Only Believe

Romans 10:9 "That if thou halt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus,and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead,thou shalt be saved".

The relationship with God that is of salvation is a matter of the heart, and here in this 10th chapter of Romans it is revealed how a man can be saved from sin and death and be made the righteousness of God. The righteousness and salvation of God is right before man,it lies within his heart and only need be confessed with his mouth.

The gospel demands that man only believes and confesses that Jesus has both died for his sins and have been raised from the dead, for him to have everlasting life with the Father.All that man desires,perfect peace, righteousness,and salvation, are found in mans mouth and in his heart.Man only needs to do three simple things to be saved from sin, death and hell, and enter into the rest of the Lord.Man must confess with his mouth the Lord Jesus.He must confess that Jesus Christ is the Lord from heaven,the only begotten of the Father.He must believe in his heart. Believe that God raised Jesus from the dead. He must believe that Jesus died for man,and was raised from death because he perfectly satisfied God's demand for justice.God was perfectly satisfied with Jesus dying for the sins of man,taking the sins of mankind,and his punishment upon His back, therefore God raised Him from the dead.Man must believe with the heart,and then confess with the mouth as you can't confess that which you don't believe.

When we believe with our hearts that Jesus is the Christ who accepted for all mankind the wage paid by sin,God takes that faith and counts it as righteousness.Then the man confesses Christ unto salvation, that is he is saved by openly confessing Christ,no man can deny Christ and be saved by Him.

Deceived

Judges 16:6 " And Delilah said to Samson,Tell me,I pray thee,wherein thy great strength lieth,and wherewith thou mightest be bound to afflict thee."

The enemy comes not but to steal, kill and destroy.We must realize that there is nothing good in the enemy.He is a liar and the father of them.Yet many of us get caught daily in the web that he has woven, to capture and destroy that which God has created.The enemy is not going to be in a red suit with horns on his head,often times he will look just like that we are seeking in through the lust of the flesh,the lust of our eyes and the pride of life.

In our story today the enemy came in the image of a beautiful woman.There is a reason God tells us be not unequally yoked.See Delilah was a deceiver. She pretended to be one thing in order to destroy that which God had created.See much like Eve in the garden,Delilah was pleasant to look at in Samson eye, and it was the lust of his eye, that lead to the lust of his flesh, which caused him to tell Delilah the secret of his heart.It is the deception of the enemy which causes us to surrender to him our hearts and hinder our relationship with God.Samson kept toying with her when he should have left her presence.Many of us are playing footsie with the enemy when we should leave him alone.

Satan is real,and as we see in our story after Delilah deceived Samson, she went on to destroy his life. He had to repent and return to God.Satan has deceived many and went on to destroy their lives.the only way back is to repent and turn back to God to be saved.

Hurry Up And Wait

1 Thessalonians 5:8 "But Let us,who are of the day,be sober,putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet the hope of Salvation".



None of us know when this will occur, but Jesus is coming back.Jesus Himself said," No one knows except the Father". Like a thief coming in the night or a woman who goes into labor,we have no idea when these events will occur.So what shall we do in the meantime? Live in expectancy of Jesus' return. Live out your days in His light,not in the darkness.Jesus reminded believers to remember Noah.The people were partying, drinking, paying no attention to the message Noah was preaching,and all out side the Ark when the floods came perished. Paul warns us "Don't be like others,sleeping and getting drunk, having no awareness of  what's going on around you.Put on faith,love and the hope of salvation". The point is, Jesus is coming back.Unbelievers laugh and mock,"where is this Jesus" (some believers live as though they don't believe he is coming back).Believers can lose faith and become discouraged,so Paul tells us to encourage one another and build each other up.

Paul instructed the Thessalonians to arm themselves with three virtues:faith and love as a breastplate, followed by the hope of salvation as a helmet. A Roman soldier's breastplate protected his vital organs from neck to waist.In spiritual warfare,it protects the heart from Satan's attacks as the helmet of salvation protects the mind,reminding us that we are saved,thus children of the light.

