is within us, that He might reign fully within our hearts, within our minds. Our will must be surrendered to Him on a daily basis. You know how it is. We start to get caught up in our lives, and God's Gift tends to get pushed aside, ignored by the one who had first received Him.

It's all about Jesus. But He's all for you. Are you all for Him?

Peace On Earth

JEHOVAH-SHALOM: GOD IS PEACE, THE LORD IS PEACE

The holiday season is in full force now as the counting down of days until Christmas dwindles. But when the days are dark and gloomy, and the sun hides its warmth and beauty, then the heart, mind and spirit begin to fade.

Without a permanent hope living in the heart, chaotic emotions surface and hopelessness permeates the person who lives without hope. When memories of better or happier times fill the mind of one who is facing a dark holiday due to loss in their lives, then joy can be hard to find or even seem worth looking for. The spirit begins to fade and the person, perhaps, becomes a recluse, a hermit; refusing to leave the safety of home, wherever home may be. Not everyone will have a merry Christmas.

Peace of mind, joy of spirit/life, contented heart. These things can only be found in Christ. In Him we find 'peace that passes understanding'. Why? Because His Name is Prince of Peace. Because His Name is Mighty Counselor. Philippians 4:7 "And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." It is a peace beyond the understanding or comprehension of the human mind and heart.

His Peace flies in the face of this world's logic, which stands to reason since this world is chaotic, in turmoil, and speaks from a hardened heart which has denied the presence of God and Christ for so long that the very Name which brings Peace is now outlawed in many nations and governments of those nations.

His Peace is not defined by calculation of time: it does not leave you unless you leave Him first. His Peace remains, and is ever lasting because Christ is Prince of Peace for ever and ever. In His Peace we find rest. Philippians 4:6 "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."  Matthew 11:28 " Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." A heavy laden heart that is brought or returned to Christ will receive rest. Does not this sound lovely? A resting place in Jesus Christ that brings peace to the heart, the mind and the spirit. The soul is content in Him.  

Matthew 2:14 “Glory to God in the highest, peace on earth, goodwill toward men.” Peace, peace of mind, was declared to all who hear this salutation delivered by a multitude of the heavenly host of God. Peace beyond the understanding of the mind, a peace which only the heart was aware of at first. Why? Because it is with the heart that man (and woman and child) believes that Jesus Christ is Lord. It is with the eyes of the heart that a person sees the saving grace and reality of God's love through His only begotten Son Jesus Christ, the Sovereign of heaven: The King has come to be King of our hearts, Lord of our lives, Savior of our souls, Redeemer who redeems the unwanted, the unloved, the unworthy, the unforgiven, the unsaved. And from what, do you ask, are we redeemed? From the bondage and captivity of sin.

Isaiah 61:1 tells us He came to set captives free, and open prisons where they were bound. Not prisons of stone and iron, but the prison of the mind. To free they who are without hope, without joy, without love, without the Truth of God's Word being made known to them. To set at liberty they who are addicted to various evil activities. His Peace releases us from thoughts and actions that would only ensure our continued slavery to sin. His Peace breaks spiritual chains and forces open closed doors when the person who receives Him as Savior and Lord and King into their hearts, is set free.

In order to stay set free though, we must ask for the baptism of God's Holy Spirit, that He might lead us in God's written Word, thereby revealing God's Living Word of Jesus Christ. I cannot declare The Truth of God's Word on my own. I must daily surrender myself to Christ, seeking ever more of myself to be less and more of Him to be in me. That I might be more like Christ, more loving, more giving, more merciful and compassionate. That more of His light, and less of my self, would shine through into someone else's life, thereby giving them the opportunity to receive this glorious Prince of Peace into their own hearts.

The peace which was declared on that beautiful day is a peace of wholeness with God. No longer would sin separate mankind from His Creator, for our Savior had been born. In a lowly place. Leaving behind His glory, He wrapped Himself in flesh instead of light, for us. For you and for me, this newly born baby, retaining all honor, dignity and integrity of being God's Son, placed Himself in harm's way for our benefit. His Peace is mine.

I can face the holidays, every day even, because He lives in me. My heart is His throne, Romans 10:10 "For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." My mind focuses on His Word: Philippians 4:8 " Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you." 

My will is surrendered every day to do His will, Romans 12:1-3 "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith."

My soul prospers, Psalm 1:1-3 "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper."

 My spirit is content, Philippians 4:11 "Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am,therewith to be content." I have this peace because I have Jesus. 

"Peace on earth" is yours for the asking. 

His Star, His Purpose

 Where is He that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east, and have come to worship Him. Matthew 2:2

No one can worship Jesus with a perfect heart, unless they believe that He is truly the fulfillment of Scripture. No one can come to Jesus unless they are called by God to believe. These wise men had researched and calculated exactly where the King was to be found when they discovered a new star in the heavens, a star that stayed above the newborn King until He was found by them.  A star that fulfilled its purpose and then was seen no more.
It radiated more joyfully and was more glorious to be seen than all other stars, for it announced the birth of the promised King of the Jews. A new King, unlike any other king, was here. A new reign, unlike any other reign, had begun. God makes all things new. All things which God creates are for His glory, for His pleasure they are created. The Bible tells me so.
His star served its purpose and then rested. But Jesus Christ's arrival on the earth He had created was heralded by angels to shepherds taking care of their sheep. The birth of the new King was not in a hospital or even in His home. This King was born in a stable, a rough barn structure behind an inn. It was full of travelling animals who had carried their owners to Bethlehem also, in addition to the innkeeper's own animals. It may have been dark, but it was definitely warm.
Here the baby Mary carried in her womb would make His first appearance on this earth. Here the new King, unlike any other king, would receive the adoration of the working man. Real love for a real King. Here the new King, The Good Shepherd, would be welcomed into this world by shepherds. How cool is that?
But I doubt they stayed in the stable after the taxes had been calculated and paid. But Mary could not travel with the small baby all the way back to Galilee until they both were ready. How do you think the wise men were able to find them? After all they had begun their journey after they had seen the star shine above the stable. For one glorious night that star remained above the stable where the new King lay. For one holy night that star shone its radiance upon the newly born King of the Jews. And then it was gone. But they had seen it. And wondered. And studied, searching manuscripts, ancient texts perhaps. Calculating and re-calculating their findings they discovered, were made aware by God, that this star had shone above Bethlehem, indeed. And that here they would find the new King. So, to Bethlehem they came, bringing valued gifts with them. And an entourage. For the wisest of wise men are in the service of great and mighty men. They are valuable advisors in daily service to their employers, perhaps kings or princes of foreign territories and/or countries. Being a valuable asset, I doubt they would travel alone.
So, each wise man made this discovery of the star and its meaning in their own field of expertise. Maybe they were in only one man's service, but they could have met on the journey to Bethlehem, discussing their findings along the way. However their mutual journey came about, their intent was deliberate and on purpose: they had come to worship the new King of the Jews, whose birth had been foretold in ancient Scriptures, whose birth had been announced by a star like no other. Created for a King like no other king.
His star. His purpose.