Category Archives: Many or Few?

What’s In Your Sights??? A Word from THE WORD!!! #248

11 Sunday Aug 2024

Posted by in Abiding IN Jesus or the World?, Abundant Life In Jesus, By His Grace, Choices And Consequences, Choose Wisely, Choose You This Day!, Choose you this day?, Choosing Jesus or The World?, Confidence, Grace, Jesus IS Lord--bow before Him!, Jesus Is The Only Way!, Jesus Saves!, Jesus' Sacrifice, Jesus--our all in all, Many or Few?, My Grace Is Sufficient, The Word, When Will You Bow?, Where your treasure is--Your heart is!, Who are YOU following?, Who are you listening to?, Whom are you trusting?

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What’s In Your Sights???  A Word from THE WORD!!! #248

“Jesus saith unto him,

I am

the way,

the truth,

and the life:

no man cometh unto the Father,

but by me.” John 14:6

While Jesus makes it clear that He is the only way to God, Paul also reminds us that it’s our relationship with God through Jesus that saves, not works of any kind, no matter how hard we try to see ourselves as holy or right before God Almighty!

“But God,

who is rich in mercy,

for his great love wherewith he loved us,

5 Even when we were dead in sins,

hath quickened us together with Christ,

(by grace ye are saved;)

6 And hath raised us up together,

and made us sit together

in heavenly places

in Christ Jesus:

7 That in the ages to come

he might shew the exceeding riches

of his grace

in his kindness

toward us

through Christ Jesus.

8 For by grace are ye saved through faith;

and that not of yourselves:

it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works,

lest any man should boast.

10 For we are his workmanship,

created in Christ Jesus

unto good works,

which God hath before ordained

that we should walk in them.”   Ephesians 2:4-10

Let’s look at this backwards, if you would, so we can understand that salvation is all of God, through Jesus; righteous works are a result of Jesus’ righteousness imputed (credited) to us when we come to the cross in repentance and faith in His substitutionary, atoning sacrifice for sin!  When we were lost in sin, Jesus paid the price, and because that price has been paid, we can have eternal life, but not apart from the blood of Jesus that “cleanseth us from all sin”!  We are saved by God’s grace, through our faith in Jesus’ payment for our sin. Works don’t bring us to salvation, rather real works of righteousness are the result of God’s work in us because of the blood sacrifice that Jesus became for me and you!

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,

even so must the Son of man be lifted up:

15 That whosoever believeth in him

should not perish,

but have eternal life.

16 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.

17 For God sent not his Son

into the world

to condemn the world;

but that the world through him

might be saved.

18 He that believeth on him

is not condemned:

but he that believeth not

is condemned already,

because he hath not believed

in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

19 And this is the condemnation,

that light is come into the world,

and men loved darkness rather than light,

because their deeds were evil.”   John 3:14-19

So the question isn’t what have you done, but who are you counting on for your salvation?  Are you trying to do good things, positive things, being kinder, smarter, gentler?  Are you being more religious, philosophical, quoting Bible verses, but not knowing the author?  Are you counting on a childhood profession that has never brought forth any fruit in your life?  Paul says it all in Romans chapter 5, and I simply want to let it speak to each of us.  I pray that you will hear the voice of The Holy Spirit speaking to your heart, and you will respond as He leads.  I played church for years, because I knew all the jargon, but until I met Jesus face-to-face my heart never changed.  Yet just as Jesus says in Matthew 7, He knows those who are born again unto life in HIM; those who are truly transformed into the children of God; born of God, not just saying so!

“He was in the world,

and the world was made by him,

and the world knew him not.

11 He came unto his own,

and his own received him not.

12 But as many as received him,

to them gave he power

to become the sons of God,

even to them that believe on his name:

13 Which were born,

not of blood,

nor of the will of the flesh,

nor of the will of man,

but of God.”  John 1:10-13

Jesus also said:

“Wherefore by their fruits

ye shall know them.

21 Not every one that saith unto me,

Lord, Lord,

shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;

but he that doeth

the will of my Father which is in heaven.

22 Many will say to me in that day,

Lord, Lord,

have we not prophesied in thy name?

 and in thy name have cast out devils?

and in thy name done many wonderful works?

23 And then will I profess unto them,

I never knew you:

depart from me,

ye that work iniquity.”  Matthew 7:20-23

What will you say to Jesus?  What will Jesus say to you?  Have you experienced what Paul is describing to the Roman believers?  I pray that if you don’t know Jesus, you will come to Him today!  Please ponder Paul’s message—it’s a boat load of truth.

