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Showing posts with label Faith. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Faith. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 20, 2024

Faith “Making” God or Idols - 40 Day Journey with Martin Luther – Day 6 - Purity 1279

 

Faith “Making” God or Idols - 40 Day Journey with Martin Luther – Day 6 - Purity 1279

Purity 1279 02/20/2024 Purity 1279 Podcast

Purity 1279 on YouTube: 



Good morning,

Today’s photo of the sun shining bright over the Dockside Diner, while its rays transform a fountain into a blazing cross-like flower and create a light pathway on surface of Echo Lake, comes to us from yours truly as I took a moment yesterday to capture this scene and to bask in the sunshine after two days of rain, while on vacation on planet Disney World since Friday.

While it may not be a “whole new world”, it is different reality down here, and while I have enjoyed the fun Disney World has to offer, and even had a real moment of appreciation for how Walt Disney’s vision has positively impacted generations, I am struck with melancholy when I realize that the world broken by sin can’t be saved by “just our imaginations” or our hopes and dreams  or even our best efforts and that as wonderful as this place is in some aspects it is quite terrible and perhaps even sinister in others.  Beyond the materialism and selling of potent potables, merch, toys, and thrills for circumstantial happiness, the concepts and symbols that hold the spirit of anti-Christ are at times hard to ignore. For example, dragons are a symbol of the enemy and there are lots here.  

But instead of rallying against the EVIL today, I will focus on the good and realize that this place was created for people to come to have some fun and express their love for one another by sharing their experiences together and remembering more innocent times from their childhoods.  And when I see the love that parents have for their children and families have for each other, it gives me hope that they may already know the love of the Lord or one day could.   The evil and the harsh realities of the world can’t be escaped from, but they can be overcome through the love of God that is found when we put our faith in Jesus.  So with that hope, we seek to draw closer to the Lord in the season that prepares us for the celebration of Christ’s resurrection, Lent.

It’s the sixth day of Lent and so we continue my personal walkthrough of Gracia Grindal’s 40 Day Journey with Martin Luther to observe and celebrate the Lenten season.   In this walkthrough Grindal’s devotional,  it is our hope that we will get to know Martin Luther a little better as we seek to draw closer to the Lord on our journey to Resurrection Sunday – Easter.  

And so we continue.

Journey Day 6

YOU ARE TO HAVE NO other Gods.

What is this?

Answer: We are to fear, love, and trust God above all things.

A "god" is the term for that to which we are to look for all good and in which we are to find refuge in all need. Therefore, to have a god is nothing else than to trust and believe in that one with your whole heart. As I have often said, it is the trust and faith of the heart alone that make both God and an idol. If your faith and trust are right, then your God is the true one. Conversely, where your trust is false and wrong, there you do not have the true God. For these two belong together, faith and God. Anything on which your heart relies and depends, I say, that is really your God.

BIBLICAL WISDOM

Then God spoke all these words: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous God... Exodus 20:1-5a

SILENCE FOR MEDITATION

Pause the podcast, or stop reading, and sit quietly for 60 seconds or 1, 5, 10, 15 minutes or however long you feel comfortable with and have time for. Focus on your breath and the calm stillness in the present moment that is always available to us in God’s creation. Meditate on Martin Luther’s comments for the day, and the content of today’s Biblical wisdom.

QUESTIONS TO PONDER

     How is it possible that our faith and trust can "make both God and an idol"?

I don’t like that phrasing, “make both God and an idol” when it is removed from the overall context of Luther’s statement because nothing we do “makes God” – He is self-existent and completely holy (set apart, different) but as Luther points out in his previous statement to “to have a god is nothing else than to trust and believe in that one with your whole heart” and what we put our faith in – whether the One True God revealed in the pages of the Bible or some other created concept or thing becomes “our god”.   So faith in Yahweh, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit – makes the One True God of the Bible “our God” while faith in Buddha, money, ourselves, our families, our job, or any other false religion makes those things “our god”, small g, – or more accurately “our idol”.  While our faith makes something “our personal God (big G) or god/idol ( little g), it doesn’t make God who He is.

     What are some of the things (idols) our culture encourages us to place our faith and trust in?

As I included in my list above, our culture encourages us to put our faith in ourselves, our families, our jobs, our money. My western society tends to distrust or deny the supernatural, so self-sufficiency is the biggest idol in my culture here in the United States. Governments, political parties, individual philosophies, institutions, and corporations are a close second.

     We are instructed to both "fear" and "love" God. In practical terms, what do you think it means to fear God? To love God?

