Determined!

Daniel 1:8a " But Daniel proposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat nor with the wine which he drank:"

There are many who started this journey on fire for the Lord,only to find themselves in a position of compromise.In an effort to fit in,to be politically correct,or for prestige,prosperity and/or power they have given into the temptaions,will and desires of this world.They have compromised their message, their walk and what they once believed in favor of the joys,toys,treasure and false pleasures of this world.They have eaten of the kings meat and drank of his wine.

In our story today,we see 4 who refuse to compromise,they refuse to eat the Kings meat or to drink his wine.We who profess Christ have to be careful that we don't swallow that which the world tries to feed us.We must continue to feed on the truth of God's word,and walk in His spirit,even if it means to stand alone.We can't succome to the doctrine or spirit of this world and continue to profess to be a child of God.The world is enemy to the ways of God.The world's food allows us to live anykind of way that we want.It say" it's your thing do what you want to do", the world is about "me ,myself and I".The world is selfish,selfrighteous,and self serving.The worlds spirit is one of greed and is uncaring. But we who profess to be children of God, must esteem others higher than ourself,willing to lay down our life for a friend.We must bless others with that which God blesses us with, and live in a way that leads a lost world to believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

In these times of the self claimed,self named and the self fame,religion,ministries and church houses there is much compromise.Our religious practices has gotten further and further from the word of  God We have allowed the world to dictate what a Christian is and what type of behavior is acceptable to God.The bible says"Jesus Christ the same yesterday,today and forever" which tells me God's word  has not and will not change. Let us live a determined life in Christ. 

To Be Like Christ

1John 3:2 "It doth not yet appear what we shall be:but we know that when he shall appear,we shall be like him,for we shall see him as he is".

The present condition of the believer,not looking at its imperfection,is a state of much joy and honor.Looked at in the light of faith it is inspiring,for "now we are the sons of God". We are near to God's heart as his children.We nestle under the wings of God for protection.We abide in his tabernacle for communion.We feed in his pasture for our provisions. With all this,our earthly existence is not a life which we would desire to be have forever.It is as a pilgrims journey,a sailors voyage,a soldiers warfare; and we look forward to its end with joyful expectation,to be like Jesus.

"It doth not yet appear what we shall be",as we are veiled and we travel through this world incognito. Our master was not known here,His glory veiled in flesh,His diety was concealed in infirmity,His power hidden under sorrow and weakness,and his richness burried under poverty and shame.The world knew him not,for he was made flesh. "But we know that when he shall appear". We speak of our Lord appearence without doubt,for we know.Our faith is so sure it becomes knowledge.He will appear surely,and so we speak of it as a date for our own manifesting."when he shall appear".Oh the hope,the glory,the bliss, the fullness of delight which surrounds this great appearing.We shall be like him,having  a body like his body,sinless,incorruptable,painless, and spiritual.Having a soul like his soul, Holy, perfect, instructed ,developed strengthened,delievered from temptation,conflict and suffering.We must be made something like him now,or else we shall not be found like him at his appearing,see we must be born again to see this change.

"We shall see him as he is".This glorious sight will perfect our likeness,this will be the evidence of our being like him as only the pure in heart can see God.God showed power in making us creatures but love in making us sons.Behold what glories come out of our being sons of God!Let us not rest till by faith in Jesus we receive power to become sons of God,and then let us go on to enjoy the privileges of sonship.

Will You Rob God?

Malachi 3:8 "Will a man rob God? yet ye have robbed me.But ye say, wherein have we robbed thee?In tithes and offerings."

The word of God tells us to render unto Ceasar that which is Ceasar's and unto God that which is God's and we tend to rob God of that which is His.Now we render to Ceasar his do, you know we go to work we pay our bills,we provide for all of the earthy needs,which is good,but in doing so we tend to rob God of His due,stealing His glory and deprive Him of that which He has bought and paid for.

In this tight economy we sometimes feel we don't make enough or have enough to pay our tithes, or give an offering.Well when you don't have enough to pay your tithes that when you should pay your tithes. God can do more with your little bit than you can with a whole lot.Your tithes is just that which you owe Him, many rob Him with our offerings.to We pay our tithes at the liquor store, shoe store,clothing store,and the mall while we give our offering at the casinos,to the bill collectors,and give God what ever is left.God don't need our money, the earth is the Lord and the fullness there of.We not only rob Him of our monatary offerings,but we don't even offer Him our whole life.He died for us yet we give Ceasar the life which truly belong God.All that we have comes from God yet many times we don't even say thank you to Him thus even stealing the glory that is due Him.

Let us give God the first and the best of our fruits.Give Him the first two hours and forty minutes of everyday and feel the glory of the Lord as He directs your paths and fills you with the joy of His salvation.Offer Him your total heart and watch Him work miracles in you and through you.Give Him the first tenth of your earnings and watch Him open the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing you can't hold.Trust in God, don't rob Him out of fear from this world,after all He told us be of good cheer for He has overcome this world.You can't beat God giving,and I dare you to try...... 

Loving Inspite Of

Matthew 5:44 "But I say unto you,Love your enemies,bless them that curse you,do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you,and persecute you;"

The people of Jesus' day understood loving their neighbors,but they did not understand loving their enemies.To them it was alright to hate the enemies,but Jesus taught just the opposite.If someone is being mistreated,how can the hurting party show love?First of all,the love spoken of here is not ordinary fleshly love,but agape love,the unconditional love that defines who God is.Once a person receives and understands that kind of Love,it over flows into a endless love for others.

