The Infallibility of Scripture

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work." - 2 Timothy 3:16-17

The Bible is the Word of God.  All Christians should know the popular verse of scripture: 

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us..." John 1:1;14

Paul is telling Timothy that all scripture is inspired by the Holy Spirit, breathed out by God through the authors of each text.  It is inerrant, meaning without error, in its original form.  Through the years as the text was copied by scribes and translated into different languages typographical and grammatical errors have arisen along with possible mistranslations of certain words, dates and other minor details.  However, scripture still stands as infallible, meaning it is unable to fail in bringing people to the knowledge of the Truth of the Gospel when the Holy Spirit illuminates the eyes of those who behold it.  It is also unable to fail in its ability to teach, correct, train, perfect and equip saints.

God is still the Word and is able to use man to maintain the clarity of His message through His Spirit.  The Bible stands as the final authority for the believer.  God has preserved His Word through years of darkness, attempts to remove it from the hands of those that proclaim faith in Christ, and has used people from the original Apostles to the reformers to modern translators to make it available to all.  

Being that the Bible is the Word and the Word is God, it is understandable that demonic powers are constantly at work to keep believers from spending time reading, studying and meditating on it, for it is the primary means by which God chooses to communicate with His people.  Paul told Timothy to study to show himself approved, God told Joshua to meditate on the Word day and night, and Paul instructed the Roman Church that the Word renews our mind.  No wonder there is such a battle to study the Bible.  I can attest to this in my own life.  I may read the Bible, but I often allow distractions to keep me from meditating and studying the way I know I should.  

Jesus gave the parable of the sower in Matthew 13:1-23.  In this parable, the Word of God is the seed and our hearts are the ground.  

• Some seeds fell by the wayside, meaning they were sown but never made it to the soil of the heart.  Jesus said these represent those who listen to or read the Word but don't understand it.  The enemy comes and steals the Word before understanding hits the heart (aka mind).
• Others fell on rocky ground where there wasn't much soil.  The seeds only hit the surface of the soil and the sun destroyed them.  Jesus described this type of soil as hearts that receive the Word with joy, however once trials and persecution arise they let go of it because it never took root in the heart a/k/a because they failed to retain the knowledge of the Word in their mind.
• Some fell upon thorns which chocked up the seeds before they could grow.  This represents those that received the Word but placed more focus on the cares of the world and once again didn't allow the Word to take root.
• The rest fell on good ground, and bore fruit - some 30, 60 and 100 fold.  Jesus said "this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit..." (verse 23)

So it's not enough to just hear the Word preached or just read the Bible as a story.  It is important to spend time studying and meditating on the Word.  This will prepare your heart to be good soil that will result in understanding and ultimately cause you to bear fruit.  The fruit that Jesus was talking about is the fruit of the Spirit as mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23:

1. Love
2. Joy
3. Peace
4. Longsuffering
5. Gentleness
6. Goodness
7. Faith
8. Meekness
9. Temperance

"...against such there is no law." - Galatians 5:23

So let's take advantage of this amazing opportunity to get to know God through His Word, to renew our mind, be edified, perfected, equipped, and bear good fruit.

Blessed, Chosen, Predestined and Accepted

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
    Ephesians 1:3-6 

What usually comes to mind when you hear the word "blessed"?  Certainly blessings can be defined as material possessions, being kept out of harms way in times of danger, and even the breath that we breathe, yes that is a blessing too.  However, what kind of blessing is Paul speaking about in Ephesians 1:3?  He begins by saying that God the Father is blessed.  He then says that the Father has blessed us.  But what has He blessed us with?

The Father has "blessed us with EVERY spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ".  Notice the emphasis I placed on every and on spiritual.  This does not mean that God does not and has not blessed us in the natural realm.  However, I believe that Paul is speaking about a greater blessing than what the eyes can see.  This blessing involves being chosen, predestined, and accepted.

And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled. - Colossians 1:21

David wrote in Psalm 51:5 that he, and subsequently we, were shapen in iniquity and concieved in sin.  We inherited a sinful nature from Adam.  This nature separated us from God and made us His enemies.  

We who were once enemies of the cross (Phil 3:18) have now been blessed and made friends of God (James 2:23).  We have become heirs of God, and because God is blessed we are blessed.  We share in the riches of God because of what Christ has done for us.  These riches are freely given to us!  He chose us, predestined us, accepted us who were once rejected to be benefactors of His blessedness.  He did this so that we would be "holy and without blame before Him in love" for "the good pleasure of His will".  That we would share in His perfect nature, no longer in bondage to our old sinful nature.

So "walk worthy of the calling with which you were called" (Eph. 4:1) and remember that in Christ you are blessed, chosen, predestined and accepted.

Out of Mormonism... Part II

My Experiences as a Mormon - The Culture

I grew up in a very unique Mormon culture. Living in the inner city of Boston, MA, our branch (and later ward) was not your stereotypical Mormon church. We were a mixed bunch. We had the Mormon born and bred Utahans who were in Boston for school. We had the converts, most of which were of Haitian, African American, or Hispanic descent, who were introduced through the missionaries. And we had the return missionaries who loved our church so much they moved back to Boston after their mission. I was one of the few white convert families, and one of the only white young men. The church was a very positive environment. Mormon doctrine was not pushed as much as community and good works, and in many ways we were more of a social club than anything else. Yes, doctrine was preached, but from my recollection, personal emphasis was rarely placed on the Book of Mormon, Bible, and other church material. People were there for the community, a positive culture that was vastly different than what many of us experienced in our own families and neighborhoods.

Most of the youth were just like the world in their deeds and actions. I myself was a scam artist, others smoked weed, were sexually active, all of us infused into both the positive and negative aspects of the hiphop generation. There were only a few that attempted to walk the "straight and narrow." Most of the leaders knew this, but they were just happy that we were going to church, and quite frankly they were not just our leaders, they were our friends.

