Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works! (part 19)

“Then all the congregation of the children of Israel set out on their journey from the Wilderness of Sin, according to the commandment of the LORD, and camped in Rephidim; but there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people contended with Moses, and said, “Give us water, that we may drink.” So Moses said to them, “Why do you contend with me? Why do you tempt the LORD?” And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, “Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” So Moses cried out to the LORD, saying, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me!” And the LORD said to Moses, “Go on before the people, and take with you some of the elders of Israel. Also take in your hand your rod with which you struck the river, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” Exodus 17:1-6


Once again the children of Israel are moving toward the Promised Land and come to a land where there is no water.  But this time it is interesting how they respond.  Instead of bringing to remembrance God’s provision of water at  Marah and Elim they once again revert back to their captive’s mindset and complain against Moses.  This time they don’t just complain though, they make a demand; “Give us water that we may drink.”  This is another picture of an immature people who act more like children than adults.  They have seen God provide water and now instead of praising Him for past provision and making a request of Him through Moses, they command that water is provided for them right now!


And This time Moses responds differently too.  You can sense his frustration when you read his response, “Why do you contend with me?  Why do you tempt the LORD?”  I imagine his frustration is like that of a parent whose children freak out when they don’t have something and come to them making demands that they get it for them right now!  It then says that the people thirsted there for water.  I find it interesting that the other two times Moses went directly to God and made a request of Him but this time we can tell that jumping into action wasn’t Moses first response.  Then in the next verse it says, “Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”


This is another picture of immaturity because isn’t it just like immature children to exaggerate a story in order to get your attention?  Now they are accusing Moses and God for trying to kill them, their children, and their livestock with thirst.  I love Moses’ response because it is so real and such a vivid picture of how we react sometimes when we are frustrated.  Instead of asking God to provide he says, “What shall I do with this people?  They are almost ready to stone me!”  If it would have been me saying it I would have said, “These people are cotton picking immature and I can’t handle it!  They are so ridiculous to deal with!”  But no matter how frustrated and angry Moses was when he spoke to God I absolutely love what happens next because it is another beautiful image of God’s love and grace for His people.  God doesn’t have a knee jerk reaction to Moses’ frustration.  No He responds to the need of His people and once again gives Moses a command that will produce the provision that they need.


God knows this people and He loves them so much that He continues to provide for them over and over again; no matter how they accuse Him or how hard they speak against Him.  He knows their captive’s mindset and He deals gently with them as a loving father deals with an infant.  But their reactions to Moses and God are revealing more and more of their need for guidance and direction and their incapability of living in freedom and trusting in God wholeheartedly as their provider and protector. No matter how much they may have wanted to be free they are still held captive to the bondage of a slave’s mentality.


This is a perfect image of what happens to a Christian today who comes to the revelation understanding of salvation and grace through Jesus Christ alone but does not know how to handle their newly given freedom from slavery to a sin consciousness and religious teachings.  They want so badly to trust God wholeheartedly as their provider and protector but they just can’t seem to do it.  They are quite immature and reactionary in their flesh which causes them to continually try to serve God in their own strength and gain His approval through their own self righteous efforts.  As you will see over the next few days how God gave the laws and commandments as a loving guide for this free people who are still controlled by a captive’s mentality; you will also see how He has given the people under the New Covenant the Holy Spirit as their guide instead of a set of rules and regulations to live by.


We are no longer required to keep the laws but we are responsible for submitting ourselves to the guidance and counsel of the Holy Spirit.  We are responsible for accepting the truth of Christ’s sacrifice for all sin and for putting our full reliance for our salvation on the finished work of the Cross, not our own self righteous acts of obedience.  We can’t earn salvation!  We can’t move God to love us more or less based on our actions either!  “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” (John 3:16-17) God is telling us today to believe it, live it, and proclaim it!  He is saying that we need to stop trying to identify ourselves with the people under the Old Covenant and we need to stop living in a captives mindset to slavery to a sin consciousness and start living in the freedom of a righteousness consciousness through believing in the finished work of the Cross!  This is what I want us to meditate on as we go even deeper into our study of why the laws were given to man and why we are no longer required to keep them as a way of salvation or righteousness.

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works! (part 18)

“Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not. And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.” Exodus 16:4-5


I want to know if this is the kind of response you have with your children when they blame you and complain against you?  I know it isn’t the response I would have with my children.  The last thing I would want to do for my children is give them what they are asking for if they asked for it in a complaint against me as their provider.  But that is exactly what God did for the children of Israel!  Once again He showed up in the midst of their complaining and rebellion and provided for them.  In this passage of Scripture God says that He is going to test them to see if they will walk in His law or not.


This wasn’t some cruel game God was playing with them.  It was an incredible act of love because only God knew what was before them and how they would need to be obedient to heed His voice.  He was saying do you trust Me and will you believe Me at my Word?  And this wasn’t something that wasn’t familiar to them.  For over four hundred years they heeded the voice of their Egyptian masters.  They knew their voice and they obeyed their every command.  But what I find very interesting in what happens next in chapter 16 and throughout the journey in the desert is that what the Israelites were able and willing to do for man; they were not able or willing to do it for God.  But isn’t that exactly what we see happening in the modern day church today as well?


People obey the rules and regulations of their denomination but they don’t heed the voice of the Holy Spirit!  But just like God did for the Israelites then; He does for us today.  It’s called mercy and grace when we repent (renew our minds) and when we submit ourselves to His counsel!  The greatest advantages we have that the children of Israel didn’t have is that we are not required to obey God in our own strength any longer and we have been given the Holy Spirit as our counselor and guide.  And remember that Jesus paid the ultimate price for our disobedience and rebellion and He fulfilled the requirements of keeping the law perfectly so that we do not have to.  All we are required to do today is to believe in the finished work of the Cross and labor to rest in Christ.


This is why the writer of Hebrews wrote, “There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.  Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:9-12)


We will look at this passage of Scripture in more detail another day but for today I want you to understand that our laboring today is not a laboring in keeping the law as the children of Israel and the other people under the Old Covenant were required to do.  We are required to believe God at His Word and His Word says, IT IS FINISHED!  This understanding will help us to comprehend why the laws were given the way they were and why we are not under the same requirements to keep them anymore because of what Jesus did for us on the Cross.

Now let’s return to the study so we can see what happens next.  Read Exodus 16 in its entirety and ask the Holy Spirit to open up your understanding so that you are able to comprehend what was taking place and why God did what He did when He put them to rest on the Sabbath day.  The Sabbath rest is probably one of the most misunderstood commands of God in the church today and people are continually battling over what it means.  Hopefully in the next couple of paragraphs you will come to the revelation understanding that I came to when the Holy Spirit showed me this truth.


Exodus 16:28-30 says, “And the LORD said to Moses, “How long do you refuse to keep My commandments and My laws? See! For the LORD has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Let every man remain in his place; let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.” So the people rested on the seventh day.”  Here God is saying why don’t you trust me and believe Me at My Word?  There is nothing you can do to produce this provision.  It comes from me!  Stop laboring to produce something that you have no ability to produce!  Believe Me!  Trust Me!  Rest in Me!  The children of Israel could not produce the manna in their own strength and by their own efforts in the same way we can’t produce righteousness in our own strength or by our own efforts!  It comes from God, given to us by the shed blood of Jesus Christ!