To fear God is to respect Him and His wisdom and power, and quite frankly to really fear the judgment He will bring to those who are not safe in Christ.  To love Him is to know Him and the fact that He is good, righteous, just, and holy, and that beyond those attributes is His love for us. To Fear and to Love God is to know Him, to Trust Him, and to Obey and Follow Him.

PSALM FRAGMENT

Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see. They have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell. They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk; they make no sound in their throats. Those who make them are like them; so are all who trust in them. Psalm 115:4-8

JOURNAL REFLECTIONS

     God wants to be in relationship with us. Describe in your journal how you experience your relationship with God at this time.

I experience my relationship as my constant companion through life. I blog, pray and read His word each day to stay in His presence. I pray to talk to Him. I try to obey what His word instructs us to do and try to encourage others to seek Him.  I spend my days “walking and talking to God” because I have known His love and experienced His presence. He never leaves us, but you have to spend time with Him to know He is there. My relationship with God defines who I am.

     Write about how the fear and love of God work themselves out in your daily life.

The fear of the Lord causes me to want to do what is right. The love of the Lord gives me the motivation to continue to do it.  Only His love would change a rebel like me and because He first loved me and has demonstrated and revealed His truth and love for me, I now try to abide in His Presence every day.

     It has been said that "the human heart is a factory of idols." In your journal, describe any idols that have been manufactured in your own heart's factory. What kind of "worship" do they demand of you? What would you need to do to be free of these idols?

My self-sufficiency is still a big idol. Although some self-sufficiency is unavoidable because  the world demands we work and support ourselves,  I will often not seek help because I think I can do things “by myself” but God often humbles me to reveal how inadequate I am in myself and I now more readily will admit when I can’t do something and need help.   Food is still an idol as well, as a part of me still wrongly associates food with comfort or pleasure and has demonstrated my lack of self-control over it during this vacation. I will be in full repentance mode when I return back to normal, thanks be to God.

PRAYERS FOR THE LIFE OF FAITH

Pray for yourself, your family, and your friends that they will put their faith wholly in the one true God and put away all their idols.

Lord, I pray that I, my family and friends will all put our faith in You, the One True and Only God, and put away all our idols. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

PRAYER FOR TODAY

Lord, cast out those idols in my heart that captivate me and draw me from you. Give me the faith to put all my trust in you alone. Amen.

 

(Gracia M. Grindal. 40-day Journey With Martin Luther. Kindle Edition.)

(We encourage you to purchase Grindal’s book and take the 40 Day Journey with Martin Luther for yourself by purchasing Grindal’s book wherever books are sold. You can find it online at many different sites and purchase it new, used – paper or electronic for less than $15.00).

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For those who want more evidence for Christianity than my simple encouragements provide, I offer apologist, Frank Turek’s website, https://crossexamined.org/ .

Today’s Bible verse comes to us from “The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling” By John G. Kruis.

( While Bible verses on various topics of Counseling can be found with a quick Google search, we encourage you to purchase this resource to support the late author’s work. (https://www.amazon.com/Quick-Scripture-Reference-Counseling-Kruis-ebook/dp/B00CIUJZT2?ref_=ast_author_dp )

This morning’s meditation verse comes from the section on Communication, Gossip, and Lying.

Proverbs 15:4 (NASB)
4  A soothing tongue is a tree of life, But perversion in it crushes the spirit.

Today’s verse is the second of two passages of scripture that fall under the fifteenth point of our counseling reference guide resource’s section on Communication, Gossip, and Lying.

15.     A word aptly spoken and a wise rebuke can be very helpful to others.

Today’s verse reminds us that life and death lie in the power of the tongue (Proverbs 18:21) by giving us the analogy of a soothing tongue being a tree of life, whereas a “perverse” tongue being one that crushes the spirit.  According to MacArthur’s commentary – perverse here means to “wound” or “break”, thus, to destroy one’s moral.  And that’s how negative words crush the spirit they take away our hope.  So speak soothing words of truth that will guide others to submit to God and to have the hope of life eternal that comes though faith in Christ.

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As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.

Today we continue sharing from “According to Your Word: Morning and Evening Through the New Testament” By Stephen F. Olford – A Collection of Devotional Journals: 1940-1941.

As always, I share this information for educational purposes and encourage you all to purchase Olford’s books for your own private study and to support his work.  This resource is available online for less than $10 at many sites.

MORNING READING: MARK 11

“Have faith in God.” – Mark 11:22

The writer to the Hebrews says, “Without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Heb. 11:6).

It follows then that without this faith, it is impossible to earn the Divine attestation: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17, emphasis mine), or “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt. 25:21).

Faith, in the sense of the above text, is not an attribute of God, but His essential nature. Therefore, only those who are partakers of God's divine nature are possessors of it. Moreover, it is increased as Christ (who is God's nature) is formed in me.

