Category Archives: JESUS

Failure Isn’t Fatal!!! Bible Ballistics: BBs #508

14 Wednesday Nov 2018

Posted by in A Father's Love, Beauty For Ashes, Failure Isn't Fatal, Follow Jesus, Forgiveness, Great is Thy Faithfulness, Holy Spirit, HOPE, JESUS

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Bible Ballistics: BBs #508  Failure Isn’t Fatal!!!

 

“If we confess

our sins,

he is faithful

and just

to forgive us

our sins,

and to cleanse us

from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

As believers in and followers of Jesus, we sometimes think that we have failed our Lord and ruined our ministry, but God says different. Then there are also those times that we are striving diligently to yield to the Spirit’s leading and everything seems to fall apart; but our God clearly tells us that He is ever at work in our lives. While we ought to continually search our hearts for secret sin as well as known sin. And not only does God call us to “confess” our sins (And yes that is plural, for we all fail regularly, and ‘confess’ simply means to agree with God that the sin in our lives, IS sin!), He assures us that when we face our sin and bring it to HIM, that HE will not only forgive us, but He will also “cleanse us from all unrighteousness”! God also knows that we often struggle to know our own hearts—and when we bring that to Him, HE will hear our prayer and reveal any short-coming or sin that we are truly desiring to set aright!

“Search me,

O God,

and know

my heart:

try me,

and know my thoughts:

24 And see if there be

any wicked way

in me,

and lead me

in the way everlasting.” Psalm 139:23

While the Psalmist knew that God would hear and reveal his own heart in a way that he could keep “short accounts” with his God, for the believers since the cross and the New Covenant of grace and the indwelling Holy Spirit we have that privilege continually as The Spirit is our ever-present intercessor!

“Likewise the Spirit

also helpeth our infirmities:

for we know not

what we should pray for

as we ought:

but the Spirit itself

maketh intercession

for us

with groanings

which cannot be uttered.”    Romans 8:26

Yet we have even more assurance of our recovery from failure—our Lord, even as the author of Hebrews reminds us of HIM!

“Wherefore he is able also

to save them to the uttermost

that come unto God by him,

seeing he ever liveth

to make intercession

for them.” Hebrews 7:25

Our Great High Priest, Jesus, is ever interceding for us and assures us of His faithful provision, grace and cleansing forgiveness!

“Being confident of this very thing,

that he which hath begun a good work

in you

will perform it

until the day of Jesus Christ:”   Philippians 1:6

Our faithful God is working continually so that we will be “conformed to the image of His Son”! (See Romans 8:28-29) And time and space would fail us to mention those precious saints of old who failed and were restored to their Lord’s service—and so can we be, when we but recognize our sin, turn back to seek HIS face and receive His forgiveness and cleansing. David says it better than I can!

“Have mercy upon me, O God,

according to thy lovingkindness:

according unto the multitude

of thy tender mercies

blot out my transgressions.

2 Wash me throughly

from mine iniquity,

and cleanse me from

my sin.

3 For I acknowledge my transgressions:

and my sin is ever before me.

4 Against thee, thee only,

have I sinned,

and done this evil in thy sight:

that thou mightest be justified

when thou speakest,

and be clear when thou judgest…..

7 Purge me with hyssop,

and I shall be clean:

wash me,

and I shall be whiter than snow.

8 Make me to hear joy and gladness;

that the bones which thou hast broken

may rejoice.

9 Hide thy face from my sins,

and blot out all mine iniquities.

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God;

and renew a right spirit

within me.

11 Cast me not away

from thy presence;

and take not thy holy spirit

from me.

12 Restore unto me

the joy of thy salvation;

and uphold me

with thy free spirit.

13 Then will I teach transgressors thy ways;

and sinners shall be converted unto thee.”   Portions of Psalm 51

God is in the restoration business—He takes ‘cracked pots’ like me and will restore us to become “vessels of honor”, and will so graciously and lovingly give unto us “beauty for ashes”!

