Prayer Cards - Prayers of The Saints

 

Revelation 5:8

When He had taken the scroll,

 the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders

fell down before The Lamb. 
Each one had a harp, 

and they were holding golden bowls full of incense,

which are the prayers of the saints. 

    So much going on in this verse, but we are centralizing today's study on the last five words: the prayers of the saints. With that thought in mind let us first see what denotes a saint. We cannot use the dictionary for this, as it is opposed to what a saint is according to the Bible/Scriptures. 

    Strong's Exhaustive Concordance describes "saint" as: unlike any other, different (distinguished/distinct), likeness of nature with The Lord because [it means] different from the world, set apart (for God)

    Are saints only in the New Testament? No. Saints are mentioned in the Old Testament, as well. Here in Daniel 7:18 "saints" refers to "the holy ones (of God)", they who are set apart for God's purpose because they have chosen to believe in and obey The God of Israel, Almighty God. Following this definition there were many saints spoken of in the Old Testament. This verse is Psalms tells us best:    

    Psalm 64:10  The righteous shall be glad in The LORD, and trust in Him. And all the upright in heart shall glory (exult).

    ~The people whom God has chosen for His own are not always saints. Too many times people reject God as their God. They refuse to obey His Will, will not acknowledge His Word and rebel against His Spirit. They set up their own gods (idols) to worship and pray to. They bring their gifts and offerings to empty nothingness and their prayers will not be heard by The True God, The Living God.~

    God chose to send His only Begotten Son into the world to save the world, the whole world not just parts of it. But we need to choose Him back. It is not enough to say, 'I believe in God', we must also choose to be obedient to His Word and listen to His Holy Spirit, Who will lead us on the path of holiness and transform us into levels of holiness until we meet God face to face. It's not an easy life path to walk, but it's definitely worth the effort. 

    John 3:16-18 "For God so loved the world that He gave 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. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in The Name of the only begotten Son of God." 

    -The saints of The Most High reject evil, and love The Lord - Psalm 97:10

    -The holy ones sit at His feet and receive His Word - Deuteronomy 33:3

    -The blessed of The Father will inherit a kingdom He has prepared - Matthew 25:34

    -The blameless have an inheritance that will last forever - Psalm 37:18

    -A kingdom and priests who serve God - Revelation 5:10

    -Priests of God and Christ over whom the second death 

    has no power - Revelation 20:6

    -Sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus - Galatians 3:26

    What are prayers? A subject we speak of almost everyday. Forty-seven days and counting so far. We have learned thus far that prayers are our vital source of communication with our God. We commune with Him. 

    Psalm 77:6 I call to remembrance my song in the night: I commune with mine own heart: and my spirit made diligent search. (KJV) 

    Other versions translate this word 'commune' as: search my soul (NLT), mused (BSB), with my heart I conversed (BLB), meditate in my heart (ESV), think very carefully (NET Bible), consider in my heart (New Heart English Bible). 

    When we pray to our God, we don't always use words. In fact, it isn't always just us speaking to God from deep within in our hearts: His Spirit within us reaches out to the heart of God in His own voice. Romans 8:26 'In the same way, The Spirit helps us in our weakness (infirmities). For we do not know how we ought to pray, but The Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words.' 

    The prayers of the saints are the prayers that have reached God's hearing, gotten His attention and are motivated by the love of God within us. We desire to see His kingdom come. We long to see our families, our friends, and our communities filled with the knowledge of saving grace through faith in The Name of The Lord Jesus Christ. 

    Our prayers move mountains, obstacles we sometimes see as impassable, but know and believe that our Lord will move for us through our faith in Him. That mustard seed faith that makes mountains move from one place to another (Matthew 17:20); that causes mountains to be wet and sunken under water (Mark 11:23). 

    Our prayers are constant (1 Thessalonians 5:17). From our waking to our resting, our hearts and our minds are focused on interceding for everyone. These prayers are not just for people we know, but people we don't know. We pray that the gospel message is delivered everywhere, that all may know The Name by which all men must be saved. 

    I am a saint. And I'm praying for you. 