The idea of faith ,hope, and love being armor may sound strange to us.Armor is a military image and faith ,hope, and love are not exactly military motto. See these three virtues protect us from the root of most of our sin:selfishness.In selfishness,we think about what we want and how we can get more of what we want and control situations. But to welcome faith ,hope, and love in our lives(with the help of the Holy Spirit) is to move away from selfish craving,clutching,and fussing over things.Instead of trying to control situations, we choose to trust God, thus having faith he will work it out.Instead of being cynical about ourselves and our life, we choose to pray in times of trials and tribulations, holding on to the hope that lies within God and his word.Instead of putting ourselves first, we choose to do what is best for another,like Christ when His love for us put our needs above His own.

Let us live in the faith that Jesus has all power, the hope of our salvation and having love one for another the way Christ loved us.

Perfected In Weakness

2 Corinthians 12:9a"And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee:For My strength is made perfect in weakness."

There were things that tested Paul's faith in the Lord.See Paul had a thorn in his flesh,and he asked the Lord to remove it from him.Saints God could have removed the flesh and the lust there of from us, our thorn, but he said his grace is sufficient. In times of temptation we need to trust and rely on God's grace to carry us through.As we believers grow older, we often experience different life pressures.Satan would like nothing more than for us to abandon ship,and turn from God when we become discourage in times of difficulty,but Christ and the Holy Spirit provide grace appropriate for each season of life.saints we must realize that Jesus is the power of God....

To the Christian teenager, things seen in the media or on social networking web site may be more appealing to them, than the stuff written in the bible or talked about in church.Young parents may face financial pressures due to a lost job or needs of a handicapped child.Middle-aged Christians may suddenly find a spouse unattractive or a job boring.The temptation is to abandon family responsibilities as the grass begins to look greener elsewhere,and divorce is no longer an unacceptable option.Senior men and women may feel neglected by children who are busy pursuing their owe lives.Increasing physical limitations may restrict activities they once enjoyed and even at church,seniors may feel replaced by younger people and no longer needed.No matter what the stage,God gives grace to help us stand firm.When we are at our weakest, that is when God is at his best.God's grace is strong enough to help the christian hold firm in every season of life.

Like Paul we must pray that God will encourage our hearts,both in trials and in our Christian walk,to give us steadfastness and stability in our witness to, and our defense of the Gospel,both in word and deed.When we find ourselves feeling discouraged and weak,we should not forget that God is able to supply us with what we need to get moving again.His resources are more than abundant enough to meet our needs,and he is eager for us to come to him for help.

The Lord Is Speaking In Your Heart

Deut.13:18 "When thou shalt harken to the voice of the Lord thy God,to keep all his commandments which I command thee this day,to do that which is right in the eyes of the Lord thy God".

We live in a sophisticated age where technology rules.This high-tech living causes us to hear many voices,radio "shock jocks",television talk show host, and outrageous sitcoms that offer everything but comedy. We are inundated with noise.Yet ,in spite of all that we hear,there are really only two voices to be heard.The voice of the almighty God, and the voice of the enemy,Satan.The bible is full of many who listened to the wrong voices,The Hebrews in the wilderness, Jonah, Abraham, Rebekah,   Job, Hannah, and a host of others at one time found themselves listening to the voice of lack and limitations, but they soon heard the voice of God and did what was right.

Both voices come from different forms,through any type of medium.The voice of God may direct you to do that which seems least desirable,while the lure of Satan seems to call us to paradise. Many of us have muddled our lives because we have not listened to the right voice.We must remember the devil is a liar,he is incapable of telling the truth.Jesus is our shepherd,he is our provider, he leads us along on this journey,he will take care of us and our every need.Every person is free to listen to what ever voice he/she wishes, but when we confessed to be Christians, we no longer belong to ourselves,and once you've chosen there is no turning back,and being His sheep we must hear His voice and obey it. His voice the right voice, tells us that we are to seek out that which serves others as well as our self. It tells us to put the needs of others before our own.It tells us to love in spite of.It tells us to be Christ like even when all others have fallen away.It tells us to follow Jesus even when the road seems to rough to travel.