I remember being 15 years old and speaking to a street preacher in front of the State Street Orange Line station downtown. I told him I was a Mormon and we spoke for a few minutes, then he handed me some material on why he claimed Mormonism was false. The next day I went to church with the pamphlets and investigated it with a dear friend (who has since passed away - was shot and killed at 19 years old in an act of senseless violence). We started to refute what was said by what we were taught. Once some of the leaders found out they told us not to read it anymore, since it was not published by the Mormon church it couldn't be trusted. That experience planted some tangible seeds in my mind and heart and my questioning of what I had been taught as a Mormon heightened to a new level.



From that day forward major Doctrinal issues, such as the Curse of Cain, Polygamy, Adam-God Teaching, the brotherhood of Jesus and Lucifer, and Temple Rites (As a teenager, I visited the DC temple, pictured above, and performed baptisms for the dead), to name a few, led me on a road towards the Truth.

After being inactive for a while, I decided to embark upon a journey to Rexburg, Idaho and Ricks College (now known as BYUi). There I experienced the culture shock of my life. I found that the Mormons there were not like the Mormons I knew at the Boston Branch. They seemed like very nice, genuine people, but were almost like robots, programmed how to think, act and talk. I felt like I was stuck in an episode of the twilight zone! It was at that point I saw how people who grew up in or had acclimated themselves to the Mormon church had not just accepted a belief system, but a way of life. Those that were Mormons were accepted wholeheartedly. Those that questioned or went against the Mormon teachings were ostricized. It even seemed ok to be inactive, as long as you didn't question or speak up against the Mormon church or their prophet.

I could no longer be a part of it, and I began to see negative cultic characteristics with my very eyes. Still not completely convinced that the religion itself was false, I could not be a part of this culture.

Strolling through websites such as http://www.exmormon.org/, http://www.exmormonfoundation.org/, and http://www.postmormon.org/, I've seen a trend of those struggling with the revelation that the Mormon religion is not true, but wanting to stay so that they can keep the cultural and familial values that the Mormon community offers. This was almost the opposite position I found myself in, wanting to cut away from the culture yet still believing the core teachings were true. Not too long ago I spoke with a few Mormon friends online, who basically shared the same sentiment: they love the culture, think the religion is false, but stay for the sake of their families, their friends, and business connections. Disconnecting from the culture oftentimes means a disconnect from everything you know in life and starting over. Most people don't want to make that kind of a sacrifice.

The only answer to overcoming the difficulties of leaving the Mormon culture is faith in Jesus Christ. The real Jesus of the Bible.

Out of Mormonism... Part I

I've decided to invest a few blog entries on my experiences with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I hate to use that title, because they are far from what it implies - they are not a church of Jesus Christ and are not saints of the true and living God. For the rest of this entry, I'll be referring to them as Mormons and the religion as Mormonism.

It was the Christmas Season of 1989. I was 9 years old living with my mother as a single parent and for the first time she brought home a man. He was a Mormon and invited us to church. I obliged, as it was my first time in a church of any kind other than attending 2 funerals at a Catholic church. There was a community of kids my age who I befriended, activities which included basketball (my favorite pass-time), and I started to enjoy being a part of a tightnit community.  It was as if I was given the family I never had. Shortly thereafter they were married and about 6 months later I was baptized and started the process of indoctrination.

As I grew older, I had issues with some of their teachings, in particular the curse of Cain (people with black skin were cursed due to living unworthy lives in their pre-existance), but I didn't pay much attention to that, I was there for the community. Most of the youth lived as the rest of the world did. I, however, tried my best to live a good moral life and earn my status as a "worthy church member".

At the age of 16, my mother divorced her husband. I was no longer pressured to go to church so I stopped going consistently. I started to seek the pleasures of sin, falling into pornography, fornication, drinking alcohol and smoking weed occasionally. Still feeling the connection to Mormonism, I believed that one day I would repent and be back.

Fast forward 6 years. I moved to Florida to start a new life. I tried to attend a Mormon ward, as they call their churches, and at the same time started to read the Bible and watch Christian television programs. During that time I began to see the vast differences between Mormonism and Christianity and that Mormons were NOT Christians. I finally decided to sever my ties with Mormonism, oddly enough the very same day I was chosen to give a talk before the congregation. I preached the Biblical gospel, even using their book of Mormon to support some of my points, and urged everyone to repent and accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. I have not stepped foot in a Mormon building since that day.

So what's the big deal with the Mormon religion? They believe in Jesus right? They seem to be great people: nice, family oriented, full of good works, pleasant upstanding citizens?



"For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works." - 2 Corinthians 11:13-15



Facts about the Mormon Church relating to 2 Corinthians 11:13-15:

1. Mormonism claims they were established when an Angel (of light) visited their founder, Joseph Smith, telling him that every church on the earth was apostate and that the true church needed to be restored. This angel was first said to be a Book of Mormon figure named Nephi, but later the story was changed to it being Jesus Christ and God the Father as two separate personages with glorified bodies of flesh and bone. (see picture above)
2. Mormonism erroneously take their leadership structure from the example of Jesus and his 12 apostles. A prophet is said to be head of the church, only one can be living at a time and he becomes a prophet only after the current one passes away. 12 apostles (transforming themselves as apostles of Christ) hold positions of leadership under that prophet. Not only was there more than one prophet living on the earth in the Old Testament, New Testament, (and the current Christian church), the only prophet that was head of the church/Israel was Moses, and some may argue Joshua who took Moses' place after his death. Biblically there is also nowhere that says there has to be 12, in fact there were more than 12 Apostles living during the establishment of the church (and I would argue the current Christian church as well). Biblically, apostles are a higher calling than that of the prophet, which also reveals their infrastructure as unbiblical and false.
3. Mormons boast in their own righteousness based on their good works. They believe they have to earn their way to heaven, destroying the Biblical doctrines of grace. Why did Jesus have to die if you have to work your way to heaven? Truly, their "end shall be according to their works" if they are relying on their works to make it into an eternal level of glory, i.e. heaven (celestial kingdom as they call it).
   