NOT IN A HURRY - Will Reagan/United Pursuit

    

 

Holiness vs Unholiness

 Psalm 93:5

Your testimonies are very sure;
Holiness adorns
Your house,
O LORD, forever.

1 Corinthians 6:19
What? know you not that your body is the temple of The Holy Spirit which is in you, which you have of God, and you are not your own?
2 Corinthians 6:16
What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of The Living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.”
Hebrews 12:14
Pursue peace with everyone, as well as holiness, without which no one will see The Lord.
1 Peter 1:15, 16
But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do, for it is written: “Be holy, for I am holy.” (Leviticus 19:2; 20:7)

    As God's people, we are also God's dwellingplace: His residence, His home, His house and His temple. In God's temple all aspects of it are holy, including the thoughts of the mind and the intentions of the heart. Therefore, we are to have nothing to do with unclean, unholy, unrighteous imaginations and vain glories.

    1 Corinthians 6 informs us how to settle our differences as God's people [verses 1-8]; who is united with Christ and who is not [verses 9-17]; that we are the temple of The Holy Spirit and have been purchased at a high cost [verses 18-20].

    We are The LORD's house and, as such, we need to maintain a holy lifestyle, a holy walk. This gets easier the closer we are to The Lord and the longer we walk with Him. Yes, there will be trials. Yes, there are obstacles on this course. But the destination is worth the effort. Paul tells the church that we are to "run with endurance the race that is set before us." [Hebrews 12:1]

    And, again, in 2 Corinthians 7:1, Paul states, "Therefore, beloved, since we have these promises, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that defiles body and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." What are we cleansing ourselves from, what defiles us--makes us unholy--that we may be God's holy people?

UNHOLY LIVING

    James 1:21 'Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and every expression of evil, and humbly accept The Word planted in you, which can save your souls.'

    Ephesians 4:22; 5:3 'to put off your former way of life, your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;' and 'But among you, as is proper among the saints, there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed.'

    Colossians 3:8, 9 'But now you must put aside all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practices.'

    1 Peter 4:3 'For you have spent enough time in the past carrying out the same desires as the Gentiles: living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing, and detestable idolatry.'

    Titus 3:3 'For at one time we too were foolish, disobedient, misled, and enslaved to all sorts of desires and pleasures—living in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.'

    1 Corinthians 6:18 'Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a man can commit is outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body.'

    Galatians 5:19-21 'The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.'

    James 3:14-16 'But if you harbor bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast in it or deny the truth. Such wisdom does not come from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every evil practice.'

    Romans 1:29-31 'They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed, and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant, and boastful. They invent new forms of evil; they disobey their parents. They are senseless, faithless, heartless, merciless.'

    Mark 7:20-22 'He continued: “What comes out of a man, that is what defiles him. For from within the hearts of men come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness. All these evils come from within, and these are what defile a man."

    Revelation 21:8 'But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.'

HOLINESS/HOLY LIVING

    Galatians 5:22, 23 'But the fruit of The Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.'

    Ephesians 4:1-3 'As a prisoner in The Lord, then, I urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling you have received: with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, and with diligence to preserve the unity of The Spirit through the bond of peace.'

    Colossians 3:12-15 'Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with one another and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else. Forgive as The Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which is the bond of perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, for to this you were called as members of one body. And be thankful.'

    Romans 13:14 'Instead, clothe yourselves with The Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh.'

    Galatians 3:27 'For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.'

    1 Peter 3:8, 9 'Finally, all of you, be like-minded and sympathetic, love as brothers, be tenderhearted and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.'

    Ephesians 4:32 'Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.'

    1 Peter 4:8-10 ' The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear-minded and sober, so that you can pray. Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without complaining. As good stewards of the manifold grace of God, each of you should use whatever gift he has received to serve one another.'

    These are but a few Bible references informing the Christian--Christ-follower--how to live a humble, holy lifestyle in Christ. When we obey the leading of God's Holy Spirit, we are able to discover so much more in God's Word and be fully equipped to overcome temptations which would cause us to fall from God's grace.

    Daily Bible reading, daily praying, daily worship work together in the spirit realm to keep us holy, to keep us as God's house, His temple, His dwellingplace. Seeking Him out to know Him better than we knew Him yesterday.

