ONE MORE WHO
we are we
WE ARE WHERE WE ARE
we becoming we
in prayer
with many twists and turns
trials... discernment... choices and different paths
in God
And as Paul dismissed Mark…
He followed and brought forth the word of God
Barnabas out of love went another way…
But God favored and honored Mark
And had a purpose for him…
with the writing the second Gospel
A NEW DAY
and the adventure begins anew
UNITY
very small word with eternal significance
The Triune God is
Love
the multitude of them that believed were of
one heart and of one soul
Love one another warmly as Christians, and
be eager to show respect for one another
Be under obligation to no one—
the only obligation you have is to
love one another
There is one body and one Spirit, just as there is one hope
There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism
preserve the unity
which the Spirit gives by means of the
peace that binds you together
we are members one of another
The word “Unity” is elusive
or without meaning in a church founded by Jesus
and is now so segmented it is beyond description.
How do we… or how can we ever come to realize the prayer of Jesus…
“…that we all may be one!”
other than giving it lip service…
How can we ever be reconciled to our place in Christ
with the division that blatantly exists?
To the Faithful!
What is the substance of Jesus asking…
the finality of the believers on Earth… into unity… through prayer
The question by His demonstration can we ever come to unity without praying as Jesus…
Jump to the foundation of the Church without His physical presence…
He instructs them to pray together in the upper room and all were present and in perfect unity…
He is in their midst in their prayer
He gives them the blessing of eternal peace
They prayed together than Jesus instructed the twelve
to pray daily to direct His church
do you know pastors that pray together every day to hear God
and direct His Church?
where is the church today
in view of scripture?
Joh 17:20 “I pray not only for them, but also for those who believe in me because of their message (That would be us)
Joh 17:21 I pray that they may all be one. Father!
May they be in us, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they be one, so that the world will believe that you sent me.
Joh 17:22 I gave them the same glory you gave me, so that they may be one, just as you and I are one:
Joh 17:23 I in them and you in me, so that they may be completely one, in order that the world may know that you sent me and that you love them as you love me.
Joh 17:24 “Father! You have given them to me, and I want them to be with me where I am, so that they may see my glory, the glory you gave me; for you loved me before the world was made.
Unity is a given…
what holds us apart are selfish men who lack love in favor of ego…
only the flesh separates!
Before the words of Jesus… Will you pray or justify?
Prayer exercises faith
to be with Him who's unseen
ears
So very many sounds in the world and in truth… the thousands of sounds that did not even exist in the time of Jesus… and there in that world to those in that time He said
“Go into your closet (alone) and close the door… leave the world and all its sounds behind… a closet (No windows) not in the dark because your with the light… but you give God your full undivided attention… this is done physically… now we must quiet the mind to hear…
Folks you don’t need this time quiet and place alone place to talk to God He can hear your very heart beat… so it is with the intent to hear Him we go to the prayer closet… How often do you get alone… removed from all the sounds of the world to pray?
This is why Jesus… constantly asks
“You who have ears” and reverberatingly in The Book of Revelations… we are filled with noise
in truth what do you hear… What you want to! The admonishment:
“Ears they have but they cannot hear…” Or I would heal them!
Healing: an incentive to hear…
sin
Lying for to long has become less than a fib oh and the always OK… or good lie… the white lie… don’t count… look around everyone lies… there is a modicum of truth to be found… if that…
so look what evil has accomplished by pushing us farther away from each other because… who can you trust? Who speaks truth?
Clearly… there is no truth without love.
We are lied to and lied about… the fermentation of persecution surrounds us as darkness encroaches ever attempting to blind us… distract us… the truth… is bent… watered down…
the distortion gives us a Jesus the same in stature but with diverse meaning…
What is “Saved”
What is “Called”
What is “Follow Me”
Salvation is worked out… by enduring to the end!
Who? Has heard or knows the voice of Jesus?
“My sheep know my voice!”
Following has become try to listen to the pastor and do what he does… how he lives…
The doors to access to Jesus are full of debris…
You cannot hold the bible up for all to see and not obey it!
“Why do you call me Lord… Lord and not obey”
We live in the world… and say it’s God.
who are we lying to but ourselves… we will all be accountable… do you think we will follow Eve…
The devil told me what to do…
The sin is we’re separated from Jesus… and we better change soon before it’s to late…
thoughts
For every evil reason that defies faith… and remember you cannot please God without faith… we have come to believe lie after lie… logical
right? “I use the foolish things to confound (those that are deceived) the wise… in their own eyes…
were these twelve men the smartest or wisest or thinkin’ist?