   Galatians 5:4 - "Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace."

"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed." - Galatians 1:6-9

Facts about the Mormon Church relating to Galatians 1:6-9:

1. The Book of Mormon is called "Another Testament of Jesus Christ", denoting another gospel. But the real evidence is that they teach works must be added to grace in order to obtain salvation.  The true gospel of Jesus Christ can be described as "Salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in the finished work of Christ alone, who paid the penalty for the sins of those that repent and put their trust and faith in Him as Lord and Savior. Justification by grace apart from the works of the law (Galatians 2:16, ...)" It in fact is not just another gospel, but it is a perversion of the true gospel. It sounds like good news, but in actuality being told that you have to work your way to heaven, only to find out on judgment day that your best works are as filthy rags in God's sight (Isaiah 64:6) and the punishment is death, hell, and the lake of fire for eternity, is very, very BAD news. (Revelation 20:11-15)
2. Again this passage teaches that an angel from heaven has the ability to teach this other gospel.
3. The sad fact is that those who hold on to these teachings and reject the Biblical Good News of Jesus Christ will be accursed. In other words, damned.

Current Mormon (false) Prophet and Twelve (false) Apostles:


Part II to come.

Taking Personal Responsibility

"If anyone sins and does what is forbidden in any of the LORD’s commands, even though they do not know it, they are guilty and will be held responsible." - Leviticus 5:17 (NIV)

Each man must answer to God for himself. On judgment day every action, every thought, and every spoken word will be judged. As the first 2 chapters in Romans indicate, no man will have any excuse since "the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness" (Romans 2:15). Saved or not, the knowledge of good and evil are ingrained in the heart of every human being (which we inherited from Adam and Eve after they disobediently ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in Genesis 3). Because of our inclination towards sin we often choose to ignore our conscience and follow after evil.

To sin or not to sin, that is the question? Every moment of every day we make choices. As Christians, we have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us which gives the ability not to sin. Those that have not the Spirit have no such ability. They can make good decisions, live good moral lives, however they are still bound by sin, falling short of their purpose in glorifying God through Jesus Christ in all that they do.

When you ask the average person if they believe they are going to heaven, their answer is usually "Yes! I'm a good person and God will let me in." However Jesus said that "there is none good but one, that is, God" (Mark 10:18). The Gospel destroys the erroneous belief that heaven is gained by our good deeds, because "all have sinned" (Romans 5:12) and "the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23). Only through faith in Jesus Christ can we escape the penalty for our sins, which is death, hell, and ultimately the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14).

As Leviticus 5:17 indicates, even when we don't have knowledge of sin we are still held accountable. There is no way to justify yourself, we can only be "justified freely by his [God's] grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:24).

Not only is this is case with eternal wages of sin, but also temporal consequences. Every day our decisions shape our future. Many times bad choices mount up, and rather than own up to our condition, we hide and try to mask ourselves outwardly, while inwardly struggles plague us. Bad decisions can always be overcome by making good ones. Sometimes it "seems" like it is easier to make bad decisions than to do the right thing, but that is only an illusion.

"Every choice you make has an end result." - Zig Ziglar

What will be the end result of your choices for today? Will you choose to repent, choose to follow after Christ, choose to obey? The choice is yours.

What Motivates You?

Where does your motivation lie?

"And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God." - 1 Samuel 30:6

Wikipedia defines motivation as "the activation of goal-oriented behavior. Motivation may be rooted in the basic need to minimize physical pain and maximize pleasure, or it may include specific needs such as eating and resting, or a desired object, goal, state of being, ideal, or it may be attributed to less-apparent reasons such as altruism, selfishness, morality, or avoiding morality."

The activation of goal-oriented behavior. I've always been someone who has written out goals. Short term goals, long term goals, small goals in order to reach bigger ones, 5 year plans, new years resolutions, etc... I had it all written out, lists upon lists. But what got done? There were seasons I was focused and accomplished goals successfully and was cruising! But I always allowed something to shift that focus and ended up in months and even years of stagnation. This is where I find myself today, asking myself, where is my motivation? Why haven't my current goals been activated?

Where has my motivation been in the past? Has it been in relationships with women? Positions at work? Financial gain? The calling of God on my life? Has it been to "minimize pain, maximize pleasure, obtain a desired possession"? Where should my motivation lie?

Sometimes I wait on other people to push and motivate me. Othertimes, let's face it, I've just been lazy! Yes, I'm a hard worker on the job, when given a task I do what it takes to get it done, but lately I've seemed to have lost that motivation. Where did it go?

Scientific researchers and neurologists all suggest that lack of motivation is a symptom of depression. I'm currently reading "Blame it On the Brain" by Edward T. Welch, and the whole premise of his book is to distinguish, through the lens of scripture, which disorders can be blamed on the brain and which cannot? He argues that we live in a culture where scientific research is skewed in an attempt to blame everything from depression to alchoholism on a brain dysfunction. He gives 3 categories: these issues can be a result of chemical imbalances, brain disorders, or disobedience. I tend to believe that all of these are viable causes, but the solution is the same whatever the cause - Jesus.

In Christ, He has given us the power and authority to take control of our own mind, to exercise self control, to battle every disorder and break every demonic stronghold through his Holy Spirit.

So back to motivation. Let's look at David. He was facing opposition at all sides, no doubt facing thoughts and feelings of depression as evident through his psalms, but no matter where he found himself he chose to turn to the Lord and encourage himself. When he was in a cave hiding for his very life, rather than have a pitty party or wait for someone else to motivate him, he motivated himself. His motivation was the LORD. Pleasing God meant more to him than pleasing himself. Though he fell in sin time and time again, his affections always turned back to God and he got back up and continued to press.

