Bible Ballistics: BBs #123 Mighty God!!!

“For unto us

a child is born,

unto us

a son is given:

and the government shall be upon his shoulder:

and his name shall be called

Wonderful, Counsellor,

The mighty God,

The everlasting Father,

The Prince of Peace.” Is. 9:6

God come in flesh for me/us—for my/our sin.

Hebrews 2:14-18, “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 16 For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. 17 Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. 18 For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.”

Jesus took on a human body that he could pay the price for our sin!! My sin and yours. May we never forget that without the incarnation, we could not have life? Eternal life! Abundant life! Through Jesus’ sacrifice—His death for us—we can have the peace of God in our hearts by the indwelling Holy Spirit.

Romans 5:1-6, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope: 5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.”

This “mighty God” came and took on flesh, died for us, and gives us “peace with God”. How? Why? “because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.”

Praise the name of Jesus!!!

He came.               He stayed.

He died.          He rose again.

That we could have that “peace with God” that passes understanding. May you daily focus on the Lord who came for you? And not only did he come; he’s coming back again, and soon I believe . Do you know Him? Are you walking with Him? Do you have peace with God? Only Jesus can give that. Call on him today—He will answer your call!!  He is the “Mighty God“!!!

Romans 10:13, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”  –Jesus

Acts 4:12, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” –Jesus

Bible Ballistics: BBs #122 A Christmas Fortnight-Wonderful Counselor?

“For unto us

a child is born,

unto us

a son is given:

and the government shall be upon his shoulder:

and his name shall be called

Wonderful, Counsellor,

The mighty God,

The everlasting Father,

The Prince of Peace.

7 Of the increase of his government and peace

there shall be no end,

upon the throne of David,

and upon his kingdom,

to order it,

and to establish it

with judgment

and with justice

from henceforth even for ever.

The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.” Is. 9:6

Unto us the promise was and is given! A child would be given! And “The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this”!! This child would come because God would send HIM, and He would be the ‘wonderful counselor’!!!

Wonderful: inspiring delight, pleasure or admiration; extremely good, marvelous.

Counselor: one who gives guidance, one trained to give guidance.

Jesus would be, is and ever shall be the most wonderful of counselors. And what would He counsel us about? Let’s see.

Revelation 3:17-18, “Because thou sayest,

I am rich,

and increased with goods,

and have need of nothing;

and knowest not that

thou art wretched,

and miserable,

and poor,

and blind,

and naked:

18 I counsel thee to buy of me

gold tried in the fire,

that thou mayest be rich;

and white raiment,

that thou mayest be clothed,

and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear;

and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve,

that thou mayest see.”

Jesus advice in a nutshell: Let Him speak to your heart, reveal your sin and then receive HIM as the only cure for your sin problem. No matter how much we ‘SAY’ that we are sufficient unto ourselves, Jesus reveals the truth of our heart. But praise God; He doesn’t just leave us there. He offers to supply (gold), clothe (white garments), and open (anoint) our eyes to see!!! To see Him—God, our Redeemer, Jesus!!!

Isaiah 55:1-2, “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. 2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.”

Jesus is our delight and HE gave HIMSELF for us!!!

John 10:14-15, “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. 15 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.”

He willingly laid down HIS life for us to have LIFE!!!

Acts 4:12, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

This ‘Wonderful Counselor” can be our salvation because He Redeemed us with HIS OWN BLOOD. He laid down HIS life that He could take it back again after 3 days and be victorious over sin, death and hell for all who would believe in HIM.

Revelation 5:9-10, “And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.”

Jesus the babe, came to die for YOU and ME!!! If you know Him–praise Him, thank Him and live for Him that the world may know!! If you don’t know Him—you can today. Listen to His voice speaking to your heart, repent of your sin and trust in Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection to be sufficient to save you, because: “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Rev. 3:20  Won’t you open the door today??

Bible Ballistics: Christmas Fortnight- Redeemer?? Vol. 5 #07

Today I’d like us to look beyond the manger. While we often misspeak that he was ‘born in a manger’—he was ‘laid in a manger’ after he was born. Your trivia note for the week!! But really I’d like us to go beyond the ‘manger’ to be sure that we understand that the baby that was born in Bethlehem is the eternal God. An unusual passage to look at this Christmas is one I’d like us to consider:

Job 19:25-27,

“For I know that my redeemer liveth,

 and that he shall stand

at the latter day

upon the earth:

26 And though after my skin worms destroy this body,

yet in my flesh shall I see God:

27 Whom I shall see for myself,

and mine eyes shall behold,

and not another;

though my reins be consumed within me.”

Job knew something that we all need to know—that he had a redeemer—GOD! And that he would see Him face to face one day! That He (the redeemer) would stand on the earth in the latter days, whether he was alive or beyond death. When are the latter days? Well in one way they are now, having begun with the incarnation of Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 1:1-4, “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;”

God has spoken to us in these ‘last days’ (synonymous to latter days) ‘by HIS Son’. In other words—God has spoken His final word in and through Jesus. In fact in Philippians 2:8-11, God tells us this about the work that Jesus did when He came as that babe in the manger:

“And being found in fashion as a man,

he humbled himself,

and became obedient unto death,

even the death of the cross.

