Finis Coronat Opus Stake a Claim!

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In my searching and seeking for the knowledge of God I read a sermon by Charles H. Spurgeon and he used a Latin phrase, “Finis Coronat Opus”. Finis, the end, Coronat, crown, and Opus, work; the end crowns the work. Life may throw us for a loop, we may not like parts of our lives or the way we lived them. It could be based on bad decisions, choices, or notions that put us in a place unimaginable. Our past could be shaded and jaded. We may even be ashamed of our past, but God has made away to crown our end with a life well pleasing in His sight and the sight of mankind.

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17 KJV)

As we seek God and His will we start shedding off our old sinful nature and become more like Christ. We need to stake a claim in God’s kingdom as children of God. We can claim “I am a new creature in Christ therefore I no longer have to live like I did, that person is dead and gone! I will live for God!” This is staking a claim in the Kingdom of God. We need to lay hold of heavenly treasures and stand firm on God’s promises for us.

God goes before us He knows the plans and purposes for our lives. God went before King David and Psalms 21:3 says”(God) set a crown of pure gold on his head.” Let us therefore look to God and the end which He knows (see Titus 2:13). He will crown our end with glory and not with the shame of this world.

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the LORD, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive.(Jeremiah 29:11-14 NKJV)

God gives us a future and a hope well deserving of a crown. Let us call unto Him with all of our heart. He will take us from our old worldly captivity and place us in His kingdom to become His sons and daughters whose final end will receive a crown of glory.

And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. (1 Peter 5:4 NKJV)

Finis Coronat Opus. It is time to stake a claim!!

In Christ,

Greg

14 Pithy and Profound

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Lame in whose sight

And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. (Matthew 5:30 KJV)

“It is better to enter into life maimed and lovely in God’s Sight than to be lovely in man’s sight and lame in God’s” (Oswald Chambers). Would you rather be lovely in God’s Sight or man’s sight? It all points to self. “Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? (Romans 6:16 KJV)” I think this says it all. No matter who or what you yield to you become a servant or slave of who or what you yield to. Is there an addiction in your life that masters you? E.g. cigarettes, does that little stick urge you to go out and smoke? When you get upset or after you eat or even when you have to make a stressful decision, can you do it without the overwhelming urge to smoke? That little stick has made you its slave. When you drive by a store do you think, I’m almost out of Cigarettes or maybe its beer or candy? What are you yielding to and you will find your master. Would you not seem lame in God’s sight if He asked you, “Why you did not do such and such”, and you said “I had to get some smokes or “…” whatever else you were serving instead of God? I know it is not easy. Little steps to success is what matters. The devil will get you to think it is no big deal but one degree off and you still miss the mark. Don’t let the world’s fads, your flesh or the devil’s influence on you through others deceive you to think or think it is okay. It is better to be lame in man’s sight and lovely in God’s sight. The first is temporary and the second is eternal.

Take a step of faith and start to renew your mind by putting off the old man and putting on the new. “But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: (Colossians 3:8-10 KJV, bold emphasis mine)

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. (Romans 12:1-2 KJV, bold emphasis mine)

Renewing the mind is the renovation of the mind and it all starts with your thinking. Be aware of your thoughts. Process them one at a time. Ask— why do I think like this? Answer— find the root of the thinking process (I thought it was cool and I was accepted by my friends). Finally, Discuss— reason with yourself. Is this what a living sacrifice looks like in God’s Sight? Is this holy and acceptable? Does it prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God? If the answer is no, than figure out what does and do that instead.

God’s Spiritual Word is our Sword. Use it to fight off the wiles of the flesh, the world and the devil. Some prayers for spiritual warfare can be found at www.GodsSight.com/links.html.

In Christ,

Greg

God is Love

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Master, which is the great commandment in the law?