Stop laboring to produce something that you have no ability to produce!  Rest in the promise that you are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus and believe Him at His Word!  Read Matthew 12 for further study on this subject.  For today I want us to spend time asking the Holy Spirit to reveal if we are still trying to labor to produce righteousness in our own strength and through our own efforts by trying to be right and do right from what we have been taught by man.  Give the Holy Spirit permission to teach you the truth because “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32) And “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” (John 8:36)

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works! (part 17)

“There He made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them, and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.” Exodus 15:25b-26


For years when I read this passage it just seemed to be another verbal interaction between God and His people and I never paid close attention to it.  I had read Exodus so many times and over the years the words began to run together and I never gave them much thought.  It was kind of like watching a movie that you have seen a dozen times and zoning out in the middle of it because your brain already knows how it is going to end; so you don’t pay much attention during it.


But when God gave me the revelation of grace and He began to undo all of the religious teaching I had been taught growing up this passage of Scripture jumped off the page when I went back and read it.  The Holy Spirit told me to stop reading and to meditate on these verses.  At first nothing came and I would read it again; waiting to hear from the Lord.  But then one day it was as if this passage became a 3D image before my eyes and I was enlightened to a truth I had never seen, heard, or been taught before.  In order to understand it I had to read the next verses of Scripture.


Exodus 15:27- 16:3 says, “Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve wells of water and seventy palm trees; so they camped there by the waters.” “And they journeyed from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came to the Wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they departed from the land of Egypt. Then the whole congregation of the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. And the children of Israel said to them, “Oh, that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat and when we ate bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”


Why did God give the command of heeding His voice and why did He test them?  And what is the significance of these in regards to the giving of the Law and God’s love and grace for His people?  First of all remember that the Children of Israel had a mindset of captivity that knew and understood what it meant to heed their master’s voice.  The verbiage that God used was very familiar to them and they could understand it.  This is a beautiful picture of God’s love for His people and meeting His people where they were capable of understanding.  In the midst of God showing His love for them He then makes them a promise of not bringing any diseases on them like He did on the Egyptians.  Once again another image of His love because the Israelites knew that submission and commitment to their master plus diligent work equaled reward.  This was their love language so to speak and God spoke to them in it.

Immediately His words were received and they journeyed on to Elim where there were 12 wells of water (an image of abundant provision) and they camped there.  No grumbling or complaining is recorded in any of the text.  They were content with the provision of their master (God).  But then as they journeyed on to the Wilderness of Sin, “Then the whole congregation of the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. And the children of Israel said to them, “Oh, that we had died by the hand of the LORD in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat and when we ate bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.” (Exodus 16:2-3)  They lost their contentment but unlike their commitment to their earthly masters (the Egyptians) who they would never think of crossing and complaining against; they felt justified in crossing Moses and Aaron and complaining against God which is another image of a captive’s mindset when they do not know how to handle the freedom that has been given to them.  All they would have had to do was to cry out to the Lord for provision and it would have been done for them.  But they still could not grasp the reality that they were no longer slaves of a hardened task master, but instead the children of the most loving Father who was committed to providing for their every need.


So they did what came natural.  They complained but this time the complaint was even greater!  First they said, “Oh that we had died by the hand of the Lord” then they said, “when we sat by the pots of meat and when we ate bread to the full!  For you have brought us out into the wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”  By the first statement it is obvious that they had accepted their position as children and isn’t the second statement a perfect example of how immature children react?  They always blame the parent and over exaggerate the perceived result with an accusation of doom!  Nothing’s ever good enough and it is always the parent’s fault!  In an instant God went from provider and protector to murderer in their minds.  But even with this great act of disobedience and rebellion how did God react to the Children of Israel?  Did He strike them down and destroy them?  No!  He once again showed His love and responded to their rebellion with grace!  As we end today let us meditate on God’s response as we prepare for tomorrow’s study.


“Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you. And the people shall go out and gather a certain quota every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in My law or not. And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.”  Exodus 16:4-5

Love and Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works! (part16)

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16


I left you yesterday with Exodus14:10 -12 which says, "And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to the LORD.  Then they said to Moses, "Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, 'Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness."


Remember what I shared about the Israelites mindset of captivity and how they had made captivity their home?  This passage of Scripture shows just how bound they were to believing the lie that life in bondage to the Egyptians was better than the freedom they had just been granted.  They knew this life and wanted to return to it out of fear.  They said "Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians" because they knew what serving the Egyptians required. Bondage and slavery were familiar while freedom was unfamiliar.  This is a similar response that many people have today who come to the revelation knowledge of God's grace and then try to return to the bondage of living under the Law.  In Galatians 5:1 Paul warned us about this.  He said,"Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage." We have a free will choice to live in liberty or bondage but no matter what choice we make; God's love for us never changes, just like it never changed for the Israelites when they were afraid and wanting to return to Egypt.


Do you realize that at this moment in the wilderness God could have struck all of them down for their unbelief and fear but He didn't. Why?  Because He loved them and had a plan for them and that plan led to His plan of salvation for us. The entire story of the exodus out of Egypt and the journey to the Promised Land has many lessons for us to learn if we are willing to let the Holy Spirit teach us.  This first encounter in the wilderness is truly a beautiful picture of God's love and grace in operation because instead of striking them down for their unbelief and fear; He rescued them by providing a way of escape.  To verify this look at what transpired right after they made the complaint against Moses."And Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid. Standstill, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace." (Exodus14:13-14)


Moses' words to the Israelites are very similar to Paul's words to us in Galatians 5:1 in regards to not putting ourselves back under the yoke of bondage to the law.  Standfast!  Stand Still!  Moses was saying don't go back to living in bondage to man while Paul is telling us not to go back to living in bondage to the law that Christ fulfilled when He died and then rose from the grave. You have been liberated and set free! Hold your peace in the finished work of the Cross!


Now in reply to Moses'exhortation here is what God said, "And the LORD said to Moses, "Why do you cry to Me? Tell the children of Israel to go forward. But lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it. And the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea. (Exodus14:15-16)  Can you see it?  God extended grace, because of His incredible love for them, in the midst of their unbelief and fear. We have to remember that God's grace is always in place and not dependent on what we think, say, or do. God never changes no matter how far His people stray.  We don't move God by our wavering and unbelief.  No, His love moves us as He instructs the Spirit to speak to us in the same way He instructed Moses to speak to the Children of Israel, "Go forward" and do not be afraid for the Lord God is with you!  You might read the Old Testament and think that God was a mean God but that is not true.  God was a loving God whom the people failed to acknowledge many times and because of His Word to them He had to follow through on what He said.  At any point the people in the Old Testament could have repented and been restored but many chose not to and as a result they suffered grave consequences.  Aren't you glad we live under the New Covenant and God doesn't deal with us the way He did with the people under the Old Covenant?  "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son" so that we wouldn't have to do right or be right through our own efforts in order to be in relationship with Him anymore.


Now let's look at what happened next to the Children of Israel so we can see God's love and grace in operation.  Exodus 14:30-31 says, "So the LORD saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Thus Israel saw the great work which the LORD had done in Egypt; so the people feared the LORD, and believed the LORD and His servant Moses." One would think that experiencing the deliverance out of Egypt and then experiencing the parting of the Red Sea would have shocked the Children of Israel's mindset of bondage and slavery right out of them; but it didn't! Even though in the next verses of Scripture the Israelites praised God and gave glory to Him as their deliverer; they were still controlled by their mindset of captivity and it wasn't long before they grumbled and complained once again to Moses for taking them out of Egypt.  In fact it was only three days before they displayed their dissatisfaction in being set free verbally to Moses once again.


Exodus 15:22-24 says, "So Moses brought Israel from the Red Sea; then they went out into the wilderness of Shur. And they went three days in the wilderness and found no water. Now when they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for they were bitter. Therefore the name of it was called Marah.  And the people complained against Moses, saying, "What shall we drink?"  Once again God could have struck them down for their unbelief and fear but Hedidn't.  Verse 25a says, "So he cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a tree. When he cast it into the waters, the waters were made sweet."