Lord, increase my faith. I believe, help my unbelief.[1]

---------------------------more tomorrow------------------------

Join our “Victory over the Darkness”, “The Bondage Breaker”, "Freedom in Christ" series of Discipleship Classes via the mt4christ247 podcast!

at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts

(https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154). The mt4christ247 podcast is also available on Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartradio, and Audible.com. 

These teachings are also available on the MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MT4Christ247

Email me at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and to be encouraged.

My wife, TammyLyn, also offers Christian encouragement via her Ask Seek Knock blog (https://tammylynask.blogspot.com/ ),  her Facebook Group: Ask, Seek, Knock (https://www.facebook.com/groups/529047851449098 ) and her podcast Ask, Seek, and Knock on Podbean (https://feed.podbean.com/tammalyn78/feed.xml)

“The views, opinions, and commentary of this publication are those of the author, M.T. Clark, only, and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of any of the photographers, artists, ministries, or other authors of the other works that may be included in this publication, and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities the author may represent.”

Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship


Monday, February 12, 2024

The Ultimate Faith Object – Wisdom From Dr. Neil Anderson - Purity 1272

 

The Ultimate Faith Object – Wisdom From Dr. Neil Anderson - Purity 1272

Purity 1272 02/10/2024 

Purity 1272 on YouTube: 



Good morning,

Today’s photo of a cloud-covered blazing sun over a snow-covered landscape comes to us from Connor MacCagg who shared this view from his skiing trip to the Killington Mountain Ski Resort on Sunday. 

Well, It’s Monday, and after a weekend’s continued indulgence of some sweet treats and party foods, due to my stepdaughter’s birthday party on Saturday and unbridled Super Bowl Sunday-inspired feasting, I am ready to repent! I ate so much junk yesterday that I had trouble sleeping and felt physical pain from eating so much more than I am used to – and I am here to declare that I am “done”.  Sometimes you have to learn again why it is you decided to change the way you live and a return visit to insanity can really motivate you to not do that again and to remind yourself that life is better when you live a healthy lifestyle.  

So I am in recovery from sugar and carbs and am calling it a mail-it-in Monday as I going to share this simple message I received in my email from Freedom in Christ Ministries UK, on:

“THE ULTIMATE FAITH-OBJECT

By Dr. Neil T. Anderson

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yes and forever (Hebrews 13:8)

The fact that you claim to believe is not the issue of faith. It's what you believe or in whom you believe that will determine whether or not your faith will be rewarded. Everybody walks by faith every day. Every time you drive on the highway, you do so by faith. Are the objects of your faith on the highway reliable? Most of the time they are because most drivers drive safely. But you may have been involved in an accident because you placed your faith in another driver who proved to be untrustworthy.

What happens when the object of your faith fails you? You give up on it - maybe not immediately, but how many failures would you tolerate before saying never again? Once faith is damaged or lost, it is very difficult to regain. Your belief isn't the problem; it's the object of your belief that either rewards or destroys your faith. If your marriage partner has been unfaithful to you, or a friend or relative has hurt you badly, your faith in that person is weak because he or she did not live up to your trust. When faith in a person is shattered, it may take months to rebuild it.

Some faith-objects, however, are solid. You set your watch, plan your calendar, and schedule your day believing that the Earth will continue to revolve on its axis and rotate around the sun at its current speed. If the earth's orbit shifted just a few degrees, our lives would be turned to chaos. But so far the laws governing the physical universe have been among the most trustworthy faith-objects we have.

The ultimate faith-object, of course, is not the sun, but the Son. It is His immutability - the fact that He never changes - that makes Him eminently trustworthy (Numbers 23:19; Malachi 3:6). He has never failed to be and do all that He said He would be and do. He is eternally faithful.

All I have needed Your hand has provided. Great is Your faithfulness, Lord, unto me.”  - Dr. Neil Anderson

Yes, we are to have faith in the Son – Jesus Christ.

During yesterday’s Super Bowl broadcast, there was a commercial that emphasized the love of Jesus through images of various people washing one another’s feet. The Ad wished to express Jesus’ teachings of love and no hate and the fact that “He gets us” -  which He does. Of course, He does – but let’s be sure we are also reading the word of God to make sure we “get Him” – all of Him – and that we understand who Jesus really was according to the Bible.  Yes was the suffering servant but He also didn’t mince words when it came to hell, “sinning no more”, and the Book of Revelation reveals that Jesus will return to rule and reign.  Jesus didn’t “teach hate” but He did teach us some hard truth: Loving Jesus warns us in:  

John 3:17-21 (ESV)
17  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
18  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
19  And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.
20  For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.
21  But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

So know what the Bible says about Jesus and about the things that are evil according to God. Some people are living Biblically evil lives – and don’t know it. They love darkness rather than light and they hope to claim the Son but not repent and follow Him into the light of righteous living.  But that’s not believing in the name of the Son of God – the One who was sinless and who called us to repent because the kingdom of God was at hand. So come to do what is true and come to the light, put your faith in Jesus – be saved , and follow Him.  

