Union with God's Trinity

United to the triune God through Christ, our spirit is infused with His power through His Spirit, and Christ lives in and through us (Ephesians 3:16-17). Since Christ is in us, even though our body is dying, His Spirit gives us His life (Romans 8:10).

When Jesus moves into our spirit, we walk by the direction of His Spirit (Galatians 5:16, 25). We have supernatural strength regardless of how we feel in body and soul.

Slowly, the Spirit changes us from glory to glory until people see Jesus when they look at us (2 Corinthians 3:18). All of the fullness of the triune God dwells in us through Jesus, at the same time that we are in Him (Colossians 2:9; Romans 6:8).

Following the leading of God’s Spirit moment by moment throughout the day results in physical productivity, a healthy mental and emotional life, spiritual power and material blessings that we cannot even imagine.

We submit our negative thoughts to the Lordship of Jesus Christ for healing. We even lay down our positive thoughts; and, instead, take up His thoughts as our own (Philippians 2:5).

Rather than to spend our financial blessings on frivolous amusements and earthly treasures that are here today, but gone tomorrow, we actually prefer to donate to our local church and to missionaries doing the work of the Lord.

This makes the fruit of our labor last into eternity (1 Corinthians 1:9, 6:17; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Ephesians 1:3-14, 4:32, 5:22-33; Galatians 5:22-23; Acts 15:28). We submit our will to God's will and out of His glorious riches, He provides for all of our needs (Philippians 4:19; Matthew 6:33).

Prayer:

Father God, You love us so much and You reveal Yourself to us in a multitude of ways all throughout the day (John 14:21).  We often get too busy to even notice Your blessings. We spend our time so absorbed in our own plans and the issues in front of us, that we fail to see Your provision and direction for us in the midst of it all.

Make us ever mindful of Your intimate union with our spirit, Your sanctification of our soul - our mind, will and emotions - and the fact that You rejoice in our death, when we come to dwell with You for eternity (Psalm 116:15). We praise You with all of our heart, mind and strength.

Thought for the Day:

There is little need to understand Biblical Truth prior to forming our union with God's Trinity, because once we utilize the faith of the Son of God for salvation, the Spirit will teach us all things. - 1 John 2:27

Pure and Undefiled Religion

Too often we "play" church and treat it like a cruise ship rather than a battleship. We like to socialize with our friends and make new friends who will treat us nicely and care about us.

Yet, we waste our time on the flesh and the world, which makes us too busy to serve in church ministries, to care for the sick and infirmed in our church family, or to reach out into our community to make a friend and lead them to Christ.

When the offering plate comes around, we give God a tip from the change in our pocket rather than to give a tithe of our income, and we feel no remorse when we fail to give in the benevolence offering to help the needy in our church family and community.

We will not even bring canned goods to donate to the food bank in our area, or to join service organizations in our community who help to serve those less fortunate than we are.

We ignore those who are aliens in our community, who move here to find work to support their family; not knowing that if we did care for the needy, God could bless us in all the works which we find for our hands to do (Deuteronomy 14:29).

Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is to take care of orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep our self from being polluted by the world (James 1:27).

We can help the poor by meeting their need for food, shelter and clothing (1 Timothy 6:8); aid the widows by meeting their medical bills and doing chores that overwhelm them; and we can visit the imprisoned (Job 31:16; Matthew 25:36).

We can give Christmas presents to children at local group homes, take some of them to our home for monthly visits or out on a picnic, or we can take them to the pizza parlor for supper once a month (Job 31:17).

The possibilities for ministry in our church family and out in our community are endless, and ignoring these needs is unconscionable and despicable in the sight of the Lord (Matthew 7:24).

Prayer:

Father God, help us to learn to do good, to seek justice, to defend the orphan and to plead the case for our widows (Isaiah 1:17). Teach us to reprove the ruthless who take bribes or look for a reward for their service (Isaiah 1:23). Remind us that when we clothe the naked, care for the sick and visit the imprisoned, we do it as our ministry to You (Matthew 25:36). 

We do not want to live as hearers of Your Word only, but we want to put feet to our faith and to earn our righteous rewards by keeping Your law and serving our church family and community (James 1:22; Romans 2:13). Let us prove our faith in You by our works for You (James 2:14).

Thought for the Day:

The Lord protects strangers, supports single mom's and their children, and cares for the needs of widows; but He resists the wicked and thwarts those who "play" church rather than minister to the needy in their community. Let us join Him in His Kingdom work. - Psalm 146:9

We've Got It Backwards

 

As human beings, we get the values of life and death backwards. We will sacrifice the quality of our life for the quantity of life. We often live years past our optimal health and spend more money than we have to suffer endless procedures and live off dozens of expensive medications. Yet, what is the Biblical view of life and death?

Paul said, “For me to live is Christ, but to die is gain (Philippians 1:21).” In other words, He was happy to serve the Lord on this earth for as long as it pleased the Lord for him to do so; but once his usefulness was over, he was ready, willing and able to go home to be with the Lord. That was where his hope and rest lay. That is where we all gain the eternal rest from our labors.

The wise Solomon recognized that the day of our death is better than the day of our birth (Ecclesiastes 7:1); yet we humans rejoice at a new birth and cry at a funeral. Of course, the tears at the funeral are more for our self than the deceased, because of our separation from our loved one; but if we realize that, in Christ, we will live in eternity with that same loved one, then we do not sorrow as those who have no hope (1 Thessalonians 4:12-18).

We toil all of our life to gain the things of this world, and then turn around and leave them all behind to people who do not value them as we did. They usually donate everything we worked so hard to attain to some charity resale shop to be sold at a fraction of what we paid for them. What is the sense in that? Why do we put so much stock in this world’s goods?

A home, transportation, food and necessary apparel with a hobby or two thrown in are enough for anyone. Yet, so many slave to have the best that money can buy. The entire focus of their life is to get that one more thing. Yet, nothing ever really satisfies their soul. Only a life dedicated to the service of God for His glory pays the real dividends that we are looking for in this life and in the next.

Prayer:

Father God, remind us to store up our treasure in heaven, where neither moth nor rust can destroy them (Matthew 6:19-24). Help us to use the wealth You give to us on this earth to help to lighten the load of those less fortunate than we are and also to help to further Your gospel to the far reaches of the earth.

Thought for the Day:

It is the simple pleasures of life that really mean so much and cost so little.