    And so we pray, "Lord, make us more like You. Lead us and guide us in Your Word to that which would make us holy, that we might be Your dwellingplace forever and ever. We surrender what we want in our lives for what You want in us. We submit to Your Authority our hearts and our minds and our bodies. Live in us and through us for Your glory, Your honor and Your praise." In Jesus' Name, Amen.

TAKE MY LIFE - Micah Stampley

    

The Color of Worship - Gold

Exodus 25 through Exodus 26

Gold signifies the holiness of God. It was used to adorn and cover items within the tabernacle:

The poles to carry the Ark of The Covenant were overlaid with gold and four golden rings were made to carry the poles. Exodus 25:10-16

The Ark of The Covenant was covered by the Mercy Seat, which was also covered in gold; plus it had two solid gold cherubim attached to the top, which faced the Mercy Seat. 

The poles to carry the Ark and the rings into which these poles fit were also covered with gold. Exodus 25:17-22

The Table of Showbread was completely covered in gold. In addition, the plates and dishes which sat upon it were also covered in gold. These rings and carrying poles were also overlaid in gold. Exodus 25:23-30

               The Lampstand, the last specific item designated for the inside of the tabernacle is also made of hammered gold. None of these items were fastened together, nor were they welded or mixed with anything to hold together. That took God-given craftsmanship: beaten, hammered out sheets or blocks of gold, seamless, to produce each of these specially-designed pieces. 

    God had given Moses the plans, blueprints, for each part of the tabernacle when he was on the mountain with God. And God gave each one involved in the making thereof special knowledge to create the items. 

    These, however, were not the only things made of gold or gold overlay. Exodus 26:6 'hooks of gold to hold the tabernacle curtains up'. Exodus 26:31-33 describes the veil which separated the room where the Ark of The Covenant would be and the outer room where the Table and the Lampstand would be. The curtain for the door required hooks of gold set in brass sockets, and the pillars of the door had to be covered in gold. Exodus 26:37. 

    Yet, these are not all of the gold items within the Scriptures that reference the holiness of God. The prophetic verses in Zechariah 6:11-13 tells us (11) Then take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest;  (12) And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaks The LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of The LORD: (13) Even he shall build the temple of The LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. 

    Isaiah 9:6-7

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on the throne of David and over His kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from that time and forevermore. The zeal of The LORD of Hosts will accomplish this.

    Isaiah 11:1-5

(1) Then a Shoot will spring up from the stump of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit. (2) The Spirit of The LORD will rest on Him—The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and strength, The Spirit of knowledge and fear of The LORD. (3) And He will delight in the fear of The LORD. He will not judge by what His eyes see, and He will not decide by what His ears hear, (4) but with righteousness He will judge the poor, and with equity He will decide for the lowly of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth and slay the wicked with the breath of His lips. 

(5) Righteousness will be the belt around His hips, and faithfulness the sash around His waist.

    Revelation 19:12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns; and He had a Name written, that no man knew, but He Himself. 

    In order for gold to be used purposefully, it first must be purified in fire. It must be tested until the refiner is satisfied with the result. Even when it is God's people who are being refined as gold. 

Malachi 3:3 tells us that the sons of Levi, the priestly lineage, will be refined like silver and gold. As God's people, we see this happen time and again in our lives: that God is testing us in various fires until we "come forth as gold" in His eyes Job 23:10. 

 Revelation 3:18 The Word of God is compared to gold: I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, white garments so that you may be clothed and your shameful nakedness not exposed, and salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. How do we buy from Christ that which we cannot afford? With out obedient faith in His Word, by trusting in His promises, and that He is, indeed, a faithful God. By believing that God is truly trustworthy: worthy to receive our trust in Him. 

    Unlike manmade gods, which have no value and cannot see, nor hear, nor eat, nor receive  what is presented to them by the people who made these metal or brass or wooden or silver or gold or bejewelled idols and icons. Psalm 115:4-8; Psalm 135:15-18; Isaiah 44:9-20; Jeremiah 10:3-5; Habakkuk 2:18-19; Jeremiah 2:27-28. 