If we listen to the wrong voices, we will be full of fear and worry about doing God's will.The wrong voices fills our head with negative, limited thinking.From the wrong voices we get the what if's, these are the voices that get us in trouble.The truth is God will take care of us.When we obey the voice of God, he will never bring us to a place and leave us alone.

MY Salvation

Psalm 37:39 "But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord: he is their strength in the time of trouble".

 Salvation is a big deal and describes the whole life of the true believer.They feel the need of being saved from self, sin, Satan and the world.They trust in God for preservation,and the end there of is eternal rest and peace in the bosom of the Father.The prosperous sinner is on another track, and comes to another conclusion: he disowns all need of salvation,and considers his success to be of his own winning. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; the end of the wicked shall be cut off.God is not with the unrighteous; they have neither safety,nor strength,nor salvation in their time of trouble.

The salvation of the righteous is of the Lord,he is in the planning of it; the providing of it; the beginning of it; the carrying on of it, and the completion of it.The believer realizes that it is not about anything he has done,but purely out of the love of God.The inward conflicts of the believer makes him know that God alone must work salvation,for we are to fickle to save ourselves.The outward temptations drive us to the fact that only God can keep us.The world's hate teaches us that greater is he that is in us, than he that is in the world.Our daily trials would crush and destroy us if it wasn't for the strength of the Lord, made perfect in our weakness.This truth that unto the Lord belongs the salvation of His saints,leads us to trust in him; excites us into believing prayer to him,and a total dependency upon Him. 

All eyes turn on Jesus with looks of love;gratitude glows in every bosom,and swells in every song;now with golden harps they sound his praise;and now descending from their thrones to do him homage,they cast their crowns in one glittering heap at the feet which were nailed on Carvary. Here we learn in whose name to seek salvation,and through whose merits to hope for it;for salvation of the righteous belongs to the Lord Jesus,to him be the glory.

Slipping Into Darkness

2 Corinthians 4:4"In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not,lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ,who is the image of God should shine unto them".

At one time we all were none believers, trapped in darkness blinded by the god of this world.The bible represents Satan as the master manipulator of human nature.Our weakness combined with the devil's influence has led the whole world into sin.Because of Satan's deceptions and the sinful tendencies of human nature, all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We must understand, however, that the devil cannot force us to sin,he simply influences us through our fleshly weaknesses.

Our selfish, fleshly desires often get us into trouble.The lust of the flesh,the desires of the flesh which calls us out side the will of God.Second, our natural deviousness, including self- deception, is a major weakness of the fleshly mind.We naturally look for ways to  justify our lust,our sinful desires,and the behaviors that arise from them.We deceive ourselves into believing that, since our desires are natural,they are not so bad after all.But God's word reminds us that"there is a way that seems right to a man,but its end is the way of death".Third, we have a natural tendency to resent having our fleshly desires limited by rules, even God's rules.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.

The mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God and blinded to the light of his truth,and love by the deception of the god of this world.One locked in darkness find it hard to see.Those that are in the flesh cannot please God.These and other fleshly weaknesses are what we call human nature.Satan takes advantage of our weak and greedy nature by persuading us to rely even more on our emotions,needs and wants than we normally would.But we play our part.Without the positive influence of God's Spirit, we are simply not naturally inclined to live according to God's instructions.If you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.Once was blind but now we see,thanks to Jesus the light of the world...............

Perfected!!!

Romans 8:1 " There is therefore no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit".

Here we have one of the most important passages in all of Scripture. The power of God's spirit in the life of the believer. If we are in need of anything, it is the power of God's Spirit. What can be greater for any who has been called into this Holy life than to have the Holy Spirit of God in our life to lead, guide, and direct our path, keeping us from falling along the way.

In the seventh chapter Paul explained how when he wanted to do good evil was always present, and here he gives us the secret to walking worthy of the name by which we are called. Since Christ has come the true born again believer in Christ are not condemned, as there is no condemnation to those that are in Christ. What does it mean to be in Christ? It means that a person's faith in Christ places him in Christ. We walk and live in Christ day by day. Our union is with and in Christ. It is a life of total surrender. It means we do not walk after the flesh , but after the spirit.

