Reflections

“For You formed my inward parts;
         You wove me in my mother’s womb.
    I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
         Wonderful are Your works,
         And my soul knows it very well.
    My frame was not hidden from You,
         When I was made in secret,
         And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;
    Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;
         And in Your book were all written
         The days that were ordained for me,
         When as yet there was not one of them.
    How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
         How vast is the sum of them!
    If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand
         When I awake, I am still with You.”

Oh how the Father loves you.  You are His child.  God created you in His image and likeness.  You are fearfully and wonderfully made.  You were not a mistake but part of God’s plan.  He ordained the days of your life even before you were formed.  He knew you before He created the heavens and earth.

How wonderful are God’s thoughts toward you.  He thinks of you all the time.  He knows your inner most thoughts.  There is nothing about you that is hidden from God.  He loves you not based on what you have done but because He is God.

God is with you always.  Wherever you go He is there.  You cannot hide from Him.  He will saturate you with His grace and mercy.  He has great plans for you, beyond your imagination.  He is forming you into the perfect image of Jesus.

Read Full Post »

“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.’” John 14:6

As Christians we know that the only way to heaven is through Jesus.  Many accuse us of being exclusive and intolerant of others.  The scriptures do not teach this.  We are told that the only way to God the Father is through Jesus the Son.  There is no work we can do to earn our salvation or the right to come to the Father.  Our “good” deeds are like filthy rags to God.  God set out a plan of salvation and it is through His Son Jesus.

Jesus died for all.  He did not die for only an exclusive group of people.  Jesus died for all sins and He said on the cross “it is finished.”  It is not our sin that will keep us from God but our unbelief in Jesus that will keep us from Him and out of heaven.  Our salvation is not dependent on what race or nation we are from.  It is not based on who are our parents.  It is our relationship with Jesus that will determine our standing with God.

The choice is ours, salvation is a free gift given to us through Jesus Christ.  We are told to look to Jesus, believe in our hearts and confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord.  You are not excluded, Jesus died for you and now the invitation is open – will you come?

Read Full Post »

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.  In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.  The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” John 1: 1-5

The book of Genesis says that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  The earth was formless and void. (Genesis 1:1-2)  John is telling us in the above scripture that in the beginning was the word, Jesus was the Word, and Jesus was with God.  Here we are told about Jesus’ deity. 

So when God created the heavens and earth, He spoke the word and whatever He spoke came into being.  In Genesis 1:3 God said “Let there be light,” and there was light.  So this is what John meant when he said that all things came into being through Jesus because Jesus was the word.  God created life and in Jesus was life, and that is why we are told He is the life.  Our very life comes through Jesus because God spoke us into being and created us.

Jesus existed before all of creation.  He is the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.  Nothing apart from Jesus can come into existence, because all things exist through Him.  Heaven and earth will pass away but the Word will never pass away because Jesus is the Word.  He is eternal.

Read Full Post »

“Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.” Matthew 9:35-36

The spreading of the gospel is not just about preaching the word.  We should be meeting peoples’ needs as well.  As Jesus traveled from cities and villages proclaiming the gospel, He also healed the people of all their diseases.  When Jesus called the disciples and empowered them to go out, He also told them to go and heal the sick.

The gospel and healing go hand in hand as we see in this passage of scripture.  Not only did Jesus save people from their sin, He also healed their physical bodies.  It is God’s will that not only will our soul prosper but we will also prosper in all aspects of our lives.  Sickness and disease was not part of God’s plan and Jesus healed the people.  He did not distinguish the kinds of diseases and illnesses people had.  He healed them all.

As Christians we have been called to do the same.  It is by the power of the Holy Spirit that these healings took place.  We have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit and have the same power within us to go and heal the sick.  Let’s have the same compassion that Jesus had toward people, spread the gospel and heal people of every kind of disease and sickness.  With God all things are possible for those of us who believe.

Read Full Post »

“Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, ‘You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.’” Luke 3:21-22

Jesus demonstrated to us how to live here on earth.  Before Jesus began His ministry, He was baptized by John the Baptist who preceded Jesus.  John was calling people to repentance and baptizing them with water.  Now Jesus came and was baptized by John, but Jesus’ baptism symbolized the new baptism of the Spirit.  After Jesus was baptized in water, heaven opened up and the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus.  The Holy Spirit was the power by which Jesus was able to do His ministry.