“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.

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 5:1-11

Have you received the atonement?  Have you bowed before Jesus?  The question isn’t ‘will you bow’, but rather ‘when will you bow’?  Will you bow before Him now in repentance and faith in His sacrifice for your sin and mine, and be born again?  Or will you bow before HIM as your judge with no opportunity for grace or salvation?  The choice is yours, but choose wisely, there is a test!

“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.”  Philippians 2:10-11

Paul says it better than I could, for God has already done the work at Calvary through His Son Jesus. If there’s no change in. your heart, you may want to re-examine what is in your sights as your salvation.

“Therefore if any man be in Christ,

he is a new creature:

old things are passed away;

behold, all things are become new.

18 And all things are of God,

who hath reconciled us to himself

by Jesus Christ,

and hath given to us

the ministry of reconciliation;

19 To wit, that God was in Christ,

reconciling the world unto himself,

not imputing their trespasses unto them;

and hath committed unto us

the word of reconciliation.

20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ,

as though God did beseech you by us:

we pray you in Christ’s stead,

be ye reconciled to God.

21 For he hath made him to be sin for us,

who knew no sin;

that we might be made the righteousness of God

in him.”  2 Corinthians 5:17-21

Amen and Amen!!!

Examples Of Godly Character!!! A Word from THE WORD!!! #215

01 Wednesday May 2024

Posted by in Blood of Jesus cleanses us, Boldness without arrogance., Broad road or the Straight Gate?, Changed Lives, Dignity, Diligence, Discernment, Discipline, Faithful God--Faithful me!, Fearlessness, Godly Character, Godly Wisdom, Many or Few?

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Examples Of Godly Character??? A Word from THE WORD!!! #215

One of my favorite characters in the scripture is Daniel, who not only came out of the lion’s den unscathed, but he also served God and man with honor, wisdom, discretion, and dignity; so I’d like to consider some of the evidence of his character from the book which bears his name.  Character which I think we can pursue to emulate!

“Now among these were of the children of Judah,

Daniel,

Hananiah,

Mishael,

and Azariah:

7 Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs

gave names:

for he gave

unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar;

and to Hananiah, of Shadrach;

and to Mishael, of Meshach;

and to Azariah, of Abednego.

8 But Daniel purposed in his heart

that he would not defile himself

with the portion of the king’s meat,

nor with the wine which he drank:

therefore he requested

of the prince of the eunuchs

that he might not defile himself.

9 Now God had brought Daniel

 into favour and tender love

with the prince of the eunuchs.”  Daniel 1:6-9

Here we find this amazing teenager who has been taken captive, brought to a faraway land to serve a pagan king, behaving with a genuine devotion to God Almighty and willing to take a stand—but not a fit-throwing stand—but a stand with respect for those in authority over him, he “requested” permission to be excused from the King’s ordered diet to honor his God.  Oh, that we could learn from Daniel to be respectful, honorable, and humbly submitted to those in authority, even when we disagree.  We have obviously created a culture of what I think is responding to misbehavior, just to have peace and quiet (so to speak), and it makes me sad.  Daniel shows us how to be faithful to our God without acting like a spoiled child.  Daniel stood with dignity, respect and I believe humility as he asked to be allowed to have a special diet—a simple one not something extravagant or unreasonable.

God was already working on behalf of Daniel and his friends and had given them favor with the one directly over them, and yet when this official was fearful to give Daniel an exemption of different food than the king had commanded, Daniel went respectfully to the next higher official and offered him an alternative to endangering their lives in changing the king’s order.

“Then said Daniel to Melzar,

whom the prince of the eunuchs had set over

Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah,

12 Prove thy servants, I beseech thee,

ten days;

and let them give us pulse to eat,

and water to drink.

13 Then let our countenances be looked upon

before thee,

and the countenance of the children that eat

of the portion of the king’s meat:

and as thou seest,

deal with thy servants.

14 So he consented to them in this matter,

and proved them ten days.

15 And at the end of ten days

their countenances

appeared fairer and fatter in flesh

than all the children which did eat

the portion of the king’s meat.

16 Thus Melzar took away the portion of their meat, and the wine that they should drink;

and gave them pulse.