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For those who want more evidence for Christianity than my simple encouragements provide, I offer apologist, Frank Turek’s website, https://crossexamined.org/ .

Today’s Bible verse comes to us from “The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling” By John G. Kruis.

( While Bible verses on various topics of Counseling can be found with a quick Google search, we encourage you to purchase this resource to support the late author’s work. (https://www.amazon.com/Quick-Scripture-Reference-Counseling-Kruis-ebook/dp/B00CIUJZT2?ref_=ast_author_dp )

This morning’s meditation verses come from the section on Communication, Gossip, and Lying.

Proverbs 17:27-28 (ESV)
27  Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
28  Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.

Today’s verses are the third of five passages of scripture that fall under the eleventh point of our counseling reference guide resource’s section on Communication, Gossip, and Lying.

11.     Do not hurt your neighbor by gossip or careless talk; control your tongue.

Today’s verses warn us to restrain our words and to be “cool” to show our wisdom.  A rash, angry, or “hot” spirit can lead us to say things we will regret.  Our resource is showing us the Biblical wisdom of being careful with careless talk and controlling our tongue, so think before you speak, repeat back to people what they are saying so you can demonstrate that they have been heard, and pause before you speak.  A little patience can save us from a lot of grief, so consider restraining your speech to “be cool” and at least appear to be wise.

-----------------------------------------------------------

As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.

Today we continue sharing from “According to Your Word: Morning and Evening Through the New Testament” By Stephen F. Olford – A Collection of Devotional Journals: 1940-1941.

As always, I share this information for educational purposes and encourage you all to purchase Olford’s books for your own private study and to support his work.  This resource is available online for less than $10 at many sites.

EVENING READING: MARK 4

“Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you
use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear,
more will be given.” – Mark 4:24

Here is a very important principle in relation to the effect of God's Word in the life of an individual. “Take heed,” says the Savior, for your appreciation of and obedience to the Word of God governs its effect in life and also governs any further revelation.

The same principle is seen in Hebrews 5:12-14 and 1 Corinthians 3:1-4, where the apostle shows that owing to disobedience on the part of those who heard the Word, they had not grown sufficiently to be able to bear a heavier diet. They were unskillful, only taking milk. “Take heed” is the command and secret of growth.

May I always listen and respond to the Word of God,
and thus grow, for Your glory, Lord. Amen.[1]

---------------------------more tomorrow------------------------

Join our “Victory over the Darkness”, “The Bondage Breaker”, "Freedom in Christ" series of Discipleship Classes via the mt4christ247 podcast!

at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts

(https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154). The mt4christ247 podcast is also available on Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartradio, and Audible.com. 

These teachings are also available on the MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MT4Christ247

Email me at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and to be encouraged.

My wife, TammyLyn, also offers Christian encouragement via her Ask Seek Knock blog (https://tammylynask.blogspot.com/ ),  her Facebook Group: Ask, Seek, Knock (https://www.facebook.com/groups/529047851449098 ) and her podcast Ask, Seek, and Knock on Podbean (https://feed.podbean.com/tammalyn78/feed.xml)

“The views, opinions, and commentary of this publication are those of the author, M.T. Clark, only, and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of any of the photographers, artists, ministries, or other authors of the other works that may be included in this publication, and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities the author may represent.”

Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship


Thursday, January 11, 2024

Having a Vision for the New Life God Has For You - Purity 1245


Having a Vision for the New Life God Has For You - Purity 1245

Purity 1245 01/11/2024 Purity 1245 Podcast

Purity 1245 on YouTube: Coming Soon!

Good morning,

Today’s photo of the view of what was to become my backyard down by the River comes to us from April 17, 2020, and yours truly as I decided to take a look back into my phone’s photo archive and decided to share this scene from my first visit to the property that was to become my home, and eventually be called River House.  To those of you who may be admiring those manicured levels that go up the hill toward the back of my property,  I regret to say that my thumb isn’t as green as the previous owner’s and I only clear that first level beyond the big tree to the right.  And that big evergreen bush in the foreground and that quaint white bed frame sticking out of the ground? – They’re gone. I’m somewhat of a minimalist when it comes to yard work and because I had no intention of maintaining a “flower bed” – that metal bed frame was extracted and recycled and that big bush was an annoyance and was ripped up by the roots.  Just because something has been there for years, doesn’t mean they have to stay and if they serve no purpose or get in your way what you want to do, there is no reason to continue to work to maintain them or to keep someone else’s dream alive.  

