"You Shall Worship The Lord Your God and Him Only Shall You Serve"

Today, was an incredible day, that the Lord Jesus taught me an incredible lesson.  I pray that I keep this constantly in mind.  So what is that lesson you ask?  Well, before I answer that question let me ask you one.  Do you like being controlled by another person?  Do you like to be told what you can and cannot do?  Sometimes humans can be very domineering, when they shouldn't be and get out of line, trying to "direct" and control the life of another person.  Before I go on in this description of my understanding of being controlled, I would like to admit that I have played both parts.  Sometimes, I do it because I want something so bad for the other person, and end up stepping across the line.  God, however, did not intend for this sort of thing.  I can remember one time, giving a friend bad advice, and then trying to manipulate him into listening to me.  Unfortunately, I "persuaded" this person to take my advice, and in the process, caused them much grief.  We were not meant to be people's slaves.  Take a look at the Book of Exodus, and it becomes clear that we were not meant to be forced to serve people.  Now, notice, I am not talking about service from a willing heart and choice, but rather, I'm talking about "forced" service.  Each person has to make a choice on what he or she is going to decide, and that choice needs to be their own! 

There are many different directions that I could go from here, but I want to focus on a direction that God has impressed me on, and that is the area of sin.  Do we actually serve sin?  Well, let's notice what the Lord Jesus has to say about this in John 8:33-36, so let's take a brief sound bite here from Scripture, and then we will look at the surrounding area, and unpack things, piece by piece. 

Starting with verse 33:

 33 They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? 34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. 35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: [but] the Son abideth ever. 36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

So just upon reading this, we can learn a lot about the situation, but some obvious questions come up in verse 33.  Who is the "they" being talked about in verse 33?  Whoever they are, they are claiming that they are free. 

How many times, I find myself doing the same thing.  I think, that because I have been with Jesus for a little bit that I am safe, and start to make myself the person in charge of keeping me out of bondage, but the result of this is never good.  My own power, pedigree, or whatever you want to call it can never set me free!  Never.  At this point you may be thinking: "Where is this going"?  I understand that, so let me back up.  Freedom is not something you are born with.  Even though this sounds odd in the Great USA, where we have outward freedoms. 

According to Jesus, Freedom is a gift.  A beautiful gift, that is given to us at the cost of His Life.  Only Jesus has the power to set us truly free from sin.  Notice Jesus Words here in verse 34:

Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. 35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: [but] the Son abideth ever. 

Have you ever sinned before?  Have you recently sinned?  Unfortunately, I must shamedly raise my hand here, because I am not proud to admit it, but I am a horrible sinner.  I must agree with Paul who says that he is the chief of sinners.  So continuing on with the verse, what Pedigree do I have?  I am born a servant to sin.  Sin is a very powerful master, and orders me around.  My flesh responds and does what it is told.  I'm in pretty bad shape on my own.  

Now we are back to control.  So in the past I have been controlled by sin, and again, I want to re-iterate that you are reading the blog post of a live sinner.  

So at this point, if this was about me, this would be a pretty miserable story, but I am happy to say that this is not the case. 

Last night I was discouraged, because of failures in my life.  I knew I was nothing like Jesus, and so I began to get discouraged.  In the morning, I barely had the energy to open the Bible and read a chapter with my wife and children.  After worship and breakfast, I headed out the door.  As soon as I got outside the cold air greeted me.  Getting to my car, I had a heavy burden on my heart: "I had blown it, and I knew it.  I had hurt God, and now He was probably miles away, after all, I didn't feel His Presence".  As I drove to work, I couldn't listen to any music, because the radio was broken out of the car.  In my mind a real war raged my thoughts went something like this:  

"So, you failed last night.  You seem to be doing that a lot lately.  Do you actually ever think you are going to get better?  Why don't you just give in and give up?"  At this point I was very discouraged, but continued driving to work.  The temptation to give up was so strong, that I actually heard my sins replaying themselves in my mind.  Then, all of the sudden, something incredible happened.  The day before I listened and watched the Resurrection Scene of Jesus, and I was encouraged by the song.  The Song was entitled "Arise My Love". (I will post a link at the bottom of this post so you can see and hear what I heard).  

The voices of failure that were screaming in my ear were suddenly drowned out very definitely by this Song.  "Arise my love, Arise, my Love, the Grave no longer has a hold on You!  No more death's sting, no more suffering", and then I heard it:  "Sin, where is shackles, death, where is your sting, hell has been defeated, the grave no longer holds the King!" As I heard those Words, immediately, it was like a lightening bolt of protection, blew every negative thought in my mind to smithereens.  My discouragements were vanquished.  Later that day while at work, I realized that I couldn't make myself better, and asked Jesus to!  I need to do this more often, and stop trying to make myself better.

This brings us full circle to Jesus very Own Words:   

35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: [but] the Son abideth ever. 36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

Who can make us free?  The Son, and He abideth ever.  Notice what Jesus says about the servant. The servant does not abide in the house forever, but the Son abideth ever!!!!  The next part is the clincher:    36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

At this point, I don't care how strong I think my connection with God is, I need Him every second, and this verse needs to be constantly put into my head.  