Our freedom in Christ frees us from the pull of the lust will and desires of the old man, the flesh man which we profess died with Christ in baptism, that our new Spirit man rose with Him now abiding in Him that His Spirit might abide in us. Being in Christ is just putting our all and our everything in the hands of Christ, that we now live by faith in Jesus Christ who laid down His life that we might have life.

Holy Dressed

Ephesians 4:24 "And that ye put on the new man,which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness".

Saints at our best we are still a filthy rag,but thanks be to God we don't have to stay that way.Through the blood of Jesus we can now shed the ways of the old man, and be born a new,become another, someone totally different from the first. God very much wants us to become converted,to be one of his converts.He wants us not only to learn, but practice His ways of life,to become sincerely and thoroughly committed to it.He promises us His help if we willingly follow His instructions.Through His spirit He will empower us to "put on the new man which is created according to God,in true righteousness and holiness". His purpose is to change us to convert us from the inside,from the heart.Remember God is the only source of righteous character.

In the bible we find details of God's resolve to save us from the spiritual malaise that has plagued us throughout history.It explains the source of our behavioral and spiritual problems.It shows the difference between God's divine nature and our human nature,and describes His plan to change our basic attitudes and responses to life's everyday situations.It reveals God's commitment expressed in His exceedingly great and precious promises to make us partakers of the divine nature. Our thoughts and emotions are directly linked to our fleshly impulses and desires.We are born with them.But we are born with neither the knowledge nor the power to properly manage them.Our natural impulse and desires are often affected and even manipulated by external pressures.( often situations and circumstances dictate the actions and attitude we display).

Saints only our creator can give us the power to rightly manage our thoughts and attitudes and resist the temptations that bombard us daily and sometimes every hour on the hour.Therefore the process requires the direct and active intervention of God.First He calls us by opening our minds to understand the scriptures.Then He begins turning our lives around if we willingly respond to His calling and cooperate with Him.Our commitment to change causes us to be converted,to turn to God with our whole life.Well what separates us from God? Our sins and iniquities have hidden his face from us,so that he will not hear(Isaiah 59:1). To receive the blessings and other help from God, we must turn to him,we must turn away from Satan's ways, the ways of the old man,by turning to God's ways, the ways of the new man.Each of us MUST accept and respond to God's terms and conditions for the forgiveness of sin. We must be committed , converted and changed from the old and and his ways to the new man and the ways of God...........

Holding On To Hope

1 Thessalonians 5:8 "But Let us,who are of the day,be sober,putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet the hope of Salvation".



None of us know when this will occur, but Jesus is coming back.Jesus Himself said," No one knows except the Father". Like a thief coming in the night or a woman who goes into labor,we have no idea when these events will occur.So what shall we do in the meantime? Live in expectancy of Jesus' return. Live out your days in His light,not in the darkness.Jesus reminded believers to remember Noah.The people were partying, drinking, paying no attention to the message Noah was preaching,and all out side the Ark when the floods came perished. Paul warns us "Don't be like others,sleeping and getting drunk, having no awareness of  what's going on around you.Put on faith,love and the hope of salvation". The point is, Jesus is coming back.Unbelievers laugh and mock,"where is this Jesus" (some believers live as though they don't believe he is coming back).Believers can lose faith and become discouraged,so Paul tells us to encourage one another and build each other up.

Paul instructed the Thessalonians to arm themselves with three virtues:faith and love as a breastplate, followed by the hope of salvation as a helmet. A Roman soldier's breastplate protected his vital organs from neck to waist.In spiritual warfare,it protects the heart from Satan's attacks as the helmet of salvation protects the mind,reminding us that we are saved,thus children of the light.

The idea of faith ,hope, and love being armor may sound strange to us.Armor is a military image and faith ,hope, and love are not exactly military motto's. See these three virtues protect us from the root of most of our sin:selfishness.In selfishness,we think about what we want and how we can get more of what we want and control situations. But to welcome faith ,hope, and love in our lives(with the help of the Holy Spirit) is to move away from selfish craving,clutching,and fussing over things.Instead of trying to control situations, we choose to trust God, thus having faith he will work it out.Instead of being cynical about ourselves and our life, we choose to pray in times of trials and tribulations, holding on to the hope that lies within God and his word.Instead of putting ourselves first, we choose to do what is best for another,like Christ when His love for us put our needs above His own.