Jesus gave practical ways  to love the enemy,He said to bless them,pray for them and do them good.The Gospel in a word is Love.Unbelievers may turn their backs on what we say about Christ,but it's hard to resist the love of Christ.This Love is why Christ was willing to die to save us.His motive had nothing to do with the character of the people he died for.Isreal's worthless shepherds,her religious leaders,had successfully bargined with the Roman authorities for Christ death.A mob rejected Him,asking that they release to them a murder in Barabas.He was betrayed by His own for money,abandoned by others and even denied by one close to Him.Jesus was sworn at, spit upon,and made fun of.He was so badly beaten before He was finally nailed to the cross that he was almost unrecognizable.Yet he said "forgive them Father for they know not what they do".Paul explained the endless love of God this way;"When we were still powerless,Christ died for the ungodly."But God demonstarted his love for us in this:That While we were yet sinners,Christ died for Us."

Let us who profess to be like Christ display the same endless love to other that Christ shared with us. Let us now show the world what Christ looks like ,by allowing the world to see Christ through our lives.Got Jesus? Prove it , let me see him in your life...

He Loved Me

Romans 5:8 "But God commendeth His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners,Christ died for us".

Here we have God's unbelievable love and the great depth of Justification.This passage also gives one of the clearest definitions of God's love,agape love.It actuall shows the meaning of agape love.It is a new kind of love a love unknown to mankind.It is a godly love,a sacrificial love,a love that gives itself for those without strength,for the ungodly,for sinners,and for the enemies of God.It's God's unbelievable love.

God's great love is seen in this unbelievable act.We were without strength; we were weak,worthless, useless, helpless,hopeless,destitute,powerless, we were spiritually unable to help ourselves.We were ungodly,not like God,different from God,profane,having a different lifestyle than God.We were on our way to Hell in a hurry, and in due time, in God's time, He sent His Son to die for us.See mankind had to be prepared for Christ before God could send Him into the world.We had to know that we were sinners in need of salvation.Even now we must come to the realization that we are lost before we will began to look to be saved.Christ died for us,for our benifit, because of our sins.Christ didn't died for those who  were righteous or holy,but God commended His love toward us that while we were yet sinner, still in sin, enemies to God, Christ died for us. 

It is impossible for the carnal mind to fully comprehend all that God did for man that man might be reconciled back to his loving creator.So Jesus told us to only believe.Let us take God at His word and accept on faith this unbelievable love He has given us.Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

Salvation Is In The Blood

Zecharich 9:11-12 "As for thee also,by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoner out of the pitwherein is no water.Turn you to the strong hold,ye prisoners of hope:even today do I declare that I will render double unto thee".

Here we behold a description of our Savior,we see his Kingdom,his character,his power to save,his lowliness,  and the weapons of his conquest.Because of Him and through Him there is mercy for the oppressed and troubled ones in Zion.This is a wonderful text for all those who are in the lowest possible state of mind.Those prisoners bound in servatude,freedom gone,trapped in the power of another, where escape seems impossible,the darkness intolerable and your fate seems unavoidable.You are comfortless feeling like you are dying of thirst,for there is no comfort in sin.The many oppressed souls helpless in the power of despair until the Lord comes and rescues them.

He has an all seeing eye, He alone has the power to set you free from the bondage you feel.He is the light the shines in the darkess hours of our lives,he saves us by the blood,the blood of the covenant made between Zion and her King.True redemption is in the blood.All the temporal, spiritual, and eternal deliverances which we enjoy, they swim to us through the blood of that covenant that is passed between the Father and the Son.By virtue of the same blood of the covenant,the shed blood of Christ, we are reconciled,justified and saved.We who were in the dungeons of life,trapped in the despair of darkness, thirsting for the freedoms which evade us, while being bound by the ones which inslaves us, were all set free by the blood of the Christ.

Look as all the choice mercies, the high favors, the noble blessings that we enjoy and lay claim to,they are all purchased by the blood of Christ.What ever desperate situations, or dangers,we the children of God may find ourselves falling into,we can hold on to the fact that we are prisoners of hope,and should look forward to delieverance,because it is all in the blood of the lamb.Jesus died on the cross and rose on the third day with all power that we might be made the righteousness of God,if we only believe.

He Is Risen;Now What

Luke 24:47-48 "And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations,beginning at Jerusalem.And ye are witnesses of these things.

We are witnesses to the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.We believe that He was born of a virgin, suffered bled and died on an old rugged cross, and rose the third day morning with all power in His hands.We know He must suffer all that He went through for the sins of the world,that we might have a right to the tree of life.Now we must go share all that we believe.

Jesus said we were chosen that we might bear fruit and fruit that will last,but it is only the truth that man can be saved.We must stand on the truth of the gospel, man is lost,destined for a life of Hell and damnation unless he comes to the truth that in Jesus, and Jesus alone lies salvation.We must love one another enough to be willing to tell the truth and not be so concerned about hurting feeling as much as winning souls.The enemy will tell us things like don't judge each other,or you think you are better than him. But the truth is if you are going the wrong way, you are not being judged if someone points you in the right direction.It is our love for one another that causes us to care enough to correct,rebuke, reproof and instruct each other with the word of God.Rather you are told or not the un-righteous will not inherit the kingdom of God,that is the truth of the gospel.

Jesus said repentence and the remission of sins must be preached to every creature in His name. Let us be obedient and proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ in word and in deed that all in darkness may come to know the Saviour of the world.Let us through our walk and our talk proclaim that He truly has risen with all power in heaven and in earth.Let us show that He lives for He lives in us.