    When we offer our hearts and surrender our bodies and our minds to God's service and kingdom, we present such--to us--unworthiness. Yet, in His time and with His love, God transforms the sinner into the saint by the power of His Holy Spirit. He breathes on us, empowering us to become more like Jesus. We are refined in the fires of tests that we might have a faithful testimony > The Lord delivered me from all of my fears, my doubts, my weaknesses. >The Lord saved me from a horrific death and punishment: the grave and hell. >The Lord lifted me up from the miry clay, the things which threatened to bring me down and keep me down. 

    With this knowledge and understanding, we bow our knees to King Jesus and praise His Holy Name now, while we till draw breath. For we know that the time is near when "Every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord." Romans 14:11; Philippians 2:9-11.

    

    

  

A Table Spread - Meat

 A Table Spread 

John 4:34

Jesus said unto them, My meat is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to finish His work.

     Just as Christ's 'meat' was to do the will of God, to be obedient to His Father, and to finish the work which God had set for Him to do, so, also, is our meat: to do the will of God and to finish the work which He has set for each of us to do. 

SALVATION

    What is God's will for our lives? Well, the first and primary will is for our salvation. John 3:16 tells us, 'For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.' 

    But with this statement comes a warning to the people who choose not to take hold of this salvation, this saving grace through Jesus Christ: John 3:17, 18 'For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He that believes on Him is not condemned: but he that believes not is condemned already, because he has not believed in The Name of The Only Begotten Son of God. 

    It is The Name of Jesus Christ by which all of us must be saved. Acts 4:12 "...there is no other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." Romans 10:9,13 "That if you shall confess with your mouth The LORD Jesus, and shall believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved....For The Scripture says, 'Whosoever believes on Him shall not be ashamed." 

RECONCILIATION

    That is God's first and foremost will for us. The second is to share the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. We are, after all, His ambassadors to this world. 2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." We are now, through the saving grace of God, in Christ and Christ is in us. We have been reconciled (changed by God), through the power of God demonstrated at the cross and in the garden. Jesus died for you and I and He walked out of the grave after conquering death and hell. 

    2 Corinthians 5:18-20 "And all things are of God, Who has reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation; that God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing (taking into account) their trespasses unto them; and has committed unto us The Word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech (beg, urge) you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be reconciled to God." 

    We are changed by the power of God and The Spirit of God through our belief on The Name of The Only Begotten Son of God into a new nature. Who we were before we believed is not who we are after we have believed. The change was instant, for The Spirit of God applied The Word of Faith to our hearts and Christ sits on the throne of our hearts now, not ourselves. That sinful nature we were all born with has been replaced with a holy nature, a heart that desires to love God and serve Him wholly. This change is not wrought by our own hands nor lips. It is the power of God. 

HOLINESS

    The third thing, will, God wants us to do, now that He has reconciled us to Himself, is to become more like Christ and less like our old selves. This is a change we must actively participate in with God's Holy Spirit. Anyone can read a Bible, but only by having an active faith and trust in God, believing that His Word is True, will The Spirit be able to apply The Word to our hearts and our lives. 

    2 Corinthians 3:18 "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of The LORD, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, as by The Spirit of The LORD." 

    We seek first the kingdom of God. We read the manual, the Bible, and ask God to reveal Himself to us in it as we read it. We deliberately, and with urgency, devour this heavenly Mana which God gives to us daily. We do not merely read our Bibles and go on about our day: we study, we pray, we praise, we thank, we sing, we search, we welcome The Spirit of God into our lives. This third Person in the trinity is our Helper, our Comforter, our Guide. He aids, He consoles, He leads. 

    Galatians 5:18 tells us that we are led by The Spirit. The next few verses describe the old natures that were once upon us and that must be expunged from us. Galatians 5:22-25 tells us that The Spirit causes, produces, the new nature in us: "But the fruit of The Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in The Spirit, let us also walk in The Spirit." 

ENDURANCE

    We can't quit. We may rest in Christ to regain our strength, but we cannot stop until we have completed the work which God has set for each of us. Paul describes it as an endurance race. This life which we now live in Christ is not a sprint, nor a marathon, but an endurance race. We run with determination, perseverance and integrity. We endeavor to complete our mission unfailingly. 