Well, It’s Thursday and I normally share pathway photos to encourage us to get on or to keep walking on the path of Christian Discipleship but I decided to share this one because it represented a destination, a dream, a hope, and when we start walking and talking with God, we should have a vision for where we want to go. 

On that day back in 2020, I was doing a walk through of the property at 1788 State Route 9J alone because of Covid 19 restrictions and looking to see if it could serve as an adequate home for me and my children to go to as the terms of my divorce agreement called for the selling of our former home.  I looked at the property with a critical eye but I loved the view of the River, the garage, the backyard, the basement, and the first floor and although I recognized that there would have to be some renovations to change the layout upstairs to suit my children’s needs– I was overcome with the realization that “this could work” and that I wanted it and was going to make an offer immediately.   

I was working two jobs at the time and after that initial visit I changed my commuting route to my second job in Hudson to drive past what I hoped would be “my house” every time I went to work.  Each time I rounded the bend of State Route 9J and drove past the house, I was filled with hope that someday it would be mine and I saw each and every drive by as an act of faith that was declaring my belief that it would be.  My offer was accepted, I made arrangements with a contractor to do the work to make repairs and renovate what needed to be done to make the house what I needed it to be after the sale was final.  And on June 22, 2020, the closing was completed, and the house was mine.  My contractor finished the work a few days later and I moved into my new home on June 25th – my birthday and rejoiced.   Things may have changed a little bit since 2020 but the house at 1788 State Route 9J in Stuyvesant is still mine and it continues to fill my heart with joy when I think about how it all came to pass and how it became my house “down by the River” and how my wife, TammyLyn later named it River House.

It was my hope, and it became my reality, and it represents overcoming and freedom. It required hard work, sacrifice, faith, and the Lord’s blessings but it came to pass.  When we follow the Lord, we can hope for good things, we can hope for a new life, and we can hope for freedom.  So although we walk with the Lord day by day and just try to do our best to follow Him, remember to pick your head up and to have a vision for where you want to go.  Things don’t have to stay the same just because they have been that way for years. You don’t have to live according to someone else’s demands or dreams that keep you in bondage.  Jesus came to set us free and to change the things that aren’t right and when we trust in Him and set our eyes on the life that He has for us, nothing is impossible. 

So keep walking and talking with God and He will empower you and guide you to live the life that you always wanted to live but didn’t think you could.  We have a good, good Father in the Lord and He gives good gifts to His children and rewards those who repent and diligently seek Him.  

You can be free of your bad habits, character defects, addictions, and bad relationships but you have to have a vision for the life you want, and you have to follow the Lord’s ways to make sure you’re on the right path to find it with peace, love, and joy!

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For those who want more evidence for Christianity than my simple encouragements provide, I offer apologist, Frank Turek’s website, https://crossexamined.org/ .

Today’s Bible verses come to us from “The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling” By John G. Kruis.

( While Bible verses on various topics of Counseling can be found with a quick Google search, we encourage you to purchase this resource to support the late author’s work. (https://www.amazon.com/Quick-Scripture-Reference-Counseling-Kruis-ebook/dp/B00CIUJZT2?ref_=ast_author_dp )

This morning’s meditation verses come from the section on Comfort.

Revelation 21:1-4 (NASB)
1  Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea.
2  And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.
3  And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them,
4  and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away."

Today’s verses fall under the 15th point of our counseling reference guide resource’s section on Comfort.

15. One day this life of suffering will be over and all will be made new.

 

Today’s verses tell us about the culmination of the coming of God’s kingdom in the future and it speaks of a hope that we can hardly imagine.  No death, no mourning, no crying, and no pain – how can this be?  God the creator of all things – who has always existed – will make it so and only those who have been blessed by His grace to put their faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior will experience the eternal glory of life with Him. How’s that for a vision?  

I don’t know what its going to be like but I have had some close encounters with the manifest presence of the Lord with the baptism of the Holy Spirit and His Spirit’s infilling at times and I can tell you that a few moments in His presence where heavy with the abundance of His love and filled me with euphoric experiences of joy that have been unmatched by anything this world has to offer.  Scripture gives us scenes of God’s throne room in Revelation 4 and the creatures and people there are depicted as giving God continuous praise with the resounding chorus that proclaims:

Revelation 4:8 (NLT2)
8  … “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty— the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come.”