This is another picture of God's love and grace for His people but then in the second part of the verse and in verse 26 it says, "There He made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them, and said, "If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you." This is the passage of Scripture I want us to meditate on today as we prepare for tomorrow's study because this truly is the passage that ushers us into the understanding of why the Law came into existence and why God gave it to the people as an act of love.  It is also a beautiful picture of what Jesus did for us on the Cross so that we would no longer have to do this in our own strength like the Children of Israel and the people after them had to do.

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works!(part 15)

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  John 3:16


Today we are beginning the next part of our study on love and grace.  Over the next several days we will peer into the Word and let the Spirit reveal the truth about God's grace in accordance with His incredible love for us. When we understand it we are able to live it out in our own lives and able to extend it to others.  We have already looked at love from Paul's letter to the Corinthian church in 1 Corinthians 13 and now we will see how the understanding of love helps us to understand God's grace.  In these writings I may share things you have never thought about before and your eyes may be opened to a new revelation.  If this happens for you just ask the Holy Spirit to give you wisdom and understanding.  For some of you this may not be new revelation but instead it may be a confirmation to what has already been revealed to you.  If this person is you then ask the Holy Spirit to build on what He has already taught you and begin to teach it to others.


We are going to start this part of the series with the most quoted passage of Scripture in the world but we are going to look at it over the next couple of days in a way that you may have never looked at it before.  When you have read, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son" have you ever asked yourself why God chose to send Jesus to the earth to live among men, be persecuted and killed, hung onthe Cross, and then risen from the dead on the third day?  I mean didn't God so love the world that He gave us the Ten Commandments and the other laws to live by so that we could be in relationship with Him?  Did God sending Jesus to the earth mean that His first plan was flawed?  The answer to both of these questions is no.


God gave the first laws for man to live by for a specific reason as an act of love which we will look at over the next couple of days.  And God sending Jesus to the earth did not mean His first plan was flawed.  It meant that His first plan was perfect but man was imperfect in following His plan and so out of His incredible love for us He gave a new plan of salvation.  God gave the Ten Commandments and other laws to man but man couldn't keep them; which led God to implement a new plan for man's salvation.  What I am about to share came through divine revelation one day when driving in the car with my husband.  When I shared it with him he said he had never even given it a thought. You may have never given this a thought either but as I share let the Holy Spirit speak to you and open your understanding.  Let's begin.


Have you ever really thought about what the Israelites had been living in for over four hundred years before God delivered them out of Egypt?  They had been living in a country where they were slaves.  They were told what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. They had grown accustomed to being in captivity and they made captivity their home.  They raised their children with a captive's mindset and they directed their steps to live within the boundaries of their captivity.  They weren't given the freedom to think or make their own decisions.  And it worked quite well when they obeyed the voice of their masters.  They were taken care of and provided for and even though they may have wanted to be set free; they continued to believe that freedom wasn't an option.  This led them to adapt to their surroundings, adopt a mindset of captivity and they blindly obeyed their masters.  They had the "don't rock the boat" mentality in other words.


When God delivered them out of Egypt can you even imagine what they must have talked about?  They must have been filled with great excitement but at the same time I am sure they had great fear of the unknown.  These were generations of people who knew nothing except captivity and serving a human master.  It is a similar scenario to a person who goes into prison at a very young age today and gets released in their seventies.  They may have longed for freedom their entire lives but they really don't know what freedom looks like and they surely don't know how to behave when there are no boundaries or limits put on them by the prison.  They had grown accustomed to rules, laws, and regulations.  They know that their needs are met for survival if they follow the rules of the prison.  If you track criminals who have been in captivity for a long time and then get released, you will find that the majority of them end up right back in prison. Why?  Because they have been conditioned to live under the confines of captivity and even though they love the taste of freedom; they don't know how to govern themselves when they are living in freedom.  As uncomfortable as it may have been in prison, they knew what to expect and they knew what they had to do in order to survive.  The same was true for the Israelite people.


They lived in a mindset of captivity, not out of choice but out of necessity for survival.  When God delivered them out of captivity a whole new mindset had to be adopted in order for them to live in their newly given freedom. But you and I both know that it takes a very long time to adopt a new mindset when an old mindset has been so engrained in the subconscious mind and has become a belief system.  The first evidence of this mindset is seen in Exodus 14:10 -12 and it is what I will leave you with today to meditate on before we go further into our study.


"And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to the LORD.  Then they said to Moses, "Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? Is this not the word that we told you in Egypt, saying, 'Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness."

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works! (part 14)

"And now abide faith, hope,love, these three; but the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13


Today we wrap up our study of 1 Corinthians13.  I hope you have grown in your knowledge of love and been motivated to pursue accepting God's love so that you are able to walk in it.  From here we will begin a study on God's grace but for today we are going to look at what Paul meant when he said, "And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love." It is important to know that as we grow closer in our relationship with Jesus Christ through accepting God's love, our faith gains momentum and we begin to believe God at His Word.  And as our faith grows our ability to find hope in all situations grows too.


Both faith and hope are essential to our Christian lives and they are the identifying traits that set us apart from the world.  But while faith and hope are essential Paul makes it very clear in this verse that love is even greater than faith and hope.  Why?  Because once again Paul is showing us another image of what is eternal and what is temporal. Remember God is love and that means love is eternal.  But faith and hope are only temporal gifts from God that will not exist beyond this life on earth.


When we are reunited with Jesus there will be no need for faith or hope.  Faith and hope are given to us here on earth so we can stand strong until Christ returns and so we can do what we have been called to do as his disciples.  But in order for faith and hope to be in full operation in the believer's life they have to abide together with love.  When they do then our lives produce the fruit of the Spirit.  Remember what Jesus said in John 15:5-8, ""I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."


So in order for us to mature in becoming steadfast in faith and hope we have to fully embrace God's unconditional love and then obey Him in loving others as we love ourselves. There is no other way for faith and hope to reach maturation!  But when we walk in this understanding the love of God in us "believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things." (1 Corinthians 13:7)  And that love never fails!  Fully embracing the love of God in us gives birth to wisdom, understanding, and knowledge in how we are to operate in the temporal gifts, which include faith and hope, and that leads to a fruit bearing life!


Faith is the essential motivator that empowersus to exercise the other gifts of the Spirit and hope is the essential motivator that empowers us to exercise joy in the present day as we wait for the fulfillment of God's promises.  But love is the essential glue that binds both faith and hope together!  For example: Abraham's belief in God's lovefor him and his love for God glued him to faith and hope when God told him he would be a father of a great nation; even though he had no son and they had reached old age.  Noah's belief in God's love and his love for God glued him to faith and hope when God said he would flood the earth and told him to build the ark and it was 120 years until it came to pass.


Paul and Silas' belief in God's love and their love for God glued them to faith and hope in that prison cell until God shattered the chains and set them free.  The disciple's belief in God's love for them and their love for God glued them to faith and hope when they acted on what Jesus told them to do and performed miracles, signs, and wonders.  These are just four examples but there are many more to draw from the Bible to show what happens when we accept God's love and believe Him at His Word and then walk in that love.  His eternal love flowing out of us puts faith and hope into action and the result is always the same; fruit bearing works that have an eternal effect on the lives of the people we minister to each day.


And it is in accepting God's love and walking in faith and hope where we are able to believe God at His Word when He speaks of His grace and that is where we are going to go next in this study.  So many people live a mixed Gospel life that is confusing and confining because they do not understand that God's grace is sufficient and that they are no longer expected to do anything to earn favor in the sight of God.  God loves usunconditionally because the conditions to be accepted were all placed on Jesus and nailed to the Cross.  You can't think right, speak right, or do right enough in your own strength to earn any favor or blessing from God. Jesus paid the ultimate price of death on a Cross to settle our debt and at the moment of His resurrection that debt was settled and for all who believe in Him we are made righteous at the moment of our salvation.