So my dear friend, wherever you are—wherever you have been—if you will but seek His face and His heart, HE will meet you and take your ‘failure’ and “ashes” and give you “beauty” in exchange! Don’t despair or give up—but look UP to the One who loves you and has never said “oops”, He can restore you! He is waiting—run to HIM!

“To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion,

to give unto them beauty

for ashes,

the oil of joy

for mourning,

the garment of praise

for the spirit of heaviness;

that they might be called trees of righteousness,   

the planting of the LORD,

that he might be glorified.”   Isaiah 61:3

Sovereign Control??? Bible Ballistics: BBs #506

07 Wednesday Nov 2018

Posted by in JESUS, Jesus Is Coming!, Sovereignty

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Bible Ballistics: BBs #506      Sovereign Control???

I have a very simple but profound passage to share with you today. After the election in the U.S. yesterday I just wanted to remind us all that our God is faithful and sovereign over all things. So no matter how the elections turned out—God Still Reigns—Amen and Amen.

“Why do the heathen rage,

and the people imagine a vain thing?

2 The kings of the earth

set themselves,

and the rulers

take counsel together,

against the LORD,

and against his anointed,

saying,

3 Let us break their bands asunder,

and cast away their cords from us.

4 He that sitteth in the heavens

shall laugh:

the Lord shall have them

in derision.

5 Then shall he speak unto them

in his wrath,

and vex them

in his sore displeasure.

6 Yet have I set my king

upon my holy hill of Zion.

7 I will declare the decree:

the LORD hath said unto me,

Thou art my Son;

this day have I begotten thee.

8 Ask of me,

and I shall give thee the heathen

for thine inheritance,

and the uttermost parts of the earth

for thy possession.

9 Thou shalt break them

with a rod of iron;

thou shalt dash them in pieces

like a potter’s vessel.

10 Be wise now therefore,

O ye kings: be instructed,

ye judges of the earth.

11 Serve the LORD with fear,

and rejoice with trembling.

12 Kiss the Son,

lest he be angry,

and ye perish from the way,

when his wrath

is kindled but a little.

Blessed are all they

that put their trust in him.” Psalm 2:1-11

God is at work in our world to accomplish HIS purpose in all things—leading to the imminent return of our Lord Jesus Christ at any time—and that my friend is our hope, joy and confidence!!! Will you be blessed to be HIS child or one that HE will receive His wrath? The choice is yours but there is a test at the end!

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse;

and he that sat upon him was called

Faithful and True,

and in righteousness

he doth judge

and make war.

12 His eyes were as a flame of fire,

and on his head were many crowns;

and he had a name written,

that no man knew,

but he himself.

13 And he was clothed with a vesture

dipped in blood:

and his name is called

The Word of God.

14 And the armies which were in heaven

followed him upon white horses,

clothed in fine linen,

white and clean.

15 And out of his mouth

goeth a sharp sword,

that with it he should smite the nations:

and he shall rule them

with a rod of iron:

and he treadeth the winepress

of the fierceness

and wrath

of Almighty God.

16 And he hath on his vesture

and on his thigh

a name written,

KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”   Revelation 19:11-16

Even so come quickly Lord Jesus, our eternal “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS”!!! Amen and Amen!

Are you ready? If not I pray that you will come to Jesus today in repentance and faith—for HE gave HIS own life’s blood to save YOU/me from our sin! And I pray that those of us who are HIS will faithfully, “walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called” in His power, love and grace!

Blessings on your day!!! Amen and Amen.

 

 

What Price Sacrifice??? Bible Ballistics: BBs #490

05 Wednesday Sep 2018

Posted by in Faith, Faithful is He that has Promised!, Follow Jesus, JESUS, Jesus' Sacrifice, Salvation

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Bible Ballistics: BBs #490  What Price Sacrifice???

 

“This is my commandment,

That ye love one another,

as I have loved you.