As Christians we are called to continue the work of Jesus Christ.  This same Holy Spirit that descended upon Jesus is available for us to go out and do effective ministry.  Even the signs and wonders that followed Jesus (casting out of evil spirits, miraculous healings, raising the dead, etc.) will follow us because it is the Holy Spirit at work in us.  We do not rely upon our own strength or ability but God has given us the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Even Jesus did not rely upon His own ability to do the work He set out to do, He relied on the Holy Spirit.  So we can be confident that we will accomplish all that God has called us to because we have Jesus as our example and the Holy Spirit in us.

Read Full Post »

 “They went into Capernaum; and immediately on the Sabbath He [Jesus] entered the synagogue and began to teach.  They were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” Mark 1:21-22

Various religions and historians say that Jesus was a great teacher.  They liken Jesus to many other great minds from our time.  But in scripture Jesus did not simply teach, He spoke with authority.  This astonished many who had heard Jesus.  Many of the people knew Jesus was Joseph and Mary’s son they did not know or understand He was the Son of God. 

Jesus went throughout towns and villages teaching in the synagogues and spreading the news of the Kingdom of God.  He taught from the word and He taught in parables.  Jesus did not just recite the word, He spoke the word.  When Jesus spoke things happened.  Evil spirits were cast out, people were healed from sickness and disease, and people were saved from their sins. 

Jesus brought the word of God to life.  People were changed by His teaching, they got delivered and saved.  Even today people are delivered and saved by the teachings of Jesus.  We have been given the same authority that Jesus had while on earth to go out and teach the  good news of the gospel.

Read Full Post »

“Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.  Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.  For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:5-11

This passage is one of the best descriptions of Jesus Christ.  He is fully God, but laid aside His glory, humbled Himself and became a man.  He became a servant to us and came to this earth to serve us.  He walked with us and lived with us.  He demonstrated obedience by obeying the Father’s command and gave His life for us.  He died the most horrible death on the cross and shed His blood for us so that we might live forever with Him.

God the Father raised Jesus from the dead and exalted Him, and He is now the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.  Everyone in heaven, on earth and under the earth will bow their knee and will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

In essence, our God in heaven lowered Himself and took on our flesh.  The one who created us became like us and walked with us.  He then took our sin and He Himself died to fulfill His law in regards to sin – that blood must be shed for the atonement of sin.  He saved us from the curse of sin and death.  We now can take on God’s righteousness and be like Him and walk with Him because of what He did for us.  This is why Jesus is worthy of all glory and honor.  Let us PRAISE His Holy name. 

Let us now serve the ONE who served us.

Read Full Post »

“If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.”Romans 12:18

Many of us have people in our lives that make it difficult to be in a relationship.  We may have a boss we cannot stand, a co-worker we do not get along with, a crazy relative, or know someone who is just vindictive.  We are told in this scripture, if possible, to live at peace with all men.  This may seem impossible especially when you are dealing with someone who refuses to live at peace with you.

By the grace of God we can learn to live at peace with people.  It is something that cannot be achieved by our own merit but can be achieved by the power of the Holy Spirit.  We need to see people the way God sees them.  So next time you encounter a boss who makes your life difficult ask God for wisdom in how to remain at peace.  Treat that person the way you want to be treated.  They may not treat you in kind, but God will repay you.  God will give you the peace that surpasses all understanding.  Peace!

Read Full Post »

“In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  1 Thessalonians 5:18

Today, I bought my five year old son a pair of new pajamas.  When he came home from school, I showed him the pajamas and he was so excited.  For the rest of the day he kept talking about his new pajamas.  When he finally put on his new pajamas, he kept thanking me and telling me he liked his pajamas.  He did not ask me to buy pajamas; I got them because he needed them. 

Every good thing is from God.  We must learn to be thankful in everything.  It is very easy to look at what we do not have and complain.  Instead we must count our blessings and thank God for everything.  When we learn to recognize God in the details of our lives and develop a thankful heart, God will gladly give us good gifts.  It is God who supplies all of our needs and gives us the desires of our hearts.  So let us thank God in everything that He does for us.  Most of all let us thank God for loving us.

Read Full Post »

“But what does it say? ‘The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart’—that is, the word of faith in which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.” Romans 10:8-10

God so loved the world that He gave His only Son Jesus and whoever believes in Him will not die but will have eternal life. (John 3:16)  Jesus came to this earth and lived amongst us.  He died for our sins and was raised from the dead.  Paul teaches us that salvation comes by believing in our hearts that God raised Jesus from the dead and by confessing with our mouth Jesus is our Lord.

Salvation is for anyone.  It is not only for a select few.  Jesus died for all of us, all we have to do is believe and make the confession that Jesus is Lord.  Jesus is the Alpha and Omega (the beginning and the end).  He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.  There is nobody like Jesus.

Read Full Post »