But that is not what is taught in most churches around the world and that is why there is so much division in the body of Christ and why so many believers are still immature babies who need someone to feed them; instead of being mature adults who feed others. We are going to spend the next several days looking at what happens when love is embraced,faith and hope are exercised, and the grace of God is accepted.  May we all grow together in wisdom and knowledge as the Holy Spirit teaches us about God's grace that He gave to us through the sacrifice of His own Son on the Cross.

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works!(part 13)

"For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face.  Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known." 1Corinthians 13:12


As I shared in yesterday's devotion Paul is calling the Corinthian church and us today to a place of maturity in the Holy Spirit.  In order for the body of Christ to operate as a unified body and fulfill the will of God maturity in the Spirit is essential!  In verse 12 Paul speaks about seeing in a mirror dimly but then face to face.  What does he mean?  We have to go back to the Old Testament and the life of Moses to get a clear understanding.  In Exodus 33:11 it says, "So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return tothe camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle."


And look at what God said in Numbers 13:6-8.  "Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream.  Not so with My servant Moses; He is faithful in all My house.  I speak with him face to face, even plainly, and not in dark sayings; And he sees the form of the LORD.  Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?" As New Covenant believers this face to face relationship with God only comes through the Holy Spirit because none of us can ever have an encounter with God in the physical realm the way Moses did.  But remember when Jesus rose from the dead the veil was torn so that we could come boldly before the throne of grace and communicate with God without any ritualistic requirements.  And the way we communicate with God is through our spirit man.  Anyone who teaches anything different does not speak truth.


Through the shed blood of Jesus Christ we have been sanctified and we no longer have to adhere to ritualistic requirements to communicate with God.  He meets us in the still quiet place of Christ's rest and speaks to us through His Spirit.  But this only happens to those who become mature in the Holy Spirit and no longer try to have a relationship with God through manmade works of self righteousness.  The mature person understands the operationof the Holy Spirit in their life and they allow Him to have authority over their thoughts, understanding, words, and actions.  This is what being conformed into the image of Christ means.  There is no other way to be a reflection of Jesus Christ than to abide in Him and His love, and to walk in the power of His Spirit.


When we do this we are able to see a clear heavenly revelation of God and He reveals His will to us.  If the body of Christ understood and walked in this there would be no divisions in the body.  But that wasn't the case then and it isn't the case now.  Look at what Paul wrote in Jude 16-23 in regards to the people who cause divisions in the body because they walk according to the flesh and not according to the Spirit.  They are immature and their actions are damaging to the body.


"These are grumblers, complainers, walking according to their own lusts; and they mouth great swelling words,flattering people to gain advantage. But you, beloved, remember the words which were spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ: how they told you that there would be mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts. These are sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. And on some have compassion, making a distinction; but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh."


But to the mature people of God look at what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 3:13-17 "Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit ofthe Lord." The mature believer does not see dimly because they communicate with God with unveiled face by the power of the Holy Spirit and the Spirit of God reveals the fullness of God's will for their life.


They have been transformed into the likeness of Christ by the renewing of their minds by the washing of the Word, and by divine revelation given to them by the Holy Spirit.  They no longer walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit and they have their minds fixed on the things of God and not on earthly things, which includes position, power, and prestige of various giftings.  They do not view themselves better than others but in lowliness of mind they view others better than themselves.  They are not puffed up and rude but in humility they are gentle and kind. They are peacemakers.  They do not seek their own will but rather, they seek only to do the will of God.  They love God wholeheartedly and love their neighbor as themselves.  They move from glory to glory and the peace of Christ rules in their heart because they obeythe law of Christ's love that has been written on it.


They do not cause divisions and strife among the body because they view all members of the body as important and necessary to fulfill the work of the Kingdom on earth.  They do not condemn or judge because they treat people the way Christ treated them and they love them in spite of what their eyes may see or their ears may hear. They have a clear vision of what God's will is because they are constantly in a state of abiding in Christ and constantly allowing the Holy Spirit to speak to them which causes them to walk in love for all people. This person truly understands what we will be talking about in tomorrow's devotion when we study what Paul meant when he said, "And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love." (1 Corinthians 13:13)

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works!(part 12)

"When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things." 1 Corinthians 13:11


John Lennon wrote a song called, "All You Need Is Love" and the lyrics say, "There's nothing you can do that can't be done, nothing you can sing that can't be sung. Nothing you can say but you can learn how to play the game. It's easy.  All you need is love.  All you need is love.  All you need is love, love.  Love is all you need.  Nothing you can know that isn't known.  Nothing you can see that isn't shown.  Nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be. It's easy.  All you need is love.  All you need is love.  All you need is love, love.  Love is all you need."


While John Lennon had the right intent in trying to get the world to embrace love he was lacking wisdom and discernment because while love is the most excellent way as we have learned in this study; God has also given us more of Himself through imparting spiritual gifts to His body. God wants us to operate in those gifts to build up, edify, and strengthen one another and to use those gifts as a way of ministering to the needs of people.  But unless we become mature in our understanding of the gifts and their operation we will never be effective in using them to further the Gospel of Jesus Christ.


This is what Paul is telling us in 1 Corinthians 13:11 when he says, "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things." In essence he is saying grow up.  Learn to love first and then as you move in the gifts God has given you don't fight about who is bigger, better, wiser, etc. You are all needed and necessary parts of the body.  If you spend any amount of time around a group of children you will witness many fights and arguments over trivial matters that don't amount to anything. If you try to reason with them they will argue with you and if you tryto stop them they will continue to press the issue.  Why? Because they are immature and believe wholeheartedly that what they are doing is right and they believe their case is worthy to be defended.  They are lacking wisdom and discernment!  If you were to track those children into adulthood and show them a video of the fight they would tell you how foolish and immature they were back then.


This is what Paul is trying to get the Corinthian Church andus today to understand.  Remember Paul persecuted and killed people because he truly believed that he was doing the work of God.  No one could have convinced him he was wrong at the time.  It wasn'tuntil he had a personal encounter with Jesus Christ on the Damascus road that he came to understand the error of his ways. And it was after that where his life was transformed and he became the voice of God for all people who have said yes to a relationship with Jesus Christ! So Paul understands what immaturity can do in a person's life and what it can do to the lives of the people around them.  It destroys them!


We have to be willing to be taught and be willing to grow up in wisdom and understanding or we will do the same things to ourselves and the people in our lives.  We don't want to be a people like those in Corinth who Paul said, "And I, brethren, could not speakto you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?" (1 Corinthians 3:1-1)


Peter also said something similar in 1 Peter 2:1-3 when he said, "Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious."  Also see Hebrews 5:12-14 and Ephesians 4:14 for further study.  It is time we put away our childish ideas, beliefs, and actions so we can become effectual in presenting the pure Word of God to the people we are ministering to.  It is time to set aside childish words that destroy the people around us. It is time to become Christ like in our thoughts, words, and actions!  Becoming spiritually mature is a process that takes time but in the end it leads to a life that reflects JesusChrist!  It is worth it!


Paul said that he spoke, understood, and thought as achild.  Isn't that exactly what children do?  They speak first, then understand,and then think.  But a mature adult is to think first, understand second, and then speak because in the midst of the thinking and understanding we are being taught by the Holy Spirit and for the mature person who submits to what they are being taught; their words become life giving!  Tomorrow we will look at what Paul meant when he said, "For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known." (1Corinthians 13:12)

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works!(part 11)

"For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away." 1Corinthians 13:9-10


Once again Paul speaks of the gifts being done away with but he even goes a step further in saying, "For we know in part and we prophesy in part".  Why did he say this?  We have to look at the chapters before and after chapter thirteen to really gain an understanding of what Paul is saying and why he is saying it.  In chapter twelve Paul is exhorting the Corinthian Church to work together and he explains how each person has a part and how the whole body needs to work together to make the body effective.  By the tone of his writing it is obvious there were divisions in the church and probably a lot of infighting and prideful actions by the members of the church.  Sound familiar?