17 As for these four children,

God gave them

knowledge and skill

in all learning and wisdom:

and Daniel had understanding

in all visions and dreams.”  Daniel 1:11-17

How sad that we don’t have people in our government with this kind of skill in diplomacy!  It breaks my heart that we seem to have only extremists (on both sides) and very few, if any, real diplomats—diplomacy is a skill that is so needed in our culture and our world—prayer and personal obedience is the only key that I can find to resolve the needs in our world!  May we be faithful “pray-ers”!

Yet consider Daniel, he offers himself and his friends to be tested and let God’s power, provision and work be made manifest.  We are often so busy promoting our own agenda, that we don’t give God the opportunity to shine through our humble obedience with Daniel-like diplomacy and faith!  It saddens me when I hear songs, and messages calling for real spiritual revival with “shouting, handclapping, and other physically obvious indicators” while leaving unmentioned the fact that real heaven-sent, Holy Ghost revival starts on our knees, in personal repentance, tears of regret and a heart that is willing to let God “show me” what I need to repent of as I seek to yield to HIM!  Oh, my friend, let’s seek our God on our knees with an open heart to HIS revelation of our own needs before we can meet other’s needs!

Read this passage again and notice all that God did for these faithful, bold yet humble young men!  They said (in Blanche’s paraphrase), test us for ten days, and give us just plain food and water to drink, and then judge with your own eyes how we fair compared to the other young men who are eating the king’s food and drink.  Oh, my friends, this isn’t giving us a “Daniel Diet”, but revealing four young men of faith, stepping out in faith, trusting to their God to use their faithfulness to display His power.  And remember they were among a group of young Jewish captives of maybe 50-100 young men, yet we only see these four stand up for God’s ways!  We won’t be in the majority when we follow God.  Jesus makes that clear in Matthew 7.

“Enter ye in at the strait gate:

for wide is the gate,

and broad is the way,

that leadeth to destruction,

and many there be which go in thereat:

14 Because strait is the gate,

and narrow is the way,

which leadeth unto life,

 and few there be that find it.”   Matthew 7:13-14

We must dig into God’s Word to be able to recognize the “strait gate”, for there are many today that are painting signs that “say” “strait gate”, but if you look around and compare what they are teaching to God’s Word, you’ll find that you are on the wrong road.  We need to be consciously choosing the way that leads to life, not the road that the “many” are taking that leads to destruction.  If you find that something draws a great crowd of “many”, you may need to investigate what they are purporting!  Don’t be misled by the size of the crowd.  Daniel and his three friends are the only ones that God records for us who were faithful in the midst of overwhelming temptation.  What are you standing on?  God’s Word or sinking sand?  Are you running with the many or the truthful few?  It’s your choice but choose wisely there is a test.  And Daniel and his friends passed their test.  Look how God showed up and showed Himself faithful and able!  Is your God able?  If you want to see “able” read these first six chapters of Daniel.  But for now ponder the results of the faithfulness of these four young men!  WOW!  Our God is able and faithful.  Then at the end of their three-year training program did God ever show Himself faithful—and if you take the time to read these first six chapters I think you will be amazed, humbled as well as finding yourself desiring to draw near to this God!

“And at the end of ten days

their countenances appeared

fairer and fatter in flesh

than all the children

which did eat the portion

of the king’s meat.

16 Thus Melzar took away the portion of their meat,

and the wine that they should drink;

and gave them pulse.

17 As for these four children,

God gave them knowledge and skill

in all learning

and wisdom:

and Daniel had understanding

in all visions and dreams.

18 Now at the end of the days that the king had said

he should bring them in,

then the prince of the eunuchs

brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar.

19 And the king communed with them;

and among them all

was found none like

Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah:

therefore stood they before the king.

20 And in all matters of wisdom and understanding,

that the king enquired of them,

he found them ten times better

than all the magicians and astrologers

that were in all his realm.”   Daniel 1:15-20

Oh, my what a mighty God we serve!  Do you know Him?  If not, you can, by repenting of your sin and trusting in Jesus’ substitutionary, atoning sacrifice for sin—yours and mine!  Then the blood of Jesus can and will transform you into His child.  He came to give us life!

“I am the door:

by me if any man enter in,

he shall be saved,

and shall go in and out,

and find pasture.

10 The thief cometh not,

but for to steal,

 and to kill,

and to destroy:

I am come that they might have life,

and that they might have it more abundantly.

11 I am the good shepherd:

the good shepherd giveth his life

for the sheep.”  John 10:9-11

Amen and Amen!!!