And

Revelation 4:11 (NLT2)
11  “You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created all things, and they exist because you created what you pleased.”

No pain, no death, and eternal glory with the Lord is the destiny of all who put their faith in Jesus – so let us rejoice now because our names are written in heaven and no matter what trials we may face on earth, God is with us and nothing can separate us from His love and His plan to give us a new, eternal, and abundant life. Praise God for He is worthy, He is holy, and He is SO good!

--------------------------------------------------------------------

As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.

Today we continue sharing from “According to Your Word: Morning and Evening Through the New Testament” By Stephen F. Olford – A Collection of Devotional Journals: 1940-1941.

As always, I share this information for educational purposes and encourage you all to purchase Olford’s books for your own private study and to support his work.  This resource is available online for less than $10 at many sites.

EVENING READING: MATTHEW 4

“It is written …” – Matthew 4:4, 7, 10

How wonderfully the Lord Jesus wielded the sword of the Spirit on this occasion!

There is obviously great significance in the fact that Christ met this temptation (and the tempter) with the Word of God.

The apostle John, in his first epistle, writes to the young men because they were strong, the Word of God abode in them, and they had overcome the wicked one.

Revelation 12:11 says, “They overcame him [the Devil] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.”

Here, in Matthew, are three instances at least where the Word of God is definitely regarded as the only successful weapon against the Devil (notice also Ephesians 6).

The blood of the Lamb, of course, is the only basis upon which the Word can be rightly used.

 

Lord, may the Word abide in me.
Amen.[1]

---------------------------more tomorrow------------------------

Join our “Victory over the Darkness”, “The Bondage Breaker”, "Freedom in Christ" series of Discipleship Classes via the mt4christ247 podcast!

at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts

(https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154). The mt4christ247 podcast is also available on Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartradio, and Audible.com. 

These teachings are also available on the MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MT4Christ247

Email me at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and to be encouraged.

My wife, TammyLyn, also offers Christian encouragement via her Ask Seek Knock blog (https://tammylynask.blogspot.com/ ),  her Facebook Group: Ask, Seek, Knock (https://www.facebook.com/groups/529047851449098 ) and her podcast Ask, Seek, and Knock on Podbean (https://feed.podbean.com/tammalyn78/feed.xml)

“The views, opinions, and commentary of this publication are those of the author, M.T. Clark, only, and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of any of the photographers, artists, ministries, or other authors of the other works that may be included in this publication, and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities the author may represent.”

Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship


Tuesday, December 19, 2023

Celebrate Freedom Discipleship Course - Lesson 5 - Ascension

 I have decided to launch the next lesson of the Celebrate Freedom Discipleship Course.  As I stated previously:  "I developed the Celebrate Freedom Discipleship Course in 2020 as part of my master’s thesis in Christian Counseling to “fill in the gaps” of the Christian Twelve Step/Celebrate Recovery – Teaching Curriculums by introducing concepts of Christian Discipleship that I found important in my walk of faith and in my recovery over alcohol, drugs, sex addiction, and food addiction."

We hope it encourages you to follow Jesus and to overcome any hurts, habits, and hang-ups that still persist in your lives. 

God Bless You All,

M.T. Clark


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Listen to the podcast: Celebrate Freedom Discipleship Course - Lesson 5- Ascension Podcast

Or Watch it on YouTube: 



CFDC Lesson 5:  Ascension 

Discipleship Principle 5 – After having won a victory in one area of our lives in our recovery, we will seek to take back more enemy territory as we surrender more to the Lord to be cleansed and hope to claim new freedom and healing, by faith.

Galatians 5:1, 5 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage… 5 For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. 

 

Part of our spiritual journey of recovery, or discipleship, includes monitoring ourselves and changing our behavior and thoughts as we see our old patterns threaten to re-emerge through old triggers that still want to get a response.  Whether these triggers are just the flesh or are a temptation from the enemy, our tactic is to resist temptation by asking God for help, standing on the truth of His word, remembering who we are in Christ, and by choosing to walk out the freedom that Christ has won for us by faith. 

2 Thessalonians 2:13  says that…”God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.

However although we have gained a measure of victory over a stronghold of addiction or other hang-up or hurt that sent us to recovery, we begin to realize that the primary stronghold we have overcome may have only been a symptom of a larger problem or just a part of a whole host of problems.  So, since we have victory over one stronghold that was a major problem in our lives, what should we do with the other issues that remain? 

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Twelve-step groups recognize this issue and encourage their participants to continually use their framework to progressively break these additional strongholds. For the Christian, the decision to progressively seek more freedom can transform one’s life but our efforts have to be empowered by our faith and the two things that only the Christian has – The Holy Spirit and the Mind of Christ.