Look at what he says in 1 Corinthians 12:20-26 to confirm this is what was happening.  "But now indeed there are many members, yet one body. And the eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you"; nor again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you." No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary. And those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor; and our unpresentable parts have greater modesty, but our presentable parts have no need.  But God composed the body, having given greater honor to that part which lacks it, that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it."


The word schism means: the division of a group into opposing factions.  Paul spoke against division in the body in many of his writings and in Matthew 12:25b Jesus warned what happens to a house that is divided when He said, "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand."  So we know that division is wrong but what does that have to do with this verse of Scripture?  In the context of what Paul is writing about in chapter thirteen he is trying to tell us that the more excellent way is love because when we are rooted and grounded in love we are bonded together and there is no division.


If I would have written verses nine and ten I would have written something like this, "People do you not understand?  The gifts you are operating in are amazing but they will one day be gone. Don't think you are better than somebody else just because you have a different gift because you're not!  Love each other because love is greater than the gifts and it is the only thing that will be present after Christ comes back!  Quit majoring on the minors! Grow up and quit acting like little kids arguing on the playground and fighting about who is stronger or prettier! Enough is enough!"  Aren't you glad I didn't write the Bible?  Paul says it so much more eloquently, but now maybe this will help you understand what he is saying in this verse.


In chapter fourteen Paul is exhorting the Corinthians to gain an understanding of the spiritual gifts. He gives a detailed outline of how and why they gifts are to be used.  In verse 20 he says, "Brethren, do not be children in understanding; however, in malice be babes, but in understanding be mature."  Once again he is saying to them and to us today that we are to grow up in our understanding so that we do not harm others with our limited understanding.  Love is the more excellent way because God is love and Jesus said, ""I am the way, the truth, and the life." (John 14:6a) which confirms that love is the more excellent way!


I will say what I have said in the past again if we are love motivated, grace filled, and purpose driven our lives will become a reflection of Jesus Christ!  We will not become boastful or proud in how we interact with people and we will know when, where, and how to use the gifts of the Spirit that have been given to us and they will produce lasting fruit in our lives and in the lives of those we minister to.


And when Jesus who is "That which is perfect has come" we will hear Him say, "'Well done,good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'" (Matthew 25:21)  The gifts and talents we have been given, whether they are the spiritual gifts, individual talents, money, etc., are temporal things that have been entrusted to us. For the person who becomes mature in their understanding they will use those wisely and for them there is a great and mighty reward.


It is so important for us to become mature people who live Christ centered lives so that from the center of that life His love flows from us and we use His gifts for His Kingdom work!  There is no other way to be effectual in ministering His Gospel!  Tomorrow we will expand on this topic even more when we look at what Paul meant when He said, "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things." (1 Corinthians13:11)

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works!(part 10)

"Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away." 1 Corinthians 13:8


I have heard so many sermons on this topic and I have read many articles about this verse but every time I walked away with a gnawing feeling in my stomach as if there was something they were missing.  Some denominations even use this verse as a way of denying that the gifts of the Spirit are for today which is ludicrous because prophesies, tongues, and knowledge are necessary, needed,and useful.  To say they are not, is to say that the Holy Spirit is of no value and He has no place in the body of Christ. But then again isn't that exactly what we are seeing in many modern day churches today?


There are so many manmade religious traditions, programs, services, and the like that never incorporate the gifts of the Spirit because to them the gifts of the Spirit are not for today.  And do you know what has resulted from this kind of thinking?  We have an immature body of believers that live their lives no different than people in the world; they do not exercise the power that has been given to them because they have never been weaned off of the breast of the elementary teachings about God. To confirm this is true take the time to read Hebrews 5:12-14 and Hebrews 6:1-3.  The body of Christ has to become mature and able to rightly divide the Word of God if we are ever going to see the power ofGod released and do what Jesus said we could in John 14:12-31. (Take the time and read this passage)


With this understanding let's look at what Paul really meant when he wrote this verse of Scripture.  The word "fails" in verse eight is derived from the Greek word Ekpipto which means to fall powerless, to fall to the ground, to be without effect.  You might say, "Well I have experienced failed love" but that is why it is important to understand that love is not an emotion though we can express love in emotion.  Love is not a thought though we can have thoughts of love.  Love is not an action though we can express love in an action. Love is God and God is love!  (1 John 4:7-8)  So what Paul is saying when he says that "love never fails" is that God never fails!  And if everything we do is motivated by God (love) we will not fail either!


The devil wants us to believe we can fail and he does everything he can to deceive us; but he is a liar and it is time we stop believing his lies.  The reason he has been able to convince us that this lie is truth is because so many Christians have tuned out the voice of the Holy Spirit through false teachings that tell them He is not necessary or needed and that His gifts are not for today.  It is time we silence the devil's voice in the church of Jesus Christ!  If you have said yes to Jesus Christ and been baptized in the Holy Spirit you cannot fail my friend because God's love in you cannot fail!  It is all powerful and eternal!  It is in understanding this truth where we are able to understand what Paul means when he says, "But where there are prophesies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away."


When Jesus Christ returns and we are reunited with Him to live for eternity in heaven there will be no need for any of these gifts.  Think about it.  In the Garden of Eden, before sin entered the world, Adam didn't need the gift of prophesy because God communed with him and spoke to him on a daily basis.  Adam knew God's will because God made it known to him. He didn't need the gift of tongues because he walked with God and God spoke plainly to him because there was no physical separation between God and man.  He didn't need the gift of knowledge because he had the full knowledge of God because God revealed it to him each day.  And when we are reunited with Christ at the Second Coming this perfect relationship will be restored and none of us will need the gifts either.


But until that takes place these gifts, given to us by God,are necessary because the devil is still permitted to operate in this world until Christ returns.  These gifts are gifts of love for you and me!  And when we accept these gifts and walk in them we put to death the works of the devil in our lives.  But what Paul really wants us to understand is that even though all the temporal gifts that will one day pass away, edify the body of Christ, love is the more excellent way to live!  Because with God's love operating in us and flowing through us we cannot fail in anything we think, say, or do.  God's love is perfect and it is what perfects us!


We will investigate this even further tomorrow when we look at verses nine and ten.  But for now I want us to meditate on these passages and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal wisdom and knowledge in regards to Paul's words to us today.  May you be filled with the fullness of the knowledge that has been given to you by the Holy Spirit and may you grow up into the head of that knowledge, which is Jesus Christ!  For it is in coming to understand the depth of His love for you where you will be empowered to allow that love to flow from you into the lives of those around you.

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works!(part 9)

(Love) "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." 1 Corinthians 13:7


Today we are going to study what Paul meant when he said that love believes and hopes all things and how we can become people who have our minds renewed to the truth so that we do not become defiled in our thinking about other people. We are going to start with what Paul meant when he said that love believes all things.  Paul is not telling us to be gullible and naïve! He is telling us to walk in wisdom and discernment; not being moved by what our eyes see or our ears hear.  A person may be amplifying sin in their life or they may have demonic activity driving them to do bad things, but the heart of the person who believes all things; looks beyond their sinful actions to the heart of the matter just like Jesus did in His ministry.