Jesus choose hearts… those that followed without question by faith…
today we out think the heart… over come the heart and make foolish the heart… knowledge has by far replaced love… get a degree… be a success in the world… and don’t forget to go to church… Christians are so misdirected it takes every effort just to convince “So called believers” to visit a church? And look at the ticklers clever… accommodations… come at ten… eleven or twelve o’clock… sleep late
Thinkers are the Sanhedrin… The Pharisees… The Scribes… Did anyone notice it was the leading thinkers that followed selfishly evil conclusions to kill Jesus… not satisfied yet how about the greatest thinker… the thought that went into denying the love of Jesus for a well thought out plan… Ah the clever mind of Judas… if you don’t get it yet… don’t pray… ask for prayer…
does that make sense?
THOSE WHO FOLLOW
The paths men take led by the
Holy Spirit all lead to God
Divergent roads may very well be conflicting or even and more often than not opposing
There is no difference when men hear even when it leads them down different paths when we err in forgiveness
It seems that we have not rested in God’s leading by faith through prayer and here is why the church today is so… not just divided but splintered and in just to many places severed… to be internally broken can readily be mended and actually made stronger in light of God’s merciful healing love… but what does it take to find use and receive that glue that binds…
His love!
The door to unity will always be found in prayer… no different than Jesus who prayed gave instruction to Peter to go to the upper room and pray together… gather them… leadership does not and should not feel compelled to speak unity or direct unity firstly unity is a given… that place is given to God in “Hearing Him in Prayer” than obeying…
Who today knows His voice?
What appears to be a simple path has not happened in centuries simply because arrogance through mental arguments has removed the heart of God from entrance with His love… if men prayed… as did Jesus… as did the twelve in the upper room… the church would find its way back into unity but the very simple ingredient that has drawn every believer has been that call of Jesus to follow Him
and as he directed “Pray for the laborers”
Humility is no longer the entrance to prayer…
how many of you folks pray on your faces…
that hopefully will give you just a peek of our self-centered egos… who would fall on their faces… today… now!
“The scripturologists” the “I” know scripture
pontificators with law and more law
but without love in fact most of them condemn those that love… as foolish
they are hard of heart waxed cold with knowledge blind to the very essence of God’s instruction by observation…
example speaks at the cross…
Did not those who have thrones in heaven before God
fall down at the utterance of the Spirit casting their crowns!
They made it to the throne room and at the very whisper of the Holy Spirt they cast themselves down prone before Him
no worry those that don’t or will not
will not have to worry about doing it in heaven
humility finds us because of our absolute need of Jesus
Do we not read to obey but merely to repeat what we have read never ever obeying… It is time for change to those who have ears… can anyone still hear what is now the very still small voice in the midst of so many speaking about Jesus with few very few speaking
for Jesus through prayer…
too too many do not even believe men can be so dead to self as to be vessels of God
no there will be no revival…
there was never a revival without everyone…
yes everyone praying not just a select few…
what they who prayed together having been prayed up in their prayer closets then heard was the voice of God directly…
but alas who will fall on their face weeping for the brethren…
this is the heart of Jesus
intercession!
who can hear the voice of Jesus… recognizing in certainty and having it confirmed by others praying together that we can follow once again…
Him who has called us out of our darkness…
and is still trying to move us further into His marvelous light…
do you have ears…
blinded by the darkness.. or by the light
Did you hit the floor yet… later may be too late…
“God will have His way
there are no losers or less thans...
when we are called to lay down our lives... and follow
just different paths
Same God... Same Love
with prayer binding us”
with love...
Barnabas
JESUS LEADS THE WAY...
the narrow path
THE PATH
HAPPINESS
or joy?
Amuse?
Did Jesus come to amuse us?
No! Jesus did not come to entertain us!
He did not come to make us laugh…
He did come… to bring us into relationship to Him… and through Him to God… by faith in Him…
In relationship; forgiven and redeemed we have joy… everlasting…
Let us not confuse amusement with joy.
The Joy of the lord is our strength.
Jesus came to demonstrate our purpose in life… to be servants of God and to serve joyfully.
Jesus did not come to amuse or entertain us.
He was sent in love, by love, to love us and commanded us to love one another… as He…
The problem is we’ve changed the one another, to mean… ourselves.
He came to destroy the works of the devil… to bring us back into loving relationship, through Him to God.
The sum total of His motive
is to love us selflessly, sacrificially, perfectly and forever!
And that is the cause within us…
Jesus did not come to amuse or entertain us.
He came to serve, to give, to share, to bless, to heal, to touch with merciful endless love…
To serve… our every need… in asking He caused man to walk on water… He washed feet!
To give… Himself, that we may know His love, He still gives… He still prays for us…
To share… The Kingdom of many mansions… life eternal with Him… He is brother… friend…
To bless… loved, we are filled with joy… all fear is cast out… we are free indeed…
To heal… our minds, our bodies, our hearts… to render us whole…
To touch… He will embrace us… and wipe every tear from our eyes…
Jesus did not come to amuse or entertain us
Jesus came to gather us to Him… to be emerged in His love eternally…
Jesus came that we might serve, give, share, bless, heal and touch as He…
Jesus came that we might pick up our cross daily and follow… living as He lived… continuing the work He began.