9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him,

and given him a name which is above every name:

10 That at the name of Jesus

every knee should bow,

of things in heaven,

and things in earth,

and things under the earth;

11 And that every tongue should confess

that Jesus Christ is Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.”

The Redeemer that Job knew would come and deliver him—He did come as a babe, lived a sinless life on this earth, in a body of flesh, went to the cross and died for our sin, was buried and raised alive on the third day and seen by many witnesses–Jesus. As we see so concisely written in 1 Corinthians 15:1-5:

“Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: 5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:”

Jesus, the Son of God is the Redeemer that Job was looking forward to, HE is the Savior whose sacrifice we look back to. Our soon-coming King who will rule on this earth, when he comes, came in order to REDEEM us form SIN.

The Redeemer who declared multiple times that HE was God come to save us. I want to share some of the verses with Jesus own testimony of who HE was, is and ever will be. As you read through them, consider them, pray over them, for only YOU can decide what you believe about this babe born to die for YOU!

Angels proclaimed it before He could speak it in Luke 2:11:

“For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”

And Luke 1:32-33, “He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.”

Jesus himself declared His deity.

John 5:43, “I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.”

John 10:30, “I and my Father are one.”

John 8:58, “Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.”

John 8:24, “I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.”

John 11:25, “Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he life:”

I’ll close with 1 John 5:10-15,20, not the words of Jesus, but the words of the Apostle John, the disciple whom Jesus loved:

“He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. 11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. 13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. 14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: 15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him… 20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.”

Do you know the REDEEMER OF YOUR SOUL??? This same Redeemer that Job knew, is the Jesus we celebrate. Jesus that went to Calvary—

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Bible Ballistics: BBs #121 A Christmas Fortnight-Cardinals and Christmas Cactus?

I love the wonderful creation of God: the trees, the grass, the clouds and the sunshine, the rain and snow– all wonders of God’s amazing creation. And two of my favorite things sing the joy of Christmas to my heart: a joy of the Father’s handiwork in this awesome world — “cardinals” and “Christmas Cactus”. They just sing “Glory to God” to my heart. I love watching the cardinals at my feeders, and at the window where I watch them, the lovely cactus blooming–which God made so lovely– to bring joy to our hearts. That it puts out it’s lovely pink flowers at this wondrous time of year—in winter—is a reminder that even death brings life!!! The deadness of winter and the deadness of “sin” can receive new life.

Jesus came that we might have life. Do you see it? Paul reminds us of the reality in Romans 1:16-20,

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. 18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:”

The ‘just shall live by faith’!!! Faith in the great corner stone—Jesus!! We don’t believe because we are “JUST”, but we are made just because we have believed in what Jesus came to do: to be born of a virgin, to live a sinless life in a sinful world with a body of flesh, to die for sins he didn’t commit, to be buried and to rise again, so that we would know that it is Jesus, “In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:” (Col. 1:14)

This is why I celebrate HIS coming to earth as a baby boy. Not just the story but also the person of Jesus Christ–who came for me, and for YOU. He who was, is and ever will be the only way—He said so Himself in response to Thomas’ question in John 14:5-6:

“Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? 6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

One way—

Only One Way!!!

Peter reiterated this in response to those questioning the miracle of the lame man in Acts 4.

Acts 4:12, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

No other way but Jesus. The Lord who created my lovely cardinals, who makes the lovely cactus bloom in winter—this Lord and creator came as a baby to die on a cross for YOU!!! Won’t you take heart from the beauty and look to the wonderful creator who came to give you real LIFE?

I pray that you’ll find Him in Christmas!!!

I also pray that those of us, who already know Him personally,

will take joy and pleasure in Him and all of His beauty in creation.

Today and every day—He reminds us of His power and love!

Bible Ballistics: BBs #120 A Christmas Fortnight-Response?

We’ve talked about angelic messengers and their message; let’s take time today to think about our response. What should our attitude be toward God’s gift to us—to all? Of course our first answer should be ‘gratitude’, but let’s take a cue from the angels who brought the message to the shepherds.

While these great messengers can’t comprehend the love and grace that Jesus came to bring to us, they willingly delivered the messages they were assigned. Let’s look at the message given to the shepherds.

Luke 2:8-14, “And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

Let’s take it apart—backwards if you will:

Jesus came because of His ‘good will toward men’

“… God so loved.. HE gave His..Son” (Jn. 3:16)

Jesus brought real peace because He is

“The Prince of Peace” (Is 9:6)

His arrival was and IS worthy of our praise:

“Glory to God in the Highest”

 “Praising God…”

For “a Savior”…

For “all people”….

So??? Spread the “good news”

The “tidings of good joy”…

We have glorious reason to rejoice and celebrate. And what’s the best way to celebrate? By spreading this glorious, good news of the “Savior which is CHRIST THE LORD”. Are you celebrating Jesus? Don’t let the tinsel of the world distract from our LORD Jesus—He is the Savior—He came for you and me!!! And HE’s coming again!!