1      this is the first and great commandment

Master, which is the great commandment in the law?  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. (Matthew 22:36-40 KJV)

I have found that these two commandments line up with the Ten Commandments, in that, the first four deal with God and the last six commandments deal with man. This is why these two commandments cover the Ten Commandments by love. Love is the first qualifier, without love we all miss the mark. Jesus called the Pharisees whited sepulchres, because they appeared righteous unto men, but were full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. (Matthew 23:27-28 KJV)

God is Love. Love is God. Love is God’s innate nature. We can love, but we may never understand completely the agape or unconditional love of God, Who gave His only begotten Son to appease the judgement of all sin, of all the world, and for all times. It can be unfathomable, ineffable or even unattainable to us. But I will love God with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength the best I can. It is the least I can do seeing He has shown me, a vile sinner worthy of death, and the love of giving His only begotten Son to die in my stead. But what about loving your neighbor as yourself. Is there a loop hole here? What if I don’t love myself? After all I’m a vile sinner. Thank God I’m saved by God’s grace. But to love my neighbor when I can only love myself in the best of times, now that might not be possible. So where does this leave me? It is a struggle between knowing God’s will is to love, agape love, my neighbor as myself.

Well, maybe I’m just slow, because there is a verse in which I have read numerous times but the light never came on. Jesus said,

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. (John 13:34 KJV)

Yes this commandment supersedes the Old Testament Commandment. Here we have to put all thoughts, reasoning, and justifiable imaginations in the trash. We have to agape love one another as Jesus has agape loved us. There is no way around it. No loop holes can be found here. Our faith must step in at the slightest notion or premise that I cannot love that person. Sometimes it might be easier said, “Love the person, not the sin.” For we all sin, and come short of the glory of God. I must look at the plank in my own eye. Joyce Meyer once compared it to a telephone poll. Can you imagine that…

The bottom line is love, agape love. Jesus is our example, and he has given us a New Commandment to agape love one another as He has agape loved us.

Let us pray, therefore, that as God has loved us that we my love one another, and the bond of love between Creator and creation can be the bond of love between one another. Just like God the Father has loved the Son and the Son has loved the Father. Let us love the Father and Son as He has loved us. Knowing the new commandment, let us love one another as God us loved us. In Jesus Name I pray. Amen.

In Christ,

Greg

13 Pithy and Profound

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Romans 4:17 Call those things which be not as though they were.

1      rhema

Greek, Ρήμή, GOD’s spoken word. Speak it and it shall come to pass, act on it (faith) to produce it. Romans 10:18 says, “But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;” We must speak God’s word in agreement with His word and will. Confess it, pray it and believe it.

“The word of GOD conceived in the human spirit, formed by the tongue, and spoken out of the mouth becomes creative power that will work for you” Charles Capp.

Are you letting doubt creep in? Call doubt what it is, sin! Why sin? I’m glad you asked. Because it misses the mark. Grasp hold of GOD’s promises and stake a claim as a child of God. Live in the truth of God’s Kingdom and not the world and its false notions or its, “everything is relative” fad.

Increase your faith “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” (Romans 10:17 KJV)

As you read His word and say it aloud, (God’s spoken word or “Rhema”), you hear God’s word and faith comes by hearing and hearing the word of God. Your faith will increase and then you can call those things which are not as though they were. Ro 4:17 (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were (KJV).

“The word of GOD conceived in the human spirit, formed by the tongue, and spoken out of the mouth becomes creative power that will work for you” Charles Capp.

Take hold of one of God’s promises confess it e.g. 1 Timothy 2:4 “Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” Do you know somebody who is lost? Pray for their salvation because God’s will is for all men to be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth.

Start applying God’s word in your prayers and to your life.

In Christ,

Greg

 

Is there anything too hard for the LORD?

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Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son. (Genesis 18:14 KJV)

Sometimes I believe we can get in the way. We run into situations and circumstances and immediately we try to fix them with the knowledge and experience we have gained from past experiences. When we eventually fail we remember, God. I should have prayed about that first or why didn’t I pray about that first?