Jesus did not come to amuse or entertain us.
Yet we hold to so many worldly vices to amuse ourselves.
Christians spend more time filling their lives with entertainment than with service to God as Jesus lovingly demonstrated… for us to follow…
We spend more time finding and knowing the weather forecast to prepare ourselves for the day than we prepare ourselves for eternity.
We follow sports teams more closely than we follow Jesus.
We spend more time in watching TV than watching unto prayer.
We spend more time reading books and articles about prayer, than is given to praying.
We read more books than we read “The Book”.
We know and talk more about the news of the day than we do about the Good news.
We love comedy, comedians, and jokes but there’s nothing funny about people going to hell while we laugh.
We are more inclined to worry and fear over governmental decisions, politics, politicians and world affairs than concern ourselves in the fear of God.
We have sports, music, and screen idols, that we hold more closely, relate to, equally or above… Jesus.
We spend hours exercising in gyms, spas, walking, hiking and running, even working out at home… and it profits us little.
We watch our weight and count our calories; we cut back on our fat intake and still are gluttonous.
We take vitamins and a host of supplements to improve our health and physical wellbeing more than we do anything to improve our spiritual condition.
We invest more in stocks, bonds, commodities and property for our future on earth (if we have one) but it will not buy us into the Kingdom of heaven.
We shop and we shop, even when we don’t need anything because it has become a form of amusement for many.
We learn, learn, learn and ever learning, Collage… University’s… online courses… information at hand in our phone… yet we’re never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Now we can do most of these pursuits on the line adding to the above the time waster supreme… surfing.
How we dress and the time energy and money spent to empress others is part of our social amusement… seeking flattery… forgetting the clean and beautiful appearance of the outside of the cup does not tell us of the filth and evil within the cup.
We rail against God’s creation no longer satisfied to just lend color, glitter, and adornments of extravagant design to our bodies; we now tattoo, pierce, and mutilate ourselves seeking attention to ourselves… self-seeking in defiance of our seeking God… and the beauty in which He made the body.
Now we’re not happy with our gender… our happiness overrides our creation and therefore the creator… please tell me who is amused?
Our selfish endeavors exceed our seeking to serve God…
We spend more time on anything and everything but prayer… until something goes wrong…
What is the cost of our folly? Beside or in accordance to our selfish actions… death!
We believe in God but not more than we believe in ourselves… not enough to serve God more than we are self serving… not enough to love more than we love ourselves…
These are a just few of the many doors to strong delusions… introducing seducing spirits
Driving us into selfishness of our choosing and away from the love of God. There are more delusions coming to lead us into a false spiritual security; the rise of the anti-Christ shall be established on the shoulders of those deluded. We are giving ground to the selfish attitudes we harbor now and we are creating the means to accept more and more the delusions to come, in our denial of obedience.
When will you love?
Do you still think it’s funny?
The only one amused by our desire to be amused… is Satan.
Still laughing?
JOY
or happiness?
Joy?
What is joy?
How can we describe it?
Can we choose to be happy or joyful? If we can choose… How?
Jesus gives insight to our emotions (Godly or spiritual passions… not the opposing natural selfish physical lusts that is of our flesh) there is happiness in the making of our selfish minds which are vague or unreal but it tends to be wishful because we really don’t know what joy or happiness is.
Questions not answered like… How long will it last? How wide or deep… casual or overwhelming? Will I feel it… will I know it as a thought? Can it escalate or will it diminish? Is it personal or can it be shared?
Elusive might boarder on vague… maybe come to be unknown… How will I know joy?
Man will run after feelings and the hope of emotional highs or overall just feeling good… or is it just better than how I feel now?
Happiness; is an emotional state characterized by feelings of joy, satisfaction, contentment, and fulfillment… but wait… can I not feel good about something that affects others adversely or destructively so what makes us feel good… could be venting anger… getting even… brutality to another? Could we feel good about war… can killing others ever be looked at… something to feel good about?
Joy; is the state of being happy.
Ok defined happiness can be seen more extensively and it can give me something to see in some parameters yet… is this the state of being happy? Sounds like the definition leaves a lot to be desired. One thing defining gives is that it’s clearly… an emotional satisfaction?
By who or what standards? Can I measure myself?
What will make us happy… arriving at a place… when work is over… so I’ll be relieved that will make me happy? When I get that raise or when I graduate school… or when I get married. God if you just give me this one thing just do this one thing I’ll be happy?
Arriving at a place in time is not necessarily the answer for happiness… Eve came to that place…
Now we come to