Conditional Blessings

2 Chronicles 7:14

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” If the people who claim they are the children of God, would stop acting all high and mighty, sit their butts down somewhere, turn their bragging, boasting, and complaining into actual prayer to God, diligently strive to live holy, disconnect from all things contrary to holiness, then will God turn His attention to their situations, and forgive their sins, and release the blessings He had stored for them from the beginning (Ell’s translation).

Time Between

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

The time between the day you were born, and the day you cross over into eternity, is invaluable, yet limited. Therefore, every moment spent in this life, should be focused on doing things relevant to eternal matters. “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.”

“Tick tock, your life is on the clock.” – Ell

Peacemakers 2

Matthew 5:9-12

In a world of continual chaos and uproar, those who are united with God, through Christ Jesus, must uphold the standard of peace, so that others can hold fast to the hope of a secure eternity with the Father. The church of today, has a mandate to represent holiness, despite the cost. It’s unfortunate that we are living during the end-times, when many have fallen away from the faith, but there is a remnant of believers who have not bowed to the standards of the world, yet strive to maintain a holy, righteous, and peaceful lifestyle, on a consistent basis.

People around the globe are suffering in some capacity, and are desperately searching for peace. Some are dealing with sickness or the loss of loved ones, while others find it hard to keep money in their pockets or food in their homes. With all that’s going on in life, it seems impossible to find a mere ounce of peace. God sees the struggle of man, and desires that none perish, but all come to repentance. God does care about His prized creation, but He wants us to shift our focus off our problems for a moment, and back to what’s important; eternal security. God will take care of His people, but He’s more concerned with the state of their souls.

While the world entertains fear and uncertainty, the children of God should be known for maintaining hope and peace. There should be a noticeable difference in the behavior between those who are of God, and those who are lost. For example, when facing a season of trial and suffering, rather than act as if all is lost and hopeless, we should show men that our God is still in control, despite our possible setbacks. There were many in Scripture who suffered greatly, yet maintained a righteous standard through their suffering. A few examples include Joseph, Hannah, Jeremiah, and the apostle Paul.

God’s grace is sufficient for His people, and His strength is made perfect in their weakness. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7). This truth should encourage believers to change their perspective on their view of life, and shift God’s agenda to top priority. Only through the power of God’s Spirit, can we find the peace that helps us endure all manner of hard times and difficult situations.

What Are You Preaching?

Ephesians 3:7-13

The purpose of proclaiming the Word of God is, to edify and build the faith of those who are in Christ Jesus. When the believer’s faith is strong enough to understand God’s will for their lives, they can then put their faith to work, by compelling others to come, and become partakers and fellow-heirs of the body of Christ. If faith comes by hearing the Word of God, then all who preach God’s Word, should seek only to strengthen the faith of those who receive their words.

The church was established to continue the representation of God’s holy way, from the time of the disciples, until now. It’s unfortunate how many churches have conformed more to worldly standards, rather than holding fast to the standards set by the early church. The original disciples, along with those who were commissioned to go out and preach the Gospel, were keen on delivering pure, and unadulterated words inspired by God. They were bold, effectual, and most important, they were humble.

Early church leaders suffered greatly for delivering the Gospel message, but the more they were persecuted, the harder they worked to win souls. The same can hardly be said about modern churches, as the preaching of the Gospel message has been altered to satisfy itching ears, instead of building the faith of believers. The apostle Paul set a prime example of how leaders should carry themselves among the body, and of all the things he was accused of in his past, Paul never allowed them to distract him from his purpose. The great apostle went so far as to consider himself “less than the least of all saints” (vs. 8). This was an expression of extreme humility, which kept Paul safe from allowing pride to settle in his heart.

Leaders today should live in such a way, that God gets all the glory from their lives, and they should seek none for themselves. The average preacher you see on TV nowadays, dresses better than movie stars, drives the most expensive vehicles, print their names and faces on all the material they sell, while preaching messages that are 2 percent God, and 98 percent hot garbage. God desires that all men come to repentance, but men who refuse to preach the truth, make it hard for those who are sincere in seeking a better life.

Judgment is coming to the house of God, but it saddens me to witness many being deceived, because of men and their lust for fame and fortune. To those who remain true to God’s Word, be encouraged, and don’t allow anything to keep you from falling short of God’s glory. Continue to preach the Word in season, and out of season. Be bold in your proclamations whether people want to hear it, or not. Always remember, God will hold you accountable for how you influence the minds and hearts of others. So, if your aim is to use the Bible to deceive for selfish gain, rather than edify the body of Christ, then you’re in line to receive very harsh judgment, from God Himself. “And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.” (Luke 14:23)

Keep your chin up… it’s easier to see Heaven that way,

Ell

Mission Possible

Luke 4:14-21

This world is dying. Chaos resides among men, on every continent of the planet. People are hurting, hungry, and in need of many things. While some live lavish, basking in the accumulation of their wealth and possessions, others would be grateful to have a hot shower, and warm meal. There’s no balance in the earth, because sin has caused men to behave in ways that are immoral, and ungodly. In its present state, the world will only get worse, so God has a plan to destroy, and renew what was once sinless and beautiful.