Looking at David's example, we all have some examining to do. What motivates you? What motivates me? Does my motivation lie in being comfortable when uncomfortable? Does it lie in the possibility of losing something or someone that I care deeply for? Where should it lie? Our motivation should be in Christ. Recognizing what He has done for us and what He has made available to us, our motivation should lie in pleasing Him, obeying Him, and enjoying Him as the satisfaction of our souls.

Enourage yourself! Change your thinking and allow Christ to be your motivation. I can guarantee that when we, and I include myself, take on the mind of Christ and learn how to motivate ourselves in Him, we will experience abundance in this life and the next. An abundance of peace, joy, contentment, and satisfaction.

"My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God's Spirit. Then you won't feed the compulsions of selfishness." - Galatians 5:16 (Message)

The Spirit is willing but the flesh is weak...

"Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." - Matthew 26:41

If anyone can attest to the truthfulness of that statement, I can. I was speaking with a brother this past weekend, and he said it was amazing how he could be so caught up in the Holy Ghost one minute and deep in his flesh the next. One minute basking in the presense of God, the next upset and irritated. After reflecting on some events earlier today, I can easily say the same thing myself. This morning dwelling in the presence of God writing the blog you read below, this afternoon finding myself in an emotional rut ready to break down crying.

When I decided to pick this blog back up I revisited some old posts and what I read amazed me. Reading some I knew I was in my flesh dealing with carnal situations, others I was in the Spirit dead on. Posts as early back as 2007 I saw myself in a similar place as I'm in today. I've grown in wisdom and knowledge, but a lot of the same issues plague me. It's like I have all the answers, I just have to apply them to my life. I've had seasons where I was strong in the LORD, and others where I've been weak. As a great woman of God told me earlier today, I'm lazy and need to start doing what I know to do!

My focus now is getting to the point where I make the right decisions even during moments in the flesh. It's in that moment of frustration, that moment of emotionalism that we have to step back and be wise in our choices. God has given us the answer in the verse above, when temptation comes we have to watch and pray. To watch means to identify the temptation and see it before it comes so that when it does try to attack us we can pray our way through it victoriously.

I praise God that we serve a God that knows how to redeem the time, that is all merciful and willing to forgive. Sometimes we all need to understand that God cares and can change things if we would only let him. The old saying goes that we are one bad decision away from dying, but as I was recently reminded it goes both ways as we are also one good decision away from living.

Change must come from within. When your in your right spirit you laugh at the thought of sinning, but as soon as your mind enters into its fleshly realm, like Paul in Romans 7, those things you don't want to do you find yourself doing, and those things you want to do you find yourself not doing. How many times have we found ourselves in this position? Paul goes on to say that He thanks God through Christ Jesus who is able to deliver us from this ungodly mindset.

We don't have to continue in the flesh, in fact now is the time to make your mind up. There is a battle and there are spiritual forces as well as internal forces that want you to stay bound up in your flesh so that you do not soar in the Spirit of God. We have the weapons, we're armed and dangerous, so let us (and let me!) put what God has given us into action and walk in the Spirit!

"This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh." - Galatians 5:16

"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace." - Romans 8:1-6

Life and peace awaits you. Walk in the Spirit.

In His Presence There is Fullness of Joy….

“You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” – Psalm 16:11 (ESV)

While I was sitting at work the presence of God descended upon me filling me with joy and peace. As I’m basking in Him I don’t want it to stop, in fact I want it to intensify. It’s as if every trouble has vanished, every trial has ceased, and every issue has evaporated. Pure bliss. There is nowhere else I’d rather be than in His presence. A few weeks ago I heard a 10 minute portion of a message by Bill Johnson entitled “Healing Out Of Intimacy”



I don’t know much about Brother Johnson’s ministry, but this sermon snippet really impacted me. He likened the Holy Spirit to a dove. Doves are very sensitive birds. Imagine I have a dove on my shoulder and don’t want it to fly away, how am I going to walk around the room keeping it on my shoulder? Carefully. Every step that I take will have the dove in mind. Every movement, every action, every word, every step must have the dove (the Holy Spirit) in mind.

Do we truly live our lives directed by the Holy Spirit, having Him in mind? Do we acknowledge Him in ALL of our ways and allow Him to direct our path? Or do we do what we feel is right, what we want to do, what is leading us? I’ve had to examine myself this morning. How many decisions have I made without the leading of the Holy Ghost! And how many of my decisions have grieved the Holy Spirit? Too many…

In order to live a life pleasing to God, it must be one of complete trust and faith in God as our Pilot directing our every move. Our confidence must be in God, not in man and certainly not in ourselves.

“Cease to trust in [weak, frail, and dying] man, whose breath is in his nostrils [for so short a time]; in what sense can he be counted as having intrinsic worth?” – Isaiah 2:22 (AMP)

Having Joy is a choice. It’s available. It’s a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22). It’s our source of strength (Nehemiah 8:10). It is a command to rejoice, or in other words renew our joy through praise (Philippians 4:4). Joy is our sustainer through difficult times (2 Corinthians 8:2). Joy is a byproduct of having the Holy Ghost and dwelling in His presence (Romans 14:17). Joy is received through faith (2 Corinthians 1:24). The Joy of the LORD is our final destination if we are found faithful / full of faith (Matthew 25:21).

Experiencing the Joy of God is as experiencing a taste of heaven on earth. We all have the opportunity to experience unending joy, no matter what circumstances we find ourselves in as we guard the presence of God, count it as precious, and endure this life in obedience to the leadings of the Spirit. There is no limit to the joy He will pour out on those He deems faithful. Choose to walk in Joy today, rejoice in the LORD and dwell in His presence, by any means necessary.

“Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.” – Romans 15:13 (KJV)

Amen.

Do You Have Access?

“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” – Romans 5:1-2

Everything in God is established through faith. Salvation, deliverance, healings, prophecy and every blessing we shall receive is obtained through faith. Without faith it is impossible to please God, and with faith in God all things are possible. My question today is: do you have access? Access to what you might ask? Access to God.