Only Jesus can make us free!  

He has conquered, but you and I have a choice, we can choose to ask Him to do this for us, or we can try and live on our pedigree of how good we think we are!  I need Jesus and I need Him right now!

So how about you?  Do you need Him?  He's the only True Way out of this sin trap that we are in.  Let us accept His Free Gift of Salvation and freedom to Serve Him!  

Here is the link to that song and video:  Please be blessed: 

 and please remember His Words:

  36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

The Life Changer

Are you struggling with temptation, or have you ever struggled before.  Sometimes the overpowering force of temptation can be a lot like an undertow.  I can remember going to Panama City Beach when I was younger, and standing by the water coming in and out of the ocean.  That day, the yellow flag was out, which meant that the water was unsafe to swim in, and that there was a rip-current.  At that point in my life I was not sure what that was, so I didn't pay much attention.  The water looked inviting, and that was all that mattered to me. I decided that I was not actually going to swim in the water, because that would be too dangerous, but that I would simply go up to the edge of the water and stand where the water was about up to my ankles.  As I waded, into the water, I stood there with the water almost to my knees, thinking to myself: "This is a safe distance, I should be fine here."  A few moments later, as I was standing, I felt such a pull from the ocean that almost knocked me off my feet.  I almost feel over it was so strong.  Right then and there I realized the true force of the ocean.  Somehow, by the Grace of God, I managed to get back out of the the water without being knocked down, and I was done for the day.  I realized the danger and wanted nothing to do with the pull of that current.

Something I am discovering, is that playing with temptation is a lot like going out in the ocean when the yellow flag is out.  From the looks of things, it's ok, and nothing could go wrong.  A good time seems in front of me, and I find myself seeing just how close I can get without falling in.  Unfortunately, this is a dangerous move because the water is deceptive, and the undertow is strong, I find myself getting sucked into a vortex, and being pulled into sin.  Was the temptation my fault?  No, no more than the ocean having rip currents is my fault.  I cannot control things outside of me, but I can stay out of the ocean when the yellow flag is out.

If you ever find yourself dealing with this, just know that many people have dealt with temptation throughout the years.  The key to dealing with temptation is not to give in, or start to give in.  Check out what the writer of Proverbs has to say about this in Proverbs 4:14-19:

 14 Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil [men]. 15 Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. 16 For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause [some] to fall. 17 For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence. 18 But the path of the just [is] as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day. 19 The way of the wicked [is] as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.

I would like to first of all point out Solomon's first way of avoiding temptation.  Verse 14 says that we are not supposed "to enter into the path of the wicked" Solomon continues by saying: "and go not in the way of evil men".  So let's pause and think about this.  The first thing we need to do is stay away from the path of the wicked.  What does that path look like?  That path is anything that is against the Law of God and God's Holy Word.  The people that do that are evil men.  Continuing on, verse 15 says:

15 Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.

Notice that there are four admonitions that Solomon gives here.

1. Avoid it
2. pass not by it
3. turn from it
4. pass away

  The first is avoidance.  So for me, I would look at this and ask, is there something in my life that I need to avoid?  The answer is many unequivocal yeses, my things to avoid are probably different than yours, but they are no more less dangerous, because the only one who can make the decision to accept Jesus for me is me!  That's right, not my pastor, not my friend, not my neighbor, not my wife.  No one except me.  Now, these people can be used to be a blessing in my life by God, but ultimately where I end up is going to depend on my choice.

The second is to pass not by the path of the wicked.  So that means I don't go in for a closer look, in fact, I do everything I can to stay out and away from sin.  So what is a way that I can not "pass by it"?  By following Jesus, and when I come to Him, He is going to lead me in the Paths of Righteousness.

The third thing is to turn from it.  This is very important, because even though I got into that water at the ocean which was a horrible idea, and even though it was very difficult to get out, and I almost got pulled under, I did not have to give up at that point.  By God's Grace I was able to struggle out.  So if you find yourself on the path, you can still "turn from it".  Get out while you still can, that undertow is strong!  Once you are out, the fourth step comes into play:

Pass away.  So many times, I have been out, and then thrown myself right back in.  The only problem with that theory is that the undertow is stronger and stronger, and eventually it will drown you.  I can remember a story of a little boy who had a baby python and would take the snake out of his cage to wrestle with it, and then put it back into the cage.  When asked to stop by those around him, he replied "I can beat this thing, it's not stronger than me" and he would continue wrestling it.  Pretty soon, though, that snake began to get stronger, and soon the snake was stronger than the poor little boy.  The boy lost the fight with the snake and lost his life in the process.

The Warning in Proverbs from God through Solomon to us is clear: Don't tamper with temptation, it will destroy you.

What happens when a person looses control themselves?  They become agents to tempt others.  Verse 16 continues:

"16 For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause [some] to fall." 

When we are being tempted and fall into sin ourselves, it is almost impossible not to try and drag other people into sin with us.

17 For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.

When we do this we end up eating wickedness and being violent.  Wickedness and violence are the sure result of messing with sin.