Until the time comes for this world to pass, the body of Christ must be diligent in sharing the Gospel with others. People need hope in something real, and not in things that will eventually fade away. Believers must dare to be different, as was Christ, when He presented His purpose and mission, to His own people of Nazareth. Jesus boldly proclaimed, He was anointed to preach the Gospel to the poor, heal the brokenhearted, preach deliverance to the captives, recover sight to the blind, and free those who are bruised. The world back then, may not have been as vile and wicked as today, but there were still many who needed God’s deliverance from certain issues. Jesus gave the people hope, and assurance that better was coming. Despite dealing with unfavorable circumstances, God would come through for those who love Him in the end.

It’s the duty of the Saints, to continue spreading the Gospel to the world, even though it’s often rejected. There are many yearning for better in this life, but need a little encouragement, to press on, and not give up. Jesus took His calling seriously, and obeyed His Father despite the naysayers, so we should not allow anyone to stop us from obeying the will of God. Consider all those who are in worse conditions than yourself, then pray to God for them, that they will endure, until the end.

Keep your chin up… it’s easier to see Heaven that way,

Ell

Under persecution proclaim Jesus the Christ

Acts 17:1-9

When believers preach the truth of God’s Word to the world, not everyone will receive it the same way. While those who believe, will open their hearts to receive God’s inspired words, unbelievers will exhibit behaviors contrary to the character and nature of a disciple of Christ, and will oftentimes make attempts to silence the children of God, in favor of promoting their false beliefs and doctrines. No matter how loving, kind, gracious, and true God is, some men won’t be convinced that He reigns supreme, until they have a “Saul-Paul” conversion experience. God wants all men to be saved, but satan influences many, while promoting his opposition without ceasing.

The apostle Paul had many experiences dealing with men standing against his teaching, but he never allowed persecution to change his profession of holiness, nor his message of the Gospel. In our text, Paul and Silas had journeyed to Thessalonica, where they took part in their His usual habit of preaching, and expressing the details of the scriptures, in the synagogue. While ministering for about three weeks, Paul was graced with the presence of a great multitude of people taking heed to his teaching. Those who were convinced by the teaching of the Scripture, consorted with, or joined allegiance to Paul and Silas. Unfortunately, those which believed not, did what many unbelievers typically do when they feel threatened; “set all the city on an uproar” (vs. 5b). The unbelieving Jews were motivated by envy, and convinced another group of rowdy knuckleheads to join them in searching the whereabouts of the men of God. The angry mob then visited the house of Jason, one who believed in God, and had hidden God’s servants so well, the disturbed Jews couldn’t find them. Out of spite and anger, the mob arrested Jason, without proof of a crime, then eventually released him. Men will do some strange and unusual things when they fight against God. Rather than simply ignore Paul and his teaching, they wanted to have them arrested for supposedly going against the decrees of Caesar. Men will never learn, their power cannot rival that of the Creator of all things. Even today, men show more respect and reverence to celebrities, or politicians, rather than the God who created them.

In the midst of unfair and unjust treatment, never change the way you feel about God. He’s been with you from the beginning, and He has a wonderful end awaiting you. We are human, and at times, tense up when the pressure builds, but rather than run when the fire gets too hot, ask God to join you in the flames, and allow the heat to try your faith, to show the world it’s as pure as gold.

Walk in love,

Ell

Reaching new people

Acts 18:5-11

After their brief prison ministry in Philippi, the apostle Paul and his crew continued spreading the Gospel of Christ throughout the lands. His ministry was preached from Philippi to Thessalonica, then from Berea and Athens to Corinth. Every stop Paul made, he was met with opposition, yet some he convinced to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Surprisingly most of Paul’s objections came from the Jews, the same people who rejected the resurrected Jesus. Regardless of how much truth Paul preached to those he came in the presence of, some mocked, other’s interest was piqued, while many actually clave unto him, and believed. When we set out to witness for the Lord, we must be prepared to face anything, including persecution and rejection, but through our suffering will come salvation. God will never let the work of a believer go in vain, but He’ll always make their end very good, and abundant.

There comes a time in the life of every believer when they get to a point where it becomes frustrating, trying to convince those who know to do better, but refuse the message of the Gospel continually. The more the Jews resisted the Word of God, the more Paul’s spirit was pressed. All that was left for the Jews in Corinth to do was blaspheme, because they obviously had no arguments against Jesus being the Messiah. They had reached the point of having sold themselves to rebellion, thus temporarily pushing Paul to the point where Christ was in Matthew 23:37-39, when He pronounced desolation upon them. Paul freed himself from the responsibility of the rebellious Jews, then set his focus on witnessing to the Gentiles. When you reach the point where it seems pointless to even mention the Word of God to some, because of their constant rejection, wash your hands of that responsibility, then give it all to God. Gather yourself together, then focus your attention on those who’ve been awaiting a good word for a good while.

Despite being openly rejected and criticized, Paul continued going to the synagogues and proclaiming God’s Word to all who attended. In the body of Christ, we never give up on people, but we also are mindful not to waste precious energy and effort trying to turn a rock into a marshmallow. We do all we can to win the lost, as the Spirit leads, then allow God to take over after our efforts change direction.

Walk in love,

Ell