Access is gained through relationship, and when it comes to God the only way we can receive access to Him is through Jesus Christ:

“For through him [Christ] we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;” - Ephesians 2:18-19

For those of us that are saved and have received that access, what are we doing with it? Imagine a family member passes away and has a bank account with $10 million dollars saved up. In his will, you are given free access to this account, to make withdrawals at your discretion. There is one catch, in order to make a withdrawal you have make a trip to the bank, which is on a remote mountain top and requires specific directions to get there. You have a choice. You can talk all day about the money you have access to, but never actually go to the bank and make a withdrawal because the journey is “too difficult”. You can forget about the money altogether because you’re not willing to sacrifice the time and energy to get to the bank. Or you can take your directions, press your way through the rough terrain, get to the mountaintop, make your withdrawal and come back down. Now say you do choose to make the journey, get your money, and make it back home. You now have the responsibility of stewardship over the money. You’ve been given access to the money. You took advantage of that access. Now that you’ve received the money, what are you going to do with it?

“As each of you has received a gift (a particular spiritual talent, a gracious divine endowment), employ it for one another as [befits] good trustees of God's many-sided grace [faithful stewards of the extremely diverse powers and gifts granted to Christians by unmerited favor].” – 1 Peter 4:10 (Amplified)

Now back to the question at hand: “For those of us that are saved and have received access to God, what are we doing with it?“ The family member is Jesus. The money is the anointing/power of God. The bank on the mountaintop is throne room of God. The directions are prayer, supplication, worship, praise, devotional time in the Bible, perseverance and obedience, all done by faith.

“In Whom [Christ], because of our faith in Him, we dare to have the boldness(courage and confidence) of free access (an unreserved approach to God with freedom and without fear).” – Ephesians 3:12 (Amplified)

Jesus has given us access to the throne room of the Father so that we can obtain the power of God and use it to bless others. But not everyone is willing to pay the price to get to the mountaintop. There will be stumbling blocks, hurdles, you may get hurt along the way, but when you get there the journey will be well worth it.

“Look to yourselves (take care) that you may not lose (throw away or destroy) all that we and you have labored for, but that you may [persevere until you] win and receive back a perfect reward [in full].” – 2 John 1:8 (Amplified)

Are You Being Persecuted?

2 Timothy 3:12
Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

I've been reading a lot about the persecuted church. Testimonies, books, websites, all indicating the often severe circumstances my brothers and sisters around the world face just for following Christ.

I was doing a study on my computer using Logos and came across a sermon by Pastor John Piper on the persecuted church. One of his points was "A Life Devoted to Righteousness Will Be Persecuted". What followed was a list showing why a life devoted to righteousness will be persecuted:

• If you cherish chastity, your life will be an attack on people’s love for free sex.

• If you embrace temperance, your life will be a statement against the love of alcohol.

• If you pursue self-control, your life will indict excess eating.

• If you live simply and happily, you will show the folly of luxury.

• If you walk humbly with your God, you will expose the evil of pride.

• If you are punctual and thorough in your dealings, you will lay open the inferiority of laziness and negligence.

• If you speak with compassion, you will throw callousness into sharp relief.

• If you are earnest, you will make the flippant look flippant instead of clever.

• And if you are spiritually minded, you will expose the worldly-mindedness of those around you.

After reading this, I began to examine my lifestyle to see if I fit the characteristics listed by Pastor Piper.



When I think of persecution, I often turn to Paul as he illustrates his experiences of suffering in 2 Corinthians 11:

21 But whatever anyone else dares to boast of—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast of that. 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. 23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?

30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. 32 At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, 33 but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.

Amazing. He experienced all this due to his obedience to his Apostleship. Reflecting on this makes me often ponder, "LORD, with the vision and calling that You have given me, what will I have to endure?" Knowing full well that my life is not my own and understanding that persecution is eminent, I simply ask God to prepare me so that I will not fold under the pressure of real persecution and instead persevere to the glory of Christ.

After reading this scripture, I also remember when the LORD told Ananias to find Saul, lay hands on him and restore his sight. Ananias questioned the LORD saying that he has heard of the evil Saul has done to Christians, which the LORD answered saying Saul was His chosen vessel and will suffer great for His name's sake. Two things I get from this passage, which can be found in Acts 9. #1 - Because Saul's sins were great before he was saved, his suffering was likewise great after God saved him. #2 - Saul's suffering was great because he was a chosen vessel and had a great call on his life as an Apostle to the gentiles.

1 Peter 4:15-16 just came to mind : "Let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name."

Are you suffering? Is your suffering in the form of persecution as a Christian? Or are you suffering as an evildoer?

What's On Your Mind?

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. -

The mind is a very complex part of our being. It is the control center of our decision making, plays a part in the functioning of our body, and is more powerful than most of us realize. Most of our minds are cluttered with useless information. This information causes us to stress, brings deterioration to our bodies, and we end up losing sight of our visions, dreams, and waste precious time on things of no value.

I was posed with a question today as I was thinking to myself in the car, "How much time do you spend focusing on things that are unfruitful?"

To be honest with myself, I had to admit that I spend a lot of time thinking about what I'm not doing right and where I think I should be, rather than thinking about what I can do to get to where I want to be and then allowing my actions to follow suit.

I think about how I wish I was a more effective minister of the gospel, rather than pray more, meditate on the Word more, and spend more time in worship doing things that will make me more effective. I spend time thinking about being single, how I'd like to be married and have children and sometimes wonder who my wife might be, rather than take advantage of the freedom I have being a single man and preparing my mind to be a Godly husband. Finances, work, the cares of this world, are all fighting for my attention. But how do I get things right?