    Isaiah wrote in Isaiah 40:31 "They that wait upon The LORD (serve The LORD) shall renew their strength; they shall mount up (rise and soar) with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." We walk out our faith every single day. We trust in God's timing. We will maintain this holy faith which has been given us that we might bring glory and honor to our God when we have completed, finished, the work which He has given us to do. And I'm doing my best to do this very thing. 

    This is our meat. To accept the saving grace (Ephesians 2:8, 9) which saves our souls from eternal damnation. To share the gospel message of salvation through Christ with others. To live a holy and honorable life in Christ. To endure with grace, integrity, honor and trust and hope. 

    Are you ready to partake of the meat on the table which is spread for you? 

COME AND DINE 

    

Statements of Faith - I Am Born Again

 

JOHN 3:5-7 

Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and The Spirit.

That having been born of the flesh is flesh, and that having been born of The Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said to you, 'You must be born again'. 

John 1:12, 13

But to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His Name, He gave the right to become children of God— children born not of blood, nor of the desire or will of man, but born of God. 

1 Peter 1:23

For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.

    When we are born of our parents, we are born in flesh, which has a corruptible nature already because of the initial sin which Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden. Our bodies and our minds are prone to live sinful lives: disobedient, willful, self-satisfying, self-glorification, self-serving lives. In and of ourselves we cannot save ourselves: we need a Savior from God to save us from the inevitable punishment of our sinful selves. So God sent His only begotten Son JESUS to save us. 

    Think of ourselves as houses: our house is built on a faulty foundation. We base our ways of thinking on the perceptions of mankind. We believe certain tenets of wisdom to be truth and fact. For example, the theory of evolution is just a theory. But the truth of creation is factual and evident. We follow leaders expecting them to lead us into better lives, when in fact their lives are ineffectual for their hearts are not filled with the Love and Light and Wisdom of God. We study to know everything in our fields when we should be studying to know The God of Everything. 

    When we believe on The Name of The Son of God, JESUS, we begin the process of becoming born again. Salvation first; Holiness second. To be born again is to be born into the family of God by God's plan of salvation. As Paul writes to the church in Corinth (1 Corinthians 1:23-25), "Jews demand signs and Greeks search for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and The Wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength."

    Salvation through Jesus Christ is foolishness to those who seek a different way. But the Scriptures also tell us that those who refuse to hear God's Word and receive it will find other teachers to listen to and follow their paths. They have set themselves on the road to condemnation from God by refusing to listen to  God.

     Just as we are subject to the laws in our countries and must adhere to them or be found guilty of breaking such laws and face the courts for our errors of judgment, so, too, will those who break God's laws be in His courts to face Him for judgment. Unless the blood of JESUS is upon the once errant soul---said blood having washed away their sins---a person cannot see God and live. For in and of ourselves we are not holy and "without holiness no man can see God". Hebrews 12:14. 

    It is The Spirit of God Who places The Word of God in us and Who writes The Word of God on our hearts. It is The Spirit of God who draws us to God through the cross of Christ, where we see The One Who Saves bearing our sins and taking our punishment, that we might be in His family forever and ever. We are made clean by the washing of The Word on our souls: washing away the stain of sin and the blemish of iniquity and the blot of transgression. 

    It is The Word of God that demands our new faith be made public. Though Nicodemus came to Jesus secretly, hoping for a permanent place in Christ's kingdom, Jesus rebuked him for it. For anyone who comes to Jesus must come to Him openly and unafraid of what others may think about their actions in doing so. Anyone who chooses to follow Christ will seek Him out knowing their actions could cause them at the least to be scorned and mocked by their peers and families; at the worst to be jailed and killed. 

    Immersive water baptism is a wonderful thing to experience. Especially when you are surrounded by not only those who understand what you are doing, but also when people who  do not know see what you are doing. It is very public and a very powerful statement on what we believe. We are baptized in The Name of The Father, and The Son and The Holy Spirit. We are baptized into His Name. Matthew 28:18, 19. 

    To be born again is to choose the foolishness of God's Wisdom over the foolishness of this world. It is to seek after the things which are found in His Kingdom. It is to live a life which pleases God and not ourselves. It is to start over, to begin anew, a life in Christ which honors and glorifies God. It is to live in peace with they whom we interact with. It is to live a life faith and trust in God and His Christ through the power of God's Holy Spirit. 