Paul described this person best in Titus 1:15 when he said, "To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled."  Though in the context of this passage Paul is speaking about the false teachers who were judging and condemning people by the type of meats they were eating; the principle of what he is saying still applies to what we are talking about today. We are never to judge or condemn any person for the things they allow intheir lives.  Their allowing something in their life at the present moment doesn't mean they will always choose to allow it.  Or just because they may have demonic activity driving them, doesn't mean they will always be bound by it.


Just think about yourself for a moment.  How many things did you allow in your life and how many poor choices did you make before you came to a revelation knowledge of Jesus Christ?  I am talking about the life changing knowledge that moved your heart, changed your desires,and caused you to change the way you lived.  Words and actions are temporal things that change with growth and maturity.  So to look upon a person who is committing a sin or who has committed as a lost cause, is foolish.  Demonic activity is also temporal because we have been given the power to cast out demons.  So to discount a person from change just because they are bound by demons is foolish as well.  The person who believes all things knows that at any moment a man can turn to God and repent and when he does he receives the same reward as the person who never made those poor choices.  They also know that at any moment a person can be delivered from demons and repent and they too will receive the same reward.


In other words we are to never discount a person from salvation or restoration based on what we see or hear them doing.  We are to believe the best and pray for them to be moved to repentance or deliverance. We are to believe what the Bible says and interact with people the way Jesus did. He didn't condemn, freak out, gossip, or judge the people caught in sin or bound by demons.  He knew who He was and He knew the power that had been given Him to reach them with the message of salvation and restoration, and He walked in that power. If given the opportunity we are to do the same thing.  If not given the opportunity, we are to pray for them and believe that God hears and answers our prayers even if we do not see the manifestation of it in the present moment.


Gaining this understanding is what leads us to hope all things because hope is what keeps our faith alive.  Remember what Proverbs 13:12 says, "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life." Let me explain.  Have you ever heard people say things like, "She is a hopeless cause" or "He won't change. There's no hope for him"?  What happens to your heart when you believe these lies?  I know for me I get a sick feeling in my heart and I begin to doubt that change is possible for anyone,including myself.  This causes me to lose faith because I begin to adopt a mindset of hopelessness.


But for the person who is love motivated, grace filled, and purpose driven they don't believe the lie of hopelessness.  They understand that with God ALL things are possible! It is not the responsibility of any person to change their actions or to quit living in a sinful lifestyle in order for us to believe and hope all things. Their choices should not have an effect on us.  We have to believe and hope all things are possible if we are going to walk in love and bear the fruit of love in our lives.  I want to leave us with a story from Mark 9:17-29 for us to meditate on so we can gain a better understanding of what Paul said about love believing and hoping all things.  This story is about a person who has demonic activity in their life.  Please read other stories about people who Jesus encountered who were living sinful lives to gain even more wisdom and understanding in regards to what Paul is saying in 1Corinthians 13:7.  May we all grow inwisdom and knowledge as we prepare for tomorrow's devotion where Paul said that love never fails.


"Then one of the crowd answered and said, "Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not." He answered him and said, "O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me." Then they brought him to Him. And when he saw Him, immediately the spirit convulsed him, and he fell on the ground and wallowed, foaming at the mouth. So He asked his father,"How long has this been happening to him?"


And he said, "From childhood. And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us." Jesus said to him, "If you can believe, all things arepossible to him who believes." Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, "Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!" When Jesus saw that the people came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it,"Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more!" Then the spirit cried out, convulsed him greatly, and came out of him. And he became as one dead, so that many said,"He is dead." But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, "Why could we not cast it out?" So He said to them, "This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting."

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works!(part 8)

(Love) "bears all things, believes all things, hopes allthings, endures all things."


Please take the time to sit alone in a quiet space as you read today's devotion. Don't rush through it and go on about your day for this is such an important message that needs to be meditated on, understood, and digested for it to take root in your heart. It is a crucial truth that needs to be understood by the body of Christ because it is the very thing that is lacking and causing division among the body. So as you read this pray for the Holy Spirit to grant you wisdom so youare able to understand it and then to walk it out in your daily life. I am breaking this verse up into two parts beginning with the phrases "bears all things" and "endures all things" and then tomorrow we will look at the phrases "believes all things" and "hopes all things".


When Paul says that love bears and endures all things he is not talking about just having the strength to endure when you are going through a trial. He is talking about love that covers the ugly sin of another person's life.He is speaking of the love of Christ that bore our sins in His body on the Cross and then covered them with His blood.The blood of Jesus Christ conceals the sins of man and when God looks at us as New Covenant Disciples He sees us through that blood. He no longer sees us as sinners and He no longer sees our sin. He sees us as His righteousness and He sees us as NEW creations in Him. It is man who looks upon man and sees a sinner and it is man who exposes and brings the sin of another man's life into illumination, not God!


This is the very thing that Paul is trying to get the Corinthian Church and us to understand because it was causing division then and it is exactly what causes division in the body of Christ today. The verbs in this verse are present tense which tells us that these are attitudes and expressions of love that we are to have in our everyday life. But it is not possible to execute these attitudes and expressions of love in the flesh. It is only possible to execute them by the power of the Holy Spirit who indwells us! You see only the Holy Spirit can remind us of God's love that flows through us and that this love covered ALL sin with the shed blood of Jesus Christ!


When we allow the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us in this truth we can execute this love of bearing and enduring all things which means to cover, conceal, and silence! It literally means to cover as in a roof that covers the house and keeps out the rain or a ship whose steel sides keep the water from coming into the hull of the ship. True love NEVER broadcasts another person's sin and it NEVER openly exposes that sin through gossip! This love in operation is what keeps the heart from becoming embittered and it keeps the heart rooted in grace!


The love of God that bears and endures all things does not criticize, point out faults, spread gossip, point fingers, or expose! On the contrary it conceals, covers, protects, and silences! It is the expression of love that Jesus showed to ALL the people He encountered who were caught in sin and exposed by man. He knew their sin but didn't expose it! He knew the effects of their sin but didn't illuminate it! He didn't speak of it and condemn them for it! He covered it, concealed it, and then on the Cross He erased it!


Some of you might say, "But what about the person who is abusing someone or the person who is doing something illegal; what about this kind of sin?" There are laws of the land that require us to report illegal activity but the love of God in us is NOT to announce the sin to the world or to illuminate it or cast judgment on the person who has committed the sin. We are to follow Christ's example! This is what Paul is talking about in this passage. When we walk in this kind of love it empowers us to pray for the person who commits the sin. It keeps us from becoming embittered and enraged at the person. It protects our hearts from becoming hardened. It keeps our minds focused on the redemptive power of Jesus Christ to redeem the life of the person caught in sin. It securely fastens us to the grace that was freely given to us through Jesus Christ which keeps us humble and protected from becoming prideful and in danger of falling into a sinful action ourselves!


This love of God that bears and endures all things is complete and lacking nothing! And it is God's perfect love in us that casts out the fear that makes us want to expose and illuminate another's man's sin. It is the perfect love of God in us that conceals a matter and doesn't repeat it to a noninvolved party. Tomorrow we will look at what it means for love to believe and hope all things. May we all come to the maturity of wisdom as we learn to love with a Christ centered love and may we be able to discern the truth and walk in it daily.

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works! (part 7)

(Love) “does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;” 1 Corinthians 13:6Have you ever heard someone say, “They got what they deserved” or “Too bad they made their bed and now they have to lie in it”? These are very common sayings when we hear of a person who ends up in trouble. But these sayings and others like them do not come from God. God is love and God’s love flowing through us never rejoices when the news of someone else’s suffering is reported. True love that comes from God only rejoices in the truth and the truth is that no one can ever do anything that can outstretch the arm of God’s love.