We often forget that God is omniscient, all knowing, omnipotent, all powerful and omnipresent, present everywhere. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts and His ways are higher than our ways. Someone said “Stop telling God how big your problems are and start telling your problems how big your GOD is!” This is the real attention getter. When we realize that there is nothing too hard for GOD, that He is all knowing and all powerful our problems become miniscule in comparison to GOD. After all He is our loving Father and wants the best for us.

Sometimes He allows us to go through situations that seem to be unloving, too hard or even unnecessary, but they maybe for our growth or even to help comfort someone else. (2 Corinthians 1:3-10). Just remember that all things (good or not so good) work together for our good. (Romans 8:28). We should ask GOD “What am I supposed to learn from this LORD?” when we are going through such trials and tribulations, and then tell our problems how big our GOD is.

Here are a couple more witnesses to strengthen your faith because “faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:17 KJV)

Ah Lord GOD!  Behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee.  (Jeremiah 32:17 KJV)

But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible. (Matthew 19:26 KJV)

For with God nothing shall be impossible. (Luke 1:37 KJV)

Keep GOD first in all things and He will guide you through them, because there is nothing too hard for GOD. Remember to “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6 KJV)

In Christ,

Greg

12 Pithy and Profound

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The world is Up side down

But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too. (Acts 17:6 NKJV)

The Apostles were accused of turning the world upside down. How does that make you feel? Do you think the world is right side up?

Maybe it is all just relative. Let us look at some scriptural examples of Kingdom principles:

  • To be poor is to be rich. “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9 KJV)
  • To be humble is to be exalted. “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:” (1 Peter 5:6 KJV)
  • To be weak is to be strong. “And he (Jesus) said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (2 Corinthians 12:9 KJV)
  • To be a servant is to be a master. “but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;” (Matthew 20:26 KJV)
  • To be the least is to be the greatest. “But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. (Matthew 23:11 KJV)”(Also see Luke 7:28 and Luke 9:48)
  • To lose your life is to find it. “He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.” (Matthew 10:39 KJV)
  • To suffer is to advance. “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. (1 Peter 5:10 KJV) Look at Jesus’ example, He suffered for the world and now His Kingdom is advancing. The suffering Christians advance the Kingdom of God even today.

“We multiply whenever we are mown down by you; the blood of Christians is seed.” https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Tertullian

Become aware that this life is not for the body but for your eternal soul. Live life the best way that suits your soul.

Maybe the world is upside down. When we see God’s spiritual truths we say the world is upside down and the apostles were turning the world right side up. Apply God’s word to your life and stop living upside down.

Become the greatest, the rich, the exalted, the strong, and the master. Find your life and advance God’s Kingdom through spiritual truths.

In Christ,

Greg

Faith

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But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6 NKJV)

Romans 10:17 tells us, faith comes by hearing and hearing the word of God. Sometimes we walk in doubt of our own selves. We can believe for a miracle in someone else’s life, but not our own. Certainly I’m not deserving or it won’t happen to me, or whatever reason doubt may bring to mind. In Hebrews 11:6 I can see that if I truly believe in God and I’m diligently seeking Him, God will reward me. When I seek wisdom from Proverbs, for example, I am rewarded with wisdom to walk in the paths of His truths. If I am in need of guidance, it can also be found. God is able and there is nothing too hard for the LORD.

When we diligently seek Him we will line up with His word. We will find the promises He has provided in is word and stand on them. (Stake a claim to His promises). Yet we must remember it is not for our boasting or glory. If we are asking amiss or some hidden reason it shall not come to pass. I believe the miracles in the Bible are for the glory of God. Consider the lame man from birth in Acts chapter 3 who was healed and the people looked to Peter as if it was his doing. Peter pointed them to God.

Now as the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch which is called Solomon’s, greatly amazed. So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: “Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. (Acts 3:11-13 NKJV)

Miracles happen to glorify God so when you are in the mist of doubt look for God’s promises and be still until He makes those promises a reality to you then grab ahold of them for at that point your faith has increased to the point of accepting the miracle God has for you. This is Faith and it comes by hearing and hearing the word of God. Give God the all the glory.

In Christ,

Greg

11 Pithy and Profound – Experiencing GOD

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How did your day start?