Some people say you need to clear your mind and free it from those things that bring stress. That might work temporarily, but that doesn't make these issues disappear. The Bible says that we are to meditate on the Word day and night and we will have good success. Paul wrote that we should take no thought for anything, don't worry or be anxious, but instead make our requests known to God with prayer, supplication and thanksgiving and the peace of God will rest upon our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. In another passage he says to cast down every thought that tries to exalt itself against the knowledge of God. So here I am, facing an answer I already know. Make my requests known, don't worry, focus on God's Word and not the issues, and I will have peace. But knowing and doing are two different things.

God once told me, "Stop thinking so much, and instead pray within your mind and talk to me about what your thinking about and I will take care of you." This was 3 years ago, and did I listen? Not as much as I should have. And right this moment God is bringing these things back to my remembrance so that I can begin to implement what He has instructed me to do.

Think about the Word, pray rather than worry, and focus on glorifying Christ.

This is my slogan for 2009.

A Sweet Smelling Fragrance

Philippians 4: Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved.

The Philippian church was Paul’s joy and his crown. I believe one of the reasons for this was their faithfulness in giving. They were the only church who communicated with Paul regarding giving and receiving while he was traveling and were very generous in taking care of Paul’s needs. (Verses 14-17) They bore fruits of generosity and compassion that the other churches which Paul established did not exhibit at that time. He took joy in their example and the love that they showed him. They were his crown, his prize, his ornament, his honor. He took pleasure in partaking of their love, and because of this, he released a supernatural blessing upon them: “my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” (Verse 19) Because of their unselfishness in meeting his needs, he proclaimed that all of their needs would be met by God Himself! There was a condition in this – because of their charity and the manner in which the Philippians gave, whatever need they had was now met by the God of the universe. Their giving was a sacrifice, which was accepted by God, releasing a sweet smelling odor and was pleasing to God – this was because they gave in love to His servant Paul who was in need. (Verse 18) God will supply all of our needs as well when we follow the example of the Philippian church and sacrifice for the needs of others. The riches of God are stored up in the glory of God and we are able to receive them through Jesus Christ, our mediator, high priest and redeemer.

Our needs are met when we glorify God in our mortal bodies. One way to do this is by displaying the fruits of the Spirit in our giving.

Experiencing the Glory of God

Click the play button below to listen to the track:

Intellectualizing the Gospel

During a casual conversation with a prophet I met at a church I was visiting, he told me that in order for me to truly experience God the way I desire I would have to throw all logic out of the window and trust Him alone. This was in 2005 and 3 years later I still struggle in this area. The Bible says that knowledge puffs up, that Israel continues to fall short because they are ever learning but never coming into the knowledge of the Truth, but does this mean that knowledge is a bad thing? The LORD said through Hosea that His people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge. Solomon said that the fear of God is the beginning of knowledge. In fact the Bible talks much about the importance of acquiring and maintaining knowledge. The first two scriptures are merely warnings that while obtaining knowledge is to be desired, there is a tendency to trust in the actual knowledge itself rather than the giver of knowledge. All true objective knowledge is designed to point to the cross of Jesus Christ and not to individual man.

One of the issues that Jesus had with the Pharisees of His day was not that they were ignorant of the law, but that they misused their knowledge of the law for deceitful gain and in doing so were unable to receive the very Giver of the law manifested in human flesh, Jesus Christ, the Messiah Himself.

Today the church is full of men and women possessing great knowledge, yet just as the Pharisees they are also full of pride. There are many great theologians who are able to intellectualize the gospel in laymens terms to the point that even a baby would be able to understand the basic fundamentals of the Christian faith. Yet despite the great head knowledge of scripture, some have no real relationship with God. Some of these people are actually holding on to a form of godliness yet deny the power of God therein. The fruits of the Spirit are often missing from their life, and the joy and liberty of the gospel are far from being experienced. How do I know this? Well there are times when I have fallen and sometimes still fall into the temptation of intellectualizing God out of the gospel. Caught up in revelation, I have oftentimes failed to walk in the very revelation I have been entrusted with. Humility is something I try to maintain, but in times past I have found myself constantly casting down prideful thoughts.

God has blessed us with an intellect and there is nothing wrong with using it! Just make sure that you stay humble and understand that you don’t know everything and always have the propensity of being wrong. A man always thinks he is right in his own eyes, and no matter what the issue, never lean on your own understanding. Instead trust in the LORD with all your heart and He will reveal the mysteries of the gospel to you, which in the end should humble you all the more.

in Spirit and in Truth

God is a Spirit; and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in Truth.
John 4:24

On my way to work this morning as I was praying and meditating on the Word, I began to think about what it truly means to worship God in Spirit and in Truth. Why did Jesus say specifically “Spirit and Truth”? It suddenly came to me that in order to worship God we must be led by both the Holy Spirit (Spirit) and the Word of God (Truth). Paul spoke about this in his 2 letters to the Corinthians. As most who are familiar with the Pauline Epistles know, the Corinthian church were a people who were very gifted spiritually. They operated prophetically, spoke in tongues, exhibited gifts of healing, and signs and wonders followed them. As a whole, their problem was that they were unbalanced. They began to focus more on the gifts than the Giver. I get the impression they sought the gifts of the Spirit of God, but forsook the proper study of the Word of God. Paul himself said to covet the gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy. However he also said that he would rather speak 5 words of understanding than 5000 words in an unknown tongue. Yet Paul spoke in tongues more than them all AND he walked in a divine understanding of the Word. He was balanced.

So many times as Christians we walk imbalanced. Solomon wrote in Proverbs 11:1 that a false balance is an abomination to the LORD, but a just weight is His delight. When Jesus gave his instruction on how to worship God, he used the word “must” which actually made it a command. If we want to worship God we have no choice but to do it in Spirit and in Truth. We can’t focus so much on the Word that it becomes a dead letter. And we can’t focus so much on the gifts of the Spirit that we end up falling into witchcraft. We must be led by the Spirit and led by the Word; walk in the Spirit and walk according to the Word; pray in the Spirit and pray according to the Word. We must know the Spirit of Truth, as John puts it in John 16:13 along with the Word of Truth. I believe a reason why many have not and do not see the power of God working in their lives is because they are imbalanced. We (I say we to include myself) have yet to worship God the way that Jesus instructed. We have yet to surrender our body as a living sacrifice and give up everything for Jesus. We have yet to tap into the manifested glory of God and allow Him to reign in our lives to the point where people no longer see us, but Christ within us. We have yet to truly worship God. Worship is a lifestyle. It is a form of adoration and humility before our Creator. It is only in worship that we can develop an intimate relationship with the LORD. Anyone can praise God, but it takes a true son and daughter of the Most High to worship Him in Spirit and in Truth.