Let us live in the faith that Jesus has all power, the hope of our salvation and having love one for another the way Christ loved us.

I'm Going To Let Him Shine

2 Corinthians 4:5 " for we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake".


It is evident in everything around us that the world is becoming more unstable, threatening, dangerous, and immoral. Scripture speaks of the trials we believer will go through, which are designed to purge and perfect us. It is through our affliction and persecution that God is working in us for an eternal purpose. What ever we suffer as part of the body of Christ, is part of our transformation into His glorious image by the work of His holy spirit.

Satan is at work against us, and will do whatever he can to prevent the light of the Gospel from illuminating  the minds and hearts of the unbeliever. But that should not keep us from letting our light shine. The darker the world become the brighter our lights should shine, so that all in darkness can see the way to deliverance. Our light shines brightest when we share the truth, that salvation is found only in Jesus Christ. When we lift up Jesus Christ, the light of the world, then we can conquer the darkness with His light. We must realize it is not about us, who we are, or if we are saved or not, this is solely about the one who saves, Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

We are just unworthy vessels, chosen to carry such a precious message, that all the world needs to hear. We are not the light, we are just a clay house that holds the light, that all traveling through this vast dark wilderness can find the way. Let us put His light on display that all can see the glory of the Lord and be saved.

Surgical Instrument

Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is quick, and powerful,and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and the joints and morrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart:"

   The word of God is a name for Christ. It is the essential word that in the beginning was with God and was God.But it is also the scriptures, the written word of God, but the Lord Jesus is never separated from them.He indeed is the substance of the written word. Scripture is what it is because Jesus himself embodies himself in them.(He comes in the vol. of the book).So we have the word of God,which is the power of God and the sword of God.It is the sword of peace and rest, and also a sword of salvation and judgment. It is the instrumnet by which we are set free from the bondage of sin and death, but by this same instrument the world will be judged and condemed.  It is the truth which makes us free,yet because of unbelief all are not free, many wonder aimlessly in a vast wilderness, a prisoner of our own doubt not trusting or believing God's word.Many right now are wondering, lost in the wilderness of worry,because of unbelief,some are lost in a wilderness of dispear and depression, trapped by the cares of this world all because of unbelief.(Jesus said he overcame the world).

 See, the enemy takes our doubt, adds in deception,and with a little lie holds us captive in his kingdom of unbelief. But the word of God , which is our power, will not only cut down satans kingdom, but will set up the kingdom of Christ on the ruins of it.We have Gods word to fight the battle of truth, to destroy sin by piercing the heart and conscience of sinful man, destroying unbelief, as it arouses and awakens the conscience, convicts the heart and converts the soul. His word judges our thoughts,works,actions and everything about us,that we might experience his peace and enter his everlasting rest and salvation.The help we have from the Lord is his word, our sword,and power, but we must first reverence the word truly as spoken by God. Then his word is quick,and quicking it is life and it creates life wherever it comes. It is a living and incorruptable seed which can never be destroyed. It is powerful;it powerfully convicts,converts,comforts and  It pulls down strong holds.It has the power to raise us to great heights of holiness and happiness. His word is sharpe, it cuts all over, it cuts and wounds all who touch it; it kills self righteousness,sin and unbelief cutting going out and comming in.It cuts deep removing sinful habits away from the soul, that have become the nature of sinful man.It cuts ignorance from understanding,rebillion from the will, and hostility from the mind.It's piercing, forcing its way into the heart of man thru the smallest of opening even the dividing soul and spirit. Precision cuts, dividing the joints and marrow without damaging the bone. This word will cut the lust from the flesh, and like a lazor will remove the lust from the eye.

 This word is revealing, a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart, revealing even the most secret thoughts and design. This word will turn a sinner inside out, and let him see all that is in his heart, turning a sinner into a saint. The word of God,our power,our sword. Jesus Christ,the power of God unto salvation

Holy Birth

Ephesians 4:24 "And that ye put on the new man,which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness".