STILL - Hillsong United

    

Statements of Faith - Sanctified and Set Apart

 

Ephesians 5:25-27

Husband, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it; That He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of The Word,That He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish.

SANCTIFIED

    When Jesus prayed for you and I in the garden on the night of His arrest (John 17:17), He prayed for God to sanctify us with His Truth, with His Word. It is only with God's Word that we can be saved, sanctified and set apart for Himself. 

    To ignore or disregard The Word of God is to bring condemnation on one's self. To remove any part of The written Word from The Scriptures or to add anything to The written Word is to bring judgment and destruction upon one's self (Revelation 22:19).

    God's Word is powerful:  Hebrews 4:12. It burns:  Jeremiah 23:29; Psalm 97:5 & Nahum 1:5; Malachi 3:1-3; 4:1. God's Word increases and spreads: Acts 12:24. The Word of God is Alive and lives in every believer: 1 John 2:14. 

    The Word of God sanctifies ( purifies, makes holy) the hearts of every believer who has The Word living in him or her. The Word is holy and demands a holy dwellingplace. He cannot live where sin dwells: only in a righteous man or righteous woman or righteous child. The Word of God cannot reside in anyone who declares themselves to be other than what God has made them to be. Be warned: God will not be mocked. 

    You who think you can live any lifestyle you want to and still make it to heaven are only fooling yourselves. The day will come when they who live in sin will be judged by God for their self-centered lifestyles. Everything that is not of God will be burned up by His holy fire. Now is the day of repentance. Now is the time to answer God's call on your lives to turn from sin and turn to God. 

    Today is the day of salvation for someone reading this. Today is the day of reckoning and getting our hearts right with The Word of God. Tomorrow is not promised. We can pray anywhere, so whenever you make your way to the cross where Christ died for our sins, that is the right time to confess our sins and receive forgiveness from God. No man or woman can forgive us. absolve us,  for the sins we have committed against The Word: only God can forgive those who sin against Him. 

SET APART

    Every believer of The Word of God is not only sanctified by The Word but we are set apart by The Word. We are different from the world (John 17:14). We are strange and peculiar people (1 Peter 2:9). We are called by God to listen to Him and to Love like him: (1 John 4:6) and (John 13:34). 

    In this Love of God expresses through God's Word we are able to love like God. We show compassion and mercy and lovingkindness to everyone we meet, even if they don't love us back. We love anyway. We are bold in The Spirit for The Spirit of God is with us. We are fearless for our God is always with us. We are Christians, faithful followers of Christ Jesus, and we serve a risen Savior and coming King. 

    While we pray, Come, Lord Jesus, come, we also pray for the salvation of souls who need Jesus. We pray for the salvation of Israel (Romans 9:33 - 10:1) and the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6). We are praying people because we have a God Who hears us and answers our prayers. Especially the prayer that brings us into His kingdom. 

    So we beg you, Come to Jesus. Come today. 

    ANCIENT WORDS

IN CHRIST ALONE

ALL TO JESUS I SURRENDER . 

A Crucified Life - - Answers The Call to Holiness

 

    1 Peter 1:16

But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do, for it is written: "Be holy, for I am holy."

    Holiness is a process. We gain a little bit more of it each day that we are obedient to The Holy Word of God. 

    It is this process which is implemented in us when we receive The Holy Spirit of God, Who is instrumental in making us holy. 

    Why is holiness necessary? It is consecrating ourselves for God's purpose, choosing to be God's people in a world where doing so can kill us. Idolatry and self-righteousness abound in our world today. Even now someone is plotting how to rid the world of real Christians and real Christianity. 

    We have been set free from the bonds of sin and are living examples of God's Mercy; reflections of Christ's Love. Therefore, we are already in the process of becoming holy. Though some may not go through the process because they are at death's door when they receive Him, their level of holiness is implied when they believe and receive Jesus into their hearts. 

    Holiness is Consecration

    Leviticus 11:44-45 

"For I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, because I am holy. You must not defile yourselves by any creature that crawls along the ground. 