Have you noticed how you start your day off is how your day usually goes?

For instance, if you wake up late and you rush through the morning so you can get to work on time, it seems that the rest of the day is out of synch. You are always trying to get caught up and it may even feel that there is not enough time in the day to do so. Your every thought is consumed with what I must do. You are caught up in the worldly aspects of life. At the end of the day you may not feel satisfied or you may even feel like you wasted that day.

On the other hand if you are used to getting up and spending time with GOD. Your day may still have some ups and downs but your focus is on GOD and His provisions. You are prepared for anything that comes your way. You walk through ever situation with the help of your loving Father and all things seem to work for the best.

But you, when you pray, enter into your room. And shutting your door, pray to your Father in secret; and your Father who sees in secret shall reward you openly. (Matthew 6:6 MKJV)

How you start your day can make your day. Start your day with GOD to experience victory over life’s twists and turns.

In Christ,

Greg

10 Pithy and Profound Eternal Perceptive

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“Nature is but the expression of eternal thought in time. Study the outward form – grasp the Eternal thought.” Quoted from God Calling.

Think of something in nature that has brought you pleasure. A pet, wild animal, natural element, or maybe your child. Here is something that comes to my mind. Early one cool morning I saw a squirrel. It was running around the base of a tree, up and down and rolling around. Then it would spring from the ground to the trunk of the tree and look to see if I was watching. Then it would do it again flipping, rolling, springing back to the tree with such care free playfulness it brought me joy.

The squirrel was only doing what it was created to do and it brought me pleasure. I felt innocent happiness in that moment. Nature is but the expression of eternal thought in time. This moment of time made me reflect on a verse in Revelation 4:11 “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” For God’s pleasure are and were they created.

Can you grasp the eternal thought here? That squirrel was by nature doing what God created it to do and it brought me pleasure. The correlation to this verse is that when God’s children do what he created them to do they bring God pleasure. So, what were you created to do?

I think the squirrel brought forth joy and a love for God’s creation in me. We are to love and bring God joy by loving others. It is relationship based and love is the bond that brings us close to the eternal thoughts of our Created. Grasp hold of a natural expression today that brings you to an eternal expression of God’s love.

In Christ,

Greg

Walking Dead Men

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Eternal Souls

When you are walking down town, through a store or mall, or at an event where there are lots of people, what do you see? Just men and women shopping, going to lunch or who cares? Or maybe you just don’t think about it at all. How do you think GOD sees them? I think He sees them as either eternal souls who will spend eternity with Him, or walking dead men heading for eternal separation and it grieves Him. Walking dead men with an eternal soul. We all have an eternal soul, where are you leading yours? Let us not forget we were enemies of God. But God has made a way.

Romans 5:10-21:

For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. {atonement: or, reconciliation}

Thank God He has a plan of salvation for His eternal creation. But what about those who reject His salvation?

Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.

Can you see the masses of eternal souls walking into eternal damnation? Death reigned! It still reigns today. Someone needs to wake up these walking dead men. Will you do it?

But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead,

“For the wages of sin is death,” BUT GOD! The second part of Romans 6:23 says, “but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our LORD.” It is only through God’s gift. Gift here is not a birthday gift. The Greek word here for gift means “an undeserved gift from God to man” is eternal life. This is more than good news, it is:

Much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.

For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.) {By one man’s…: or, by one offence}

Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.

{By the offence…: or, by one offence} {by the righteousness…: or, by one righteousness} For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.

Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 5:10-21 KJV)

We can see here a division. By one man’s sin, offence, disobedience abounded unto condemnation and death. [eternal]

But by One, Jesus, the free gift, abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness, obedience, and unto justification of life. [eternal]

Now I ask you for future reference, when you are walking down town, through a store or mall, or at an event where there are lots of people, what do you see?

Will you see eternal souls heading for heaven or    hell?

Lord God place in me the will to tell others, the Kingdom of God is at hand. Do you know …where you will go when you die?

In Christ,

Greg