But, Solomon does not stop here.  He wants to make an incredible contrast for you and I to see.  Notice what he says in  18, and 19:

18 But the path of the just [is] as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day. 19 The way of the wicked [is] as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.

Notice verse 18.  The path of the just is as the shining light that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.  The Bible continues "The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.

So after reading all of these verse, this bring us to an interesting conundrum.  We in and of ourselves are powerless against temptation and sin.  Powerless to break the chains, and to be set free, but there is One who can set us free.  I was just reading about Him in my Devotions in fact.

Notice John 8:12:

 12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

When we follow Jesus we have light in our lives.  Also notice what John 1:1-4says:

 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

Following Jesus is the way to have light in our lives.  Reading about Jesus in the Bible sheds light into our lives.  As we spend time with Him we are changed from our old selves into a new creation.

Notice Jesus Words here in John 8:33

 33 They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free? 34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. 35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: [but] the Son abideth ever. 36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

Also again notice what Jesus says about the devil who is tempting us to sin: ... He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Whatever the devil has been telling you about the impossibility to get free from sin is a lie!  Because the devil is the father of lies.  he is only trying to keep you in bondage.  Don't listen to him.  he does not care about you, and only wants to see your destruction.

Jesus has the ability to pull us out of our pit of discouragement and dispair.  As you spend time with Him and ask for His help He will set you free!

I want to encourage you to spend time with Him day by day in the Gospels.

Check out this link about Jesus for more encouragement:

http://www.bcove.me/om7kj3u7 

In this link you will find a Bible Study on Mark 1 and on the Power of Jesus Christ!

Also check out this incredible take on the Resurrection of Jesus by Southern Adventist University:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/8ZrHeJb5ZhM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

What do you seek?

What happens in life's seemingly dark moments.  You know what I'm talking about right?  Those times where it seems like you are the only person alive on the face of planet earth?  Despite all of these feelings, I would like to re-assure you tonight, that based on the Word of God these feelings are a lie.  There is a being in Heaven who cares more about you or I than we could even dream.  Above the chaos and constant confusing blur of feelings is One on His Throne, who KNOWS WHAT YOU ARE GOING THROUGH THIS VERY MOMENT!!  Don't stop reading, because what I am about to say to you right now, could change your life.  It is no accident that you happened to stumble upon this blog post.  Maybe you were just scanning through the different entries on the internet and searching.

Now the question I must ask from here is:  What were you looking for?  If you are anything like me you were looking for encouragement and help.  You were probably discouraged and lonely.  But the amazing truth that I want to share with you right now is that you are not alone.  I know that I'm repeating myself here, but I believe that this bears repeating.  Yes, you!  The one typing at the keyboard this very instant are not alone.  He has been waiting to hear from you for quite some time.  Why haven't you talked to Him?  Out of all the moments in your life, where you pushed Him out, why not stop and listen to what He has to say to you!

Maybe you have a Bible sitting next to you right now, if that is the case I want you to pray and ask Jesus to help you this very instant.  Repeat after me in your mind if you don't know what to say:
Dear Jesus, please help me!  I know that for a long time I have not listened to your Voice, but I want to listen now.  Please come into my heart and help me!  Please don't leave me!  Thank you for dying on Calvary for my sins, and please help me to understand what I am about to read in Your Word.  In Jesus Name,
Amen.

Once you have done this, open your Bible to the book of 1 Peter.  If you have not read the Bible much then you can find the list of Bible books at the beginning of your Bible.  Once you find 1 Peter, go to chapter 5.  Then go all the way down to verse 7.  Now go ahead and read it.  What did it say?  If you don't happen to have a Bible, I will go ahead and show the verse on here:
  7 Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

Now did you notice the "Casting" part.  Jesus really does care about you!  This is not some passing feeling this is a ROCK SOLID truth!  He cares for you.  Now, go to the book of John in your Bible, and read through John Chapter one.  I'll go ahead and show you a few things to help in your study.  The first thing you did, and that is something we should always do before we read God's Word.  We need to pray and ask for Jesus help.  The second thing that we need to do is read.  Stick to a single chapter.

 The neatest thing about reading the Bible is to allow the Bible to Interpret itself.  Every passage in Scripture is actually interpreted by the rest of Scripture.  In fact the process for understanding the Bible can be found in Isaiah 28:10
 For precept [must be] upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, [and] there a little:5 
Scripture builds upon itself. 
So the first verse in John 1:1 is:  1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Who is the Word is probably a question that comes at the very beginning, or maybe you already know the answer.  Well, don't stop there, stick with your reading, and as you do you will be blessed.  The story will grow as you read.

For example, this evening I was actually going through John 1:29-42.  A part that I really like is when John sees Jesus and says "Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world.  How does He do this?  You must read on to discover what He does, to take away our problems.  The next part that sticks out is verse 37.  The Andrew and John are going after Jesus, and Jesus stops and asks them a question:  What do you seek?

Jesus didn't say, I'm glad you found me, let me show you.  He asks them what they are looking for?  What are you looking for?  Or are you looking for Who?  If so, Jesus is the answer to your search.

Check out this great website

http://crossconnection.hopetv.org/video?id=2129385279001

and follow JESUS :)