Perfect Peace

God's perfect peace is amazing. So much so it is impossible to put into words. In the midst of trials and disappointment, I find myself in a state of constant peace that I have rarely experienced. It is almost as if I am aboard that boat on the raging sea with Jesus and his disciples (Mark 4:36:41), except the storm is in the form of trials, suffering, and rejection. Rather than be moved by the storm as the disciples were, I chose to call on Jesus, who said "Peace, be still." And what could have caused me to panic and doubt, instead elevated me to a place of perfect peace where my faith has multiplied to a level it has never been.

Even as I write this I am listening to a song called Peace by Othello. I am reminded of one of my favorite scriptures:

Philippians 4:6-7
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Being careful for nothing also means to be anxious for nothing and to take no thought for anything! For as Isaiah said in chapter 26 verse 3: "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee." As we keep our mind on Christ we prove that we trust in Him. When we trust in the LORD with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding, God's peace will reign. That is why Paul wrote through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in the next verse of Phillipans 4 - "...whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." (verse 8) What we meditate on affects our very state of being. This is why we must meditate on the Word day and night. Not only does the Word of God bring renewal to our mind - but it also brings peace. The Word was with God, the Word was God, the Word became flesh in Jesus, and Jesus is our peace!

Ephesians 2:14 - "He is our peace"

Hold On... Be Strong....

I'm sitting here unable to sleep listening to a song off of Flame's new album called "Hold On, Be Strong". You can listen to it here:
Flame - Hold One Be Strong (select the song in the audio player and press play)

I have to admit that I'm not really feelin the rest of Flame's sample tracks, his style has changed up a little too much for me. But this song is my theme song right now. No matter what happens I have to hold on and be strong and fight for my joy cuz the joy of the LORD is my strength. God is processing me, sanctifying me, and I have to fight to persevere through the trials.

While I was on the phone with my pastor yesterday, he told me that the line between obedience and disobedience is choice. Sometimes I wish the choices of other people couldn't affect you - but I've learned an all encompassing fact - even though we have a sense of freewill God is still sovereign and in control of even our freewill and will work all things out for the good to those that love Him, those that prove that love by keeping His commandments. (Romans 8:28; John 14:15; John 14:21)

The Battle To Lose Control

I'm finding in life that things don't always go the way that you would like. I mean, I realized this early on in my childhood, but it is becoming even more of a reality as I mature in my walk with God. I'm finally over my low self esteem issues, no longer struggle with depression and don't battle anxiety as often as I used to. My battle has now become the reality of no longer being in control. I have verbally submitted my will to God, said yes to His will and to His ways, but my heart has not fully accepted what comes along with this decision. Jesus told us to count the cost - that cost being our very life, including our will. I don't have a right anymore to do what I want to do - as much as I want to! I don't have a right to complain when things don't go my way. My only right is to do God's will. I've been thinking about Jesus' statement before He was betrayed when He said "I did nothing except my Father in heaven told me." I read this a few months ago and told God that before I die I want to say "I did nothing except my Father in heaven told me." I've already slipped up, but I want to reach a point in my life where this is the case. I know it is possible! However right now it "looks" impossible.

The writer of Hebrews said that Jesus learned obedience by the things that He suffered. Perhaps that is what God is doing with me. I'm experiencing so much right now, no one person knows the extent of every situation. God is certainly strengthening me and teaching me to be content and not complain - but it isn't easy!! What makes it difficult is when the people who you love don't supply the comfort, the encouragement or even the love that you desire! This has made things 100X more difficult for me - but again, God is strengthening me. I guess He is allowing this to happen so that I would find my comfort, encouragement and love in Him alone. Even David had to encourage himself when He was enduring trials, and I am learning how to encourage myself too.

Life can be tough. But who said it would be easy? Pain is not always bad. I want to be dead to myself and my will. I want to walk in the will of God 24/7!!

LORD, I cannot do it out of my own strength! I need the power of Your Spirit!! You know what is best for me, and I know that my choices outside of Your will are only going to be detrimental! Give me wisdom and understanding so that I might glorify You! Help me to accept Your will, to walk in Your will, to exalt Your will!

I need a personal revival of my soul. It is time to lose control.

Ministry Mess - Part I: Traditions of Man

Every person follows a tradition, whether it be the customs of one's culture, habits passed down from one's familial line, or learned behaviors adapted from one's environment. They are what make us unique as humans, and can result in wonderful expressions of our beliefs. Traditions often change as beliefs evolve and people grow. In essence, there is nothing wrong with carrying tradition - for we all do it! The problem arises when we mix the traditions of man with the word of God.

"...the Pharisees and the scribes asked him (Jesus), “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban”’ (that is, given to God) — then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

— Mark 7:5-13

In the above passage Jesus was rebuking the Pharisees, who were influential religious leaders in the Jewish world. Jesus pointed out their error in elevating their traditions above the Word of God. In doing so, they made the Word of God void by developing new doctrines and passing them off as God's commandments. He gave the example of the 5th commandment to honor thy mother and father. The Pharisees set up traditions that superseded this commandment and made it possible for Jews to lawfully forsake their parents.

Meditating on this passage and the example of the Pharisees given by Jesus, think about some of the things that you have seen and experienced in ministry. How many traditions of men have been established that have replaced the teachings of the Apostles and made the very Word of God void and of none effect?