There are always consequences in the natural for poor choices or bad decisions but the heart of the believer should never rejoice when they hear of those consequences. Sometimes it is easy to feel justified in our attitudes especially when we see someone who has done something horribly wrong. But when we understand God’s amazing love for all people we don’t react from our humanistic mindset, but rather we allow the Spirit of God to remind us of the truth. This leads us to pray for the person found in a fault instead of judging them and condemning them for the sin they have committed. When we see someone fall into sin we are to grieve for them and pray that they will come to the place of repentance. All of us are one choice away from falling into a temptation to sin and none of us are without sin.

Jesus died once and for all for all sin and our sins are forgiven but that doesn’t mean that we won’t ever sin again. The heart of the person who understands these truths will never rejoice in iniquity. They understand what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 10:12 when he said, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.”When our hearts are so in tuned to the voice of the Holy Spirit we are able to discern the truth of God’s Word and that truth keeps our minds fixed on loving all people with a Christ centered love, even the hardened criminal. I know that sometimes we want to see justice done to the person who has committed a sin and there are laws of the land that will bring justice; but that doesn’t mean we are to become embittered at the person because at any point they could turn their heart towards God and repent.

I have seen many people who were hardened criminals give their hearts to Christ and completely turn their lives around. Paul was one of these people himself! The modern day church is built on the writings of Paul and yet if Paul was alive today and did what he did and then repented; I can guarantee that 99% of the churches would never have him in to speak to their congregations. Have you ever thought about that before? The very writings we quote from when leading people to the Lord or mentoring people are written by a hardened criminal who murdered people! When we operate in a mindset of love we can discern the difference between reality and truth. A person’s reality may bear witness to a life of sin, but the truth is that sin was already paid for by the blood of Jesus! So the truth is that when God’s love is present and the heart of the one who has committed a sin repents; they are restored by the truth and that truth makes them free. So as disciples of Jesus Christ we are to let love lead us in how we think, speak, and act towards the person who has committed a sin and we are to let that love guard our hearts so that we don’t become prideful and in danger of falling into a sin ourselves.

The reason love rejoices in the truth is because the truth always reveals the heart of God! And the heart of God is not shaken at the sight of man’s sin. He is steadfast and unwavering in His love for all mankind no matter what sin they have committed. It is man who is moved at the sight of another man’s sin, not God. It is man who condemns the sinner, not God. God doesn’t condemn anyone, no matter how much they have sinned. John 3:17 says, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” So my challenge to all of us today is to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal areas of our hearts that need to be healed of the sin of judgment for the sinner. And to ask Him to give us wisdom and understanding of the truth so that we can rejoice in that truth whenever iniquity is present and not be moved by what our eyes see or our ears hear. This will prepare us for our study tomorrow so that we are able to understand what it means to operate in a mindset of love that “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” (1 Corinthians 13:7)

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works! (part 6)

(Love) “does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;” 1 Corinthians 13:5

Every time I read this verse I get an image of Jesus walking through the streets loving people, ministering to them, and giving us an example to follow in how we are to act, react, and interact with the people in our lives. Have you ever really studied Jesus’ ministry and looked at the way He treated people? His ministry was love motivated, grace filled, and purpose driven. The ministry of our lives can be a mirror image of His if we are willing to accept instruction from the Holy Spirit as our helper and our guide.

If we do not do this there is no way we can implement Paul’s instruction in 1 Corinthians 13:5 because these attributes belong to a spiritually minded person, not someone operating from a carnal mindset. Remember that in 1 Corinthians 2:16 Paul says that we have been given the mind of Christ so we know it is possible to operate in a spiritual mindset on a consistent basis, but we must be willing to allow the Holy Spirit to instruct us.

Jesus Christ is the ONLY one who walked the face of this earth and was never rude, never self seeking, never provoked, and never had an evil thought. So our ability to execute Paul’s instruction comes not from a humanistic, self willed effort, but from being spiritually minded when we are interacting with people. We are to be love motivated, grace filled, and purpose driven! In Matthew 5:16 Jesus said, “Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." The works of our lives are on display before man and if we allow the Holy Spirit to instruct us and we are spiritually minded we will not be rude, self seeking, provoked, or full of evil thoughts, and the works of our lives will bring glory to the Father!

So how do we do this? It can only be done by doing what I said earlier which is by being love motivated, grace filled, and purpose driven each and every day of our lives. A love motivated individual is not rude and they are not provoked to angry outbursts. They do not give place to the devil when they do get angry and they guard the words that proceed out of their mouth, making sure that they impart grace to the hearer. (Ephesians 4:26-29) They ask these questions before they act or react: Will this edify and can I say it with grace?

They are spiritually mature and will hold their tongue if they cannot answer yes to these questions. They allow Christ’s love to flow from them and speak only what they hear the Spirit saying. Jesus gave us many examples to follow in His ministry because He was constantly being confronted but He never behaved rudely. In fact He protected others from rude people. Operating in a mindset of love not only keeps us from acting or reacting rudely, but it also opens the door to patience, kindness, and walking in forgiveness for those who have offended us.

A love motivated individual is not self seeking because they understand that their life has purpose and they are constantly being moved by the power of the Holy Spirit in the direction of that purpose, just as Jesus was. When we accept our life purpose as Jesus did we know why we are here and each person we come into contact with is a reminder of that purpose. Then we will seek God’s will for that relationship and become selfless, only looking to fulfill God’s will in our lives.

A selfless individual does not say and do things that will bring division, strife, judgment, or condemnation. They do not think evil thoughts about themselves or others and they are not provoked to anger. They do not react in the flesh with attitudes of rudeness but rather they pursue peace with all people. This opens the door for the Holy Spirit to work through them to do the will of the Father. In order to become an individual who is love motivated, grace filled, and purpose driven one must become mature in their Christian walk being filled with wisdom and understanding of all three.

This is what it means to abide in Christ and to have Christ abide in us. When we abide in Him each day we are saying yes to His love, grace, and purpose for our lives. My prayer is that the entire body of Christ will be willing to lay aside selfish ambition in order for us to become like minded with Christ and able to fulfill His commission to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. When we finally accept God’s love for all people, His grace that is sufficient, and His purpose for our lives we are able to move into maturity as His body and we will make an impact in this world with the Gospel. Tomorrow we will look at what it means to not rejoice in iniquity, but rather rejoice in the truth.

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works! (Part 5)

“Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;” 1 Corinthians 13:4

It is very interesting how Paul makes a transition in verse four from speaking of the gifts and of personal sacrifice to then giving a detailed definition of what love is and what love isn’t. He really makes it very clear that the love he is speaking of is not a humanistic, self willed love. It is a love that can only come from God into our spirit man and then flow from us to others. There is no way any of us could ever execute this kind of love for any extended period of time because even though our spirit may be willing our flesh gets weak and it reacts carnally from time to time.

It is clear that Paul wants us to understand the importance of accepting God’s love first and then submitting our flesh under the authority of the Holy Spirit so that we are able to produce the lasting fruit of the Spirit in our lives! Remember once again what Paul said in Galatians 5:22-26, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.”

And remember what John said in 1 John 4:7-11, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 1 John 4:7-11

So once again these verses remind us that our human effort to love is futile and in vain. God is love and only the Spirit of God in us can execute the kind of love Paul is speaking of in verses four and five of this passage. I am experiencing this in techno-color right now in my life because of the situation we are in. We moved to St. Louis with the promise of jobs, housing, and support only to have it unravel upon our arrival due to circumstances beyond our control. Each and every morning I have to submit my flesh under the authority of the Holy Spirit and ask for Him to execute this kind of love in me and then through me because my flesh is weak from the trial.