For I am the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt so that I would be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy."

    Leviticus 20:7

"Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, because I am The LORD your God."

    Holiness is a Way. 

    Isaiah 35:8

"And there will be a highway called The Way of Holiness. The unclean will not travel it--only those who walk in The Way--and fools will not stray onto it." 

    

    Consecration is making a choice, a decision, to be different by being obedient to God's Word. Sanctification is the process that follows consecration. It is The Way of Holiness. 

    Why do we want to be holy people of God? We want to see God and live.

    Hebrews 12:14 

Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord. 

    Matthew 5:8 tells us to be pure in heart, for then we shall see God. 

    Romans 6:22 

But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the fruit you reap leads to holiness, and the outcome is eternal life. 

    This is what we have been studying for the last year and a half. What it means to be born again. How to live a born again life. This crucified life. Answering God's call to service and faithful obedience to Him in His Word. 

    When sin in a person sees the holiness of God, it cries out and is immediately subdued by the power of God. Isaiah said "Woe is Me!" (Isaiah 6:5). Gideon was stunned to find that he was in God's presence (Judges 6:22). Moses wanted to see God's glory but {without holiness} no one can see God and live (Exodus 33:18,20,23). 

    Only One has ever seen God face to face and lived to tell about it: 

    John 1:18 

No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, Who is Himself God and is at the Father's side, has made Him known.

    1 Timothy 6:16

He alone is immortal and dwells in unapproachable light. No one has ever seen Him, nor can anyone see Him. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.

    I want to be holy. Because God wants me to be holy. That I may see Him and live. Live eternally with Him. Don't you?

CALLED TO HOLINESS

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus (also includes the history of the song) -  Luke Powell

Refiner's Fire - Vineyard Worship

Take My Life - Micah Stampley

Refiner - Maverick City Music

Holy Spirit - Jesus Culture/Kim Walker-Smith

Living For Jesus A Life That Is True - Marlie Gardyne

Psalm 69:32

The humble will see and rejoice. You who seek God, let your hearts be revived!

A Crucified Life - - Lives For Christ

 

2 Corinthians 5:15

And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and was raised again.

*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 2198

Live: I live, am alive

From the Greek word 'zaó' (pronounced dzah'-o): to live, experience God's gift of life. To live a moral life, have a Christ-like character. 

    A life of devotion to Christ, a consecrated set-apart life lived in Christ as He lives in us. We are His temple, His dwellingplace not made with hands.

>Colossians 4:2 "Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful."

>2 Timothy 2:21 "So if anyone cleanses himself of what is unfit, he will be a vessel for honor: sanctified, useful to the Master, and prepared for every good work."

>Ephesians 2:10 "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life."

    A life that lives for Jesus loves Jesus and God and everyone else. True Love that comes from God and a relationship with God cannot hate anyone. For hate is sin; sin has no place in the body of Christ. Sin and all it contains is a blemish, a spot, a stain on the body. When it makes itself known, it needs to be removed immediately. Repentance washes the sin away and watchfulness keeps it away. 

>Colossians 1:22 "Yet now He has reconciled you to Himself through the death of Christ in His physical body. As a result, He has brought you into His own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before Him without a single fault."

    God is looking for a perfect church. Not perfect the way the world defines it, but perfect in Him and in His Word. Living for Jesus is living for God through God's Word. When His Word is in us, we want to live for Christ. We can't help it: we love Him so much for what He has done for us! 

    A life lived for Christ is a holy life. That's what it means to be set apart. Our faith in Christ separates from the rest of the world which lives for itself and its own desires. We live for Christ, choosing to be obedient to God our heavenly Father above what we desired when we lived for our own pleasures in the world. Now we choose to please God.

>Ephesians 1:4-5 "For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence. In love He predestined us for adoption as His sons through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of His will."

>Leviticus 20:7 "Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, because I am the LORD your God."

>Hebrews 12:4 "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord."

    A life lived for Christ chooses to abstain from sexual immorality. By living for Christ we obediently bring our sexual appetites into submission to the Word of God. We cannot be sexually immoral and still expect to call ourselves Christians.

>Romans 8:5 "Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh; but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit."