In this age of "non-tradition", the very overzealousness that saints have to reject the traditions of our forefathers in the faith have created a vast number of new traditions of men which have infiltrated the church. This happens for a few reasons: ignorance of the Word; absence of the leading of the Holy Spirit; and pride.

The error in this thinking is that tradition is wrong. As Christian's we have a tradition!! The problem we face is that we must follow the correct tradition:

"And they (the believers) continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common. And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved." - Acts 2:42-47

Our tradition is to carry out the work of ministry that was laid out before us, Christ being the chief cornerstone, the Apostles laying the foundation, and us building upon that foundation. Our tradition is not in what we wear, how we speak, or the way in which we conduct worship. Our tradition is to uphold the Word of God and preach the Truth of the Gospel to people of every kindred, nation and tongue. This is how we build upon the foundation laid before us, following our forefathers as they followed Christ (and not as they followed man).

So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter (Those traditions being the Apostles' Doctrine) - 2 Thessalonians 2:15 (Paul speaking to the church at Thessalonica)

Be careful not to fall into the traditions of men - the body of Christ is full of them, in fact many denominations are founded upon them. Discard any tradition that causes you to forsake the greatest two commandments: 1. love the LORD thy God with all your heart, soul and mind; 2. love your neighbor as yourself.

The church has allowed so many things to infiltrate and affect the very word of God from being preached rightly. We have tainted the Apostle's Doctrine with our traditions of men, and the Word of God has become of none affect - the power of the cross has been lost. Don't act as the Pharisee's did. It is possible you might not even realize you are caught up in traditions of men. Let us stop focusing so much on vain traditions and instead allow the love of Christ to flow through us as we build upon the foundation laid before us - the Word of God being our guide.

Intimacy

God has created us as relational beings. Because of this, we have an inner longing to be intimate - to feel the touch of another; to share our innermost secrets, issues and desires; to be completely naked and transparent before another without fear of being hurt; to bear our all and in doing so feel comforted and protected. It is almost as if without intimacy there is no sense of satisfaction in life because that inner longing has not been met.

Deception has crept into mankind through sin and has corrupted these desires. The longing for intimacy still exists, but rather than satisfaction, comfort and protection - the end result has become discontentment, pain and regret. Love is the key ingredient in being intimate and satisfying these desires, yet the enemy has cunningly disguised lust as love, and many fall victim to his schemes, perverting the gifts of God.

Intimacy was originally created to be between God and man, what I call "vertical intimacy". I was meditating on 1 Corinthians 1:4-9 this morning and God began to reveal His desire and His call for us to be intimate with Him through His Son Jesus Christ.

Verse 9 reads: "God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord." I looked up the word fellowship in Strong's concordance and found that the word "koinōnia" can be defined as: communing intimately; having intercourse; to connect. Looking again at verse 9, we can clearly see that God has called us to intimately know His Son. This "vertical" intimacy is why God created us. It is the reason why God sent His Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins - so that we could be clothed in His righteousness and be made holy as He is holy. This sanctification (cleansing of our sins) allows us the ability to enter into the presence of a Holy God and begin to intimately "know" Him. God saved us for Himself. He wants to reveal His hidden treasures, His hidden mysteries, He wants to share His joy and bring us pure pleasure in His embrace.

This is why God instituted marriage, to give us a type and shadow of how He wants our relationship to be with Jesus as our husband, us being His wife. The LORD desires that in marriages between a man and a woman, the two become one, grow together in pure intimacy, and experience joy together in fellowship by truly getting to know each other. I call this type of intimacy "horizontal intimacy".

It is only in these two covenants that true intimacy can exist. However, if we are not careful it is possible to allow perversion to enter into even these two holy relationships. Some of us may have fallen victim to the enemy's illusion of experiencing intimacy outside of the covenants set up by God. In doing so, we have perverted our minds and may very well bring something into a relationship that has nothing to do with God. Sometimes soul ties exist, which are emotional ties that develop through relational contact with another person. This happens not only through sexual intercourse, but also occurs when you become so close to someone that they become tied into your soul - you begin to think about them (mind), desire to be around them (will), and/or are affected by them emotionally. It is possible to have a soul tie and not even realize it. Sometimes people suppress them rather than ask God to remove them. This not only affects your intimacy with Jesus, but will also affect your intimacy with your spouse in the event that you are or one day do marry. Soul ties create hurt and can cause people to put up barricades and hold back from being completely open. Their main assignment is to stop true intimacy and unity and instead bring dissention and division. Whether you are aware of a soul tie or not, I adjure you to first examine your relationship with God. Are you experiencing pure intimacy with Him? If not, ask Him to cleanse you, to remove every soul tie that is coming in between you and Him. And He will cleanse you!

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." - 1 John 1:19

If you are married, be open with your spouse! Sometimes details of your past are better left unsaid - you don't want to create unnecessary warfare on either ones behalf. But if there are any issues with you, or if you notice any issues with your spouse, bring them before the LORD and deal with them so that you can experience the pure intimacy that God desires. God wants us free from ALL soul ties so that we can freely get to know Him and our spouse.

If you are not married, now is the time to sanctify yourself and deal with these issues! In the event you do get married one day, you do not want to bring any mess into the relationship. You don't want to bring anything unholy into the bedroom. The marriage bed itself is undefiled, but we can defile it by bringing in our past, our lusts, our perversions, our comparisons, our expectations, our soul ties. Allow God to shower you with His anointing, to remove every burden and destroy every yolk. To sanctify you by the washing of His Word.

Let us all strive to be more intimate with our husband Jesus Christ. Start today. Ask Him to remove every hindrance and be completely open - stand bare and transparent before Him. Our husband is a perfect gentleman, who will never take advantage of us, never hurt us, and will love us unconditionally, even when we don't love Him back.

Feb 18, 2008: I just came across a website link that I thought was very interesting pertaining to this very blog entry: http://www.pureintimacy.org