It is only by the grace of God that I can do this because my own self effort to stay positive and hopeful failed two weeks ago when I realized that our few week hotel stay may turn into several months if we don’t have a miracle happen. But the love of God is long-suffering and it keeps me focused on the promises of God and not on the reality of my circumstance. The love of God is kind and it keeps me waking up every morning with a smile on my face and words of encouragement for my husband and children. It also gives me the strength to greet each motel worker with a hug and a word of hope for their day.

The love of God does not envy and it is what keeps me secure in being content in my circumstance. I daily remind myself of Paul’s words in Philippians 4:10-13 where he says, “But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at last your care for me has flourished again; though you surely did care, but you lacked opportunity. Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

The love of God does not parade itself and is not puffed up and it is my reminder to never become prideful once we are back in a place of abundance and no longer in a place of need. The love of God in me produces humility but once again it is not a self imposed humility but a humility that is produced when I understand and accept the grace of God that was given to me on the day I accepted Christ as my Savior! And it is this understanding that will keep me from becoming prideful or boastful once the abundance of wealth is restored and it will help me to resist the devil when I am tempted to be prideful. Remember what James said in James 4:6-7, “But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”

The love of God is the only love that can empower any of us to walk in the Spirit and not fulfill the desire of our flesh to react to trial and tribulation. There is nothing lacking in the love of God! The full measure of God’s love was given to us on the day of our salvation but it is our responsibility to receive it and walk in it on a daily basis. It is God’s incredible love for us that keeps us grounded in our faith and it empowers us to walk by faith and not by sight.

I want to leave you today with Paul’s words to us from Romans 5:1-5 and I want to encourage you to meditate on these verses before you join me tomorrow for the next study on 1 Corinthians 13. “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works! (Part 4)

“And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.” 1 Corinthians 13:3

One of my life’s goals has always been to live on 10% of my income and to give away 90% to those in need. I have always been a giver and I find great joy in giving to the needs of others. I have never been critical or judgmental of the person I am helping and I have never grumbled or complained about the amount of money I give or the sacrifice it costs me in order to continue to give. I have studied the lives of philanthropists to see how they spread their wealth and I have been fascinated by their incredible attitudes in regards to giving.

But I must say that I understand what Paul is talking about in this Scripture because many of the world’s philanthropists throughout history have not been born again believers and the sad reality is that all their sacrificial giving will amount to nothing on judgment day. You can’t buy your way into heaven and your “good deed” efforts won’t secure a VIP entrance into heaven. There is only one way to get into heaven and that is by believing in Jesus Christ! So all the effort the unbelieving giver puts forth and all the good they do in the world profits them nothing!

For the believer who gives of their finances the sad reality is that their giving won’t amount to anything either if it is not being motivated by love. Do you remember Paul’s words in Philippians 2:3 where he said, “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.” When anything other than sacrificial love and humility are the motivator for giving it profits you nothing because it is an act of the flesh, not of the Spirit! I came to this harsh revelation years ago when I found myself feeling pretty darn good about myself for being such an incredible giver and the Spirit spoke to me and said, “What you are doing is great but you have received your reward and it is not a lasting one. Learn from me and I will teach you how to have an eternal reward in the earth and in heaven by teaching you how to love first before you give.”

I must say that was a powerful time of instruction because I didn’t want to examine the motive of my heart because I was convinced that my motives were pure and driven by the love of Christ. But isn’t that exactly what the power of deception does? It makes us believe that a lie is truth! But over time I put myself under submission to the Holy Spirit and He broke the spirit of pride that had built up the wall of deception around my heart. What came out of that time of learning has taught me how to love in a whole new way! And now when I give to the needs of others it isn’t so I can reach my own self-made, humanistic goal of living on 10% and giving away 90% but so that I can give complete glory to the only one who deserves honor and His name is Jesus Christ!

But I can tell you that there are great and awesome rewards for the person who gives with love as the motivator! Some of those rewards are physical and some are spiritual but all of them bring long lasting joy and peace to the heart of the love motivated giver! Jesus made us a promise when He said, “Give and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” (Luke 6:38) The wise man whose sole motivation in life is to love above all else understands the operation of Kingdom dynamics and they experience the promises of God in their personal lives, including the promise in this Scripture!

Something else that Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:3 is that even if we sacrifice our own bodies it will profit us nothing if that sacrifice isn’t motivated by love! Jesus told us that, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13) But right before He said this He said, “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” (John 15:9-12)

You see the only sacrifice of ourselves that matters to God is fully accepting His sacrificial love for us! And when we accept that sacrificial love then we can extend it to others and lay down our lives for them. Whether it is laying down our pride, our selfish ambition, our physical bodies, or anything else that resides in our flesh, if it is love motivated, it is authentic and will produce lasting fruit in our lives! All other sacrificial offerings profit us nothing! This is what Paul wants us to understand! Let us join together and pray for one another that we will come to a complete understanding of what love is so that we can make an impact in this world and do what Jesus did during His ministry and even more as He has promised to those who believe in Him.

Love And Grace! The Only Anti-Venom That Works! (Part 3)

“And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.” 1 Corinthians 13:2

In order to really understand what Paul is talking about in this Scripture we have to look at some of Paul’s other writings. In 1 Corinthians 8:1-3 Paul said, “Now concerning things offered to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies. And if anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know. But if anyone loves God, this one is known by Him.” In other words knowledge without love is incomplete! We have to have both operating in unison in order to be effective because without love, knowledge puffs up the mind of the believer and causes them to stumble and they walk in the flesh, not in the Spirit.

Here is something else to think about. Did you know that every person who has said yes to a relationship with Jesus Christ and are baptized in the Holy Spirit have the fullness of knowledge given to them? And did you know that they have the right to operate in the gifts and are given the power of God to perform miracles, signs, and wonders? For verification of what I just wrote lets read what Jesus said in John 14:12-14 and verse 26. “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.” “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”

But what Paul is saying in 1 Corinthians 13:2 is that having all of these things are great but without love you are incomplete. Love has to be the motivator behind them! It is good to operate in the gifts and to have solid faith but as Paul said in 1 Corinthians 12:31 there is a more excellent way. And that way is to love first! This is why in Ephesians 3:19 he said, “to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” And again in Colossians 3:12 -14 he says, “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, long-suffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.” Did you catch that? LOVE IS THE BOND OF PERFECTION!

In other words it is the glue that holds us together in our own lives and in our ministries as we will see in the next several days of study. But we have to make the conscious decision to accept God’s love for ourselves and be willing to extend that same love to others or we will be ineffectual in doing what we have been called to do as disciples of Jesus Christ! It is in understanding God’s incredible love for us and how His love operates where we are strengthened and filled with all the fullness of God.

In Ephesians 3:16-19 Paul wrote, “that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

Are you beginning to understand what I am sharing with you? Love is the key that opens the door to being filled with the fullness of God! Only having a partial understanding of love is what has caused dividing lines in the church today. It is what has caused man to adhere to religious doctrine instead of an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. It is what causes quarrels and strife among the members in the body of Christ. It is what causes us to judge others. It is what causes the body of Christ to be in discord instead of being one accord and like-minded.

It is the very thing that makes us look down on others and view ourselves as better than someone else, instead of doing what Paul told us to do in Philippians 2:1-4 when he said, “Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”

Love brings unity and oneness! If the church of Jesus Christ would understand this and operate in love we would not have the divisions we have in the body of Christ. We would not have the quarrels and strife over man-made doctrine. We would not use guilt and condemnation as a tactic to get people to change. We would not judge others. We would not operate in fear. We would see the power of God unleashed like we read about in the book of Acts. We would see miracles, signs, and wonders being reported on every news channel in the world. Love has to be the first and foremost motivator! I will leave you today with Paul’s words to us once again from 1 Corinthians 13:2 and I pray that you are beginning to understand the importance of love. “And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.”