    Fornication, adultery, homosexuality, bestiality are all sexual sins and are abhorred by God. He has chosen us to be His people and He demands that His people be holy and set apart from sexual immorality. We are to live morally strong lives which begin in our hearts. Mere desires to be free from sexual impurity is not enough. We need the Spirit of God living in us, for it is He who imparts the wisdom of God in the Word to us who believe.

    A life lived for Christ spends time with Christ. I have noticed that when I watch the clock, time passes slowly. But when I am in the Word, studying it out for myself, time passes without me being aware of it. And before I know it 3 hours, 4 hours, even 6 hours have passed by and it doesn't even feel like I have been studying that long. How awesome is that?!

>Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 tells us that there is a time for everything. 

>Mark 14:38 "Watch and pray so that you will not enter into temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” 

    Watch and Pray. Watch out! for the devil is sneaky in his temptings to us. Pray for strength to overcome temptations. Pray for wisdom and discernment that we may know what is morally right and live the life God has prepared for us to live. Pray for the love of God to fill us so full that there is no room for sin to enter in and take hold of us. Pray to God just to hear His voice, to know that He is near. 

    Watch from the fortress of His righteousness, that we may see the enemy of our souls attacking from a distance, that we may sound the alarms to the others to come and battle with us. A life lived for Christ is an embattled life. But we fight on our knees, in submission and humbleness of heart to God, with our hands folded or lying prostrate before Him. We pour our hearts out to God and He pours Himself into us. 

>Ephesians 6:10 A life lived for Christ is strong in its Lord and the power of His might. 

    A life lived for Christ is better than a life lived without Christ. I know. I've lived both and I prefer to live for Christ.

LIVES FOR CHRIST

The Lord Is My Salvation - Keith & Kristyn Getty

I Am Not My Own - Keith & Kristyn Getty

My Jesus, My Savior  

Give Me Jesus - Fernando Ortega

Because He Lives - Classic Hymn

Above All - Lenny LeBlanc

Only There - Shane & Shane

Better Than Life - Phil Wickham

Different - Micah Tyler

More - Red Rocks Worship

Magnificent Obsession - Steven Curtis Chapman

Remember To Remember - Steven Curtis Chapman

Love Is Holy

 

God Is Holy

Psalm 99:9

Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at His holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy.

God Is Love

1 John 4:8

Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

Therefore, we must conclude that Love Is Holy Because God Is Love.

1 CORINTHIANS 3:17

If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.

How do we, as God's temple, get destroyed by others, besides being killed for our faith? By compromising our Biblical values with worldly values, for one.

Another way is by listening, and adhering to, false doctrines which fall into three categories: alternative "Christian" thinking, anti-Christian thinking and legalism (following a bunch of rules).

All of these schools of thought fall under the category of anti-Christ. Anything Satan can do to keep people out of walking the strait and narrow path which God has set up for His people to walk in, he will do.

There is only one GOD, one heavenly Father, unlike any other father we have ever known.

There is only one JESUS CHRIST who is GOD's only begotten Son, who died on the cross in our place taking the punishment for all the sins of the whole world: from times past, times present and times future; Who overcame death, hell and the grave and walked out of the tomb wherein He had been buried: resurrected into a new life and a new body. It is He Who is seated at the right hand of God, interceding on behalf of His people (Psalm 110:1; Colossians 3:1; Romans 8:34). And He's coming back, when His Father sends Him, to collect a holy church (Ephesians 5:25-27)

There is only one Holy Spirit and he is the Holy Spirit of the Holy God, the Holy Spirit of the Holy Christ.

God is Spirit, Jesus is the Word He speaks, the Spirit is the breath by which He speaks the Word.

John 4:24

"God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth."

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."

Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22

"He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches."

Now, knowing our God is holy and knowing He can only live in holiness, we know that his habitations must be holy, as well. When Jesus Christ washes away our sins, they all take up residence within us. We are a holy people (Titus 2:14), and as such, we are a holy nation (1 Peter 2:9), and a holy temple (1 Corinthians 3:16).

So whoever comes against us, as God's people, God's nation, God's temple, God will come against them. And win. Because He is God and His very presence demands holiness. Evil cannot withstand holiness. It will be rooted out and burned up.