At our best we are still a filthy rag,but thanks be to God we don't have to stay that way.Through the blood of Jesus we can now shed the ways of the old man, and be born a new,become another, someone totally different from the first. God very much wants us to become converted,to be one of his converts.He wants us not only to learn, but practice His ways of life,to become sincerely and thoroughly committed to it.He promises us His help if we willingly follow His instructions.Through His spirit He will empower us to "put on the new man which is created according to God,in true righteousness and holiness". His purpose is to change us to convert us from the inside,from the heart.Remember God is the only source of righteous character.

In the bible we find details of God's resolve to save us from the spiritual malaise that has plagued us throughout history.It explains the source of our behavioral and spiritual problems.It shows the difference between God's divine nature and our human nature,and describes His plan to change our basic attitudes and responses to life's everyday situations.It reveals God's commitment expressed in His exceedingly great and precious promises to make us partakers of the divine nature. Our thoughts and emotions are directly linked to our fleshly impulses and desires.We are born with them.But we are born with neither the knowledge nor the power to properly manage them.Our natural impulse and desires are often affected and even manipulated by external pressures.( often situations and circumstances dictate the actions and attitude we display).

Only our creator can give us the power to rightly manage our thoughts and attitudes and resist the temptations that bombard us daily and sometimes every hour on the hour.Therefore the process requires the direct and active intervention of God.First He calls us by opening our minds to understand the scriptures.Then He begins turning our lives around if we willingly respond to His calling and cooperate with Him.Our commitment to change causes us to be converted,to turn to God with our whole life.Well what separates us from God? Our sins and iniquities have hidden his face from us,so that he will not hear(Isaiah 59:1). To receive the blessings and other help from God, we must turn to him,we must turn away from Satan's ways, the ways of the old man,by turning to God's ways, the ways of the new man.Each of us MUST accept and respond to God's terms and conditions for the forgiveness of sin. We must be committed , converted and changed from the old and and his ways to the new man and the ways of God...........

Children Of The Light

1Thessalonians 5:8 "But Let us,who are of the day,be sober,putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet the hope of Salvation".



None of us know when this will occur, but Jesus is coming back.Jesus Himself said," No one knows except the Father". Like a thief coming in the night or a woman who goes into labor,we have no idea when these events will occur.So what shall we do in the meantime? Live in expectancy of Jesus' return. Live out your days in His light,not in the darkness.Jesus reminded believers to remember Noah.The people were partying, drinking, paying no attention to the message Noah was preaching,and all out side the Ark when the floods came perished. Paul warns us "Don't be like others,sleeping and getting drunk, having no awareness of  what's going on around you.Put on faith,love and the hope of salvation". The point is, Jesus is coming back.Unbelievers laugh and mock,"where is this Jesus" (some believers live as though they don't believe he is coming back).Believers can lose faith and become discouraged,so Paul tells us to encourage one another and build each other up.

Paul instructed the Thessalonians to arm themselves with three virtues:faith and love as a breastplate, followed by the hope of salvation as a helmet. A Roman solder's breastplate protected his vital organs from neck to waist.In spiritual warfare,it protects the heart from Satan's attacks as the helmet of salvation protects the mind,reminding us that we are saved,thus children of the light.

The idea of faith ,hope, and love being armor may sound strange to us.Armor is a military image and faith ,hope, and love are not exactly military motto. See these three virtues protect us from the root of most of our sin:selfishness.In selfishness,we think about what we want and how we can get more of what we want and control situations. But to welcome faith ,hope, and love in our lives(with the help of the Holy Spirit) is to move away from selfish craving,clutching,and fussing over things.Instead of trying to control situations, we choose to trust God, thus having faith he will work it out.Instead of being cynical about ourselves and our life, we choose to pray in times of trials and tribulations, holding on to the hope that lies within God and his word.Instead of putting ourselves first, we choose to do what is best for another,like Christ when His love for us put our needs above His own.

Let us live in the faith that Jesus has all power, the hope of our salvation and having love one for another the way Christ loved us.