1 Corinthians 2:12,14, 16 (NLT2)
12  And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us. 14  But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them, and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. 16  ….But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.

This lesson is an expansion on the concept that we are to keep “working the Steps” but it focuses on our faith and how we can grow through the renewing of our mind with the word of God and how the Lord blesses our decision to trust and follow Him.

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

Scripture states that we are to surrender our bodies and minds to the Lord and as we do, we will progressively know God’s good, acceptable, and perfect will for our lives.

 So what Truths can our “Mind of Christ” and the Holy Spirit help us to understand and to be transformed into Victors rather than Victims,  to be the people God created us to be?

Ascension – The Upward Call  

The key to a spiritual solution to any problem is that we must have faith in the process and in the power, authority, and willingness of God to change us. If God decrees it, we must obey His commands. If He said, “It is finished.”, we must believe that it has been done.  He gave us victory in one area. We must have faith to maintain that victory and use His help to win more and become the people He made us to be.================================================================

Christian Recovery: Changed or Cured?

As Christians, our solution goes beyond the flesh and mind. Our solution is empowered by the Holy Spirit, and results in eternal life. Christ is the Healer. We have the ultimate victory in Christ, and we can have progressive victory over sin and negative states of mind in our lives. Christians have been given new life, so we need to choose to believe it, pursue it, and live it out.

Romans 6:11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Christian disciples are not in recovery, they died. Through their death and resurrection with Christ, they are cured but they need to have more faith in God than in their addiction or old narratives of dysfunction.  They have been given the power to overcome by faith. They need to choose to believe the truth about their freedom.  

Sanctification by Faith Christians need to stand in what we believe.  God leads us not into temptation, the enemy does. We “fight” temptation with our faith that says our old stronghold no longer has a hold on us.  We “fight” depression, anger, anxiety, and low self-esteem with the truth of our identity in Christ.  Our battles are won in the mind of Christ and through the Spirit. It is faith in Christ’s finished work and our acceptance of our new identity rather than effort that brings victory. 

Acts 15:8-9 (NKJV)  So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us, and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.

Spiritual Warfare – The Truth will Set You Free – Three Steps to Freedom Over Sin

As for our freedom over sin, we prove this easily by saying “no” just one time to sin. We have all done this but the most effective means of our continual victory over our sin is through knowing the truth about sin, knowing who we are in Christ, and having love for God.  

So, we need to change how we think about our sin to make sinning unnatural and undesirable to us and thus easier to say no to, but we must also accept the identity of one who has been set free and who is in love with God, who set him free.

1.    First, we need to honestly look at our sins, by looking at the negative consequences and the emotions that result from falling back into them. One strategy I heard that someone at AA used was to ask the question, “What then?”, whenever he was tempted to drink. He would imagine all the bad consequences that taking a drink could result in and would see logically that drinking was not what he wanted to do.  He saw the truth that getting drunk was not a good thing and he could choose to say no to drinking.

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2.. Finally, we need to think about our relationship with God. We must continually talk to and thank God for saving us and changing us. We need to thank Christ for dying for us. We need to pray to God for strength to not give in. We must think of sin as a betrayal of the One who gave us everything and refuse to do it.

We need to place our relationship with God above any sin and value Him more than our old selfish desires.

We need to love God so much that the thought of falling into sin is unthinkable. 

3. Finally, we need to think about our relationship with God. We must continually talk to and thank God for saving us and changing us. We need to thank Christ for dying for us. We need to pray to God for strength to not give in. We must think of sin as a betrayal of the One who gave us everything and refuse to do it.

We need to place our relationship with God above any sin and value Him more than our old selfish desires.

We need to love God so much that the thought of falling into sin is unthinkable. 

The Three Steps to Freedom Over Sin is not just positive thinking. This three-step process is speaking the truth.  It exposes the truth of sin, the truth of who we are in Christ, and the truth of our love for God. This is the application of the truth against our hurts, habits, and hang-ups to set us free indeed.  This is the truth that leads us out of the darkness never to return.

Spiritual Warfare – A World War Campaign

In our daily inventory, rather than maintaining our hold over the ground we have conquered. It is time to take new ground and let the Lord heal the underlying issues that led to our habits and hang-ups.

Philippians 1:6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.

The more we come to live our identity in Christ, the more negative mental states fall away.

·       Fear is conquered with the knowledge of our victory over death and our security with God.

·       Anger is wiped away by the revelation of the spiritual state of the world and our call to pass on the forgiveness that we have received. 

·       Depression is erased by His presence, promises, and love.

·       Our self-worth is determined by the One who gave us the priceless gifts of sonship, forgiveness, and freedom. 