13 Greater love hath no man than this,

that a man lay down his life

for his friends.” John 15:12-13

As believers in and followers of Jesus, we are called to exercise His love toward others, and Jesus describes the greatest love that He was about to express and display before the world on Calvary: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends”! But what Jesus did for those who will believe in Him was even more amazing than that—He not only made the ultimate sacrifice for those that HE loves (which is the world), but those that He loves are enemies of God steeped in sin. Yet HE came lovingly, willingly to sacrifice HIS life for us that we could be delivered from death and hell by HIS selfless, substitutionary, atoning sacrifice for sinners with His own blood.

“For when we were yet without strength,

in due time

Christ died

for the ungodly.

7 For scarcely for a righteous man

will one die:

yet peradventure for a good man

some would even dare to die.

8 But God commendeth his love

toward us,

in that, while we were yet sinners,

Christ died for us.

9 Much more then, being now justified

by his blood,

we shall be saved from wrath

through him.

10 For if, when we were enemies,

we were reconciled to God

by the death of his Son,

much more, being reconciled,

we shall be saved

by his life.

11 And not only so,

but we also joy in God

through our Lord Jesus Christ,

by whom we have now received

the atonement.” Romans 5:6-11

We are the beneficiary of the ultimate sacrifice—not only that Jesus gave His life for me/you on the cross—but HE even more importantly, didn’t stay dead, HE AROSE victorious over death and hell too offer life to all who will believe. And because of His great love for us, we can go forward in His love regardless of the hate, meanness, confusion and malice going on around us. Knowing Jesus and having His indwelling Holy Spirit enables us to live victorious lives soaring above the storm with the Master. Isaiah said it best:

“But they that wait upon the LORD

shall renew their strength;

they shall mount up with wings

as eagles;

they shall run,

and not be weary;

and they shall walk,

and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31 

Even as the picture in my dining room says: “He hath made every thing beautiful in his time:” we can trust our lives, our hope, and our security to The One who died for us—and that is only JESUS my friends, not any movie star, sports star, politician or even any religious leader—only the blood of Jesus can impart abundant life! And when we know Him, as His children, we can declare with Job, that our confidence is in HIM not ourselves or any other human! After all only Jesus can change a ‘sinner’ into a ‘saint’ of God, and only Jesus can give us His Spirit to lead us, grow us, and guide us into more and more of His truth and grace, through His Word by His Spirit; all so that we can minister HIS love to a lost and dying world!

“Though he slay me,

yet will I trust in him:

but I will maintain mine own ways

before him.” Job 13:15   Amen and Amen!

Yet we must remember that God often calls us to difficult tasks, and when he does HE is sufficient to guide our steps and meet our needs!

“Thou therefore gird up thy loins,

and arise,

and speak unto them

all that I command thee:

be not dismayed at their faces,

lest I confound thee before them.

18 For, behold, I have made thee this day

a defenced city,

and an iron pillar,

and brasen walls

against the whole land,

against the kings of Judah,

against the princes thereof,

against the priests thereof,

and against the people of the land.

19 And they shall fight against thee;

but they shall not prevail against thee;

for I am with thee,

saith the LORD,

to deliver thee.”   Jeremiah 1:17-19

Jeremiah was called the “weeping prophet” because he was given a hard task, to a hard people, yet he went forth faithfully for some 40 years doing God’s work with little visible results! What has God asked you and me to do? Are we willing to make the sacrifice for The One who gave Himself for us? He IS the Only Way—The Lord Jesus Christ! Let’s seek His approval above all else, for:

“Neither is there salvation in any other:

for there is none other name

under heaven

given among men,

whereby we must be saved.”  Acts 4:12

I pray that this will help us all to keep our focus on Our Lord and not the confusion of the world, remembering The One who gave it all for our salvation, our life and our glory with HIM! HE is the only ONE who sacrificed for our salvation!

Amen and Amen. Blessings on your day!