·       His good work in us changes our behaviors but also brings the growth of all the fruit of the Spirit. 

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Philippians 3:13-14 (NKJV)
13  Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, l
14  I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

The Christian life should never be boring. There is a self-improvement project every day and the best way to improve is to let go of the troubled self we so desperately wish to improve and embrace the new life that is defined by our identity in Christ. 

Ascension is merely a commitment to the upward call of Christ and the plan of Christ for progressive sanctification. The process is happening. Let’s agree with it and work with it rather than deny and resist it.  Our relationship with God is cooperative. We trust and obey, and He leads in the way we should go. This is our relationship with God: surrendering ourselves to Him and inviting God to renew more and more of us continually. 

1 John 3:6-9 (NKJV) 6 Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. 7 Little children let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. 8 He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose, the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. 9 Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.

Our walk with God is not for an hour at church service, our walk is to be continuous. If we want a life with His blessing of a peace that goes beyond understanding we must continually seek Him, abide with Him, and obey Him. We do these things not out of duty or obligation or for reward. We do these out of love for the One who first loved us.

The Upward Call – Ascending to Your Purpose

Exodus 31:3 (NKJV) says of some filled with the Holy Spirit
 “And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship,”

Forsaking sins and breaking strongholds are only one aspect of ascension. We are also called to grow. Learning new things and developing new skills is another form of your personal ascension process.  

Ephesians 4:7-8 (NKJV) tells us that we receive gifts from God for our purpose:
7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift.
8 Therefore He says: "When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men."

God has called us all to a purpose. He supplies gifts for His purposes but the cooperative nature of our relationship with God requires action and development on our part.

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Learning new things does not necessarily mean hobbies. As we seek to put away childish things, we are to seek the Lord’s will for our lives and stretch to the potential He knows we can fulfill. Your plan could mean possibly going back to school, learning a new language, going for promotion by pursuing specialized training or starting a new career.  Study of the word and prayer are some of the best personal development tools we can use for growth. All of these are things we can work on that may contribute to our purpose and development.

These are all in the spirit of ascension – exploring life, ourselves, and service to the kingdom to grow closer to God and our purpose. The plan does not always have to be known; we go forward in faith. 

Wrap Up

Christians have been saved by faith in Jesus and given freedom over sin and death. Christ calls us to follow Him. He called us to life. He called us out of the darkness. As we follow Him, we can experience the freedom over sin that He has won for us through our faith and our life’s expression of that faith: obedience. 

When we win a victory over a stronghold, we should rejoice but continue the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. We can use the Twelve Step framework to bring another hurt, habit, or hang up to the Lord and have progressive victory and freedom in life.

 We should also ascend further in our growth as Christians by seeking to develop ourselves for the purpose that God has for our lives.

We also seek to adopt our identity in Christ and grow in our relationship with God, so our subsequent sanctification projects are acquired through our faith and not by the sweat of our brow. We seek to renew our minds so that sin is defeated with a three-pronged attack of the truth about sin, who we are in Christ, and who God is.

So, let’s go up but don’t rush because what God accomplished in a moment may take us some time to grasp and to walk in.  We may not do it perfectly, but we will go forward at our pace, one day at a time, and one victory at a time, growing increasingly closer to God and His purpose for our lives.

 

Review and Examine.

1.    What areas has God helped you to experience freedom or victory in?

2.    What areas do you want the Lord to help you to be free in?  

3.    Do You Believe that God can Help You Experience More Freedom?

4.    What Problem Do You Feel the Lord is Calling You To Take on next?

5.    How Can the Celebrate Freedom Growth Group Help You?

6.    What purpose do you think the Lord may be calling you to?

 

 ------Join us next week for the next Celebrate Freedom Discipleship Course Lesson----

or

Join our “Victory over the Darkness”, “The Bondage Breaker”, and "Freedom in Christ" series of Discipleship Classes via the mt4christ247 podcast!

at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts

(https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154). The mt4christ247 podcast is also available on Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartradio, and Audible.com. 

These teachings are also available on the MT4Christ247 YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MT4Christ247

Email me at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and be encouraged.

My wife, TammyLyn, also offers Christian encouragement via her Ask Seek Knock blog (https://tammylynask.blogspot.com/ ),  her Facebook Group: Ask, Seek, Knock (https://www.facebook.com/groups/529047851449098 ) and her podcast Ask, Seek, and Knock on Podbean (https://feed.podbean.com/tammalyn78/feed.xml)

“The views, opinions, and commentary of this publication are those of the author, M.T. Clark, only, and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of any of the photographers, artists, ministries, or other authors of the other works that may be included in this publication, and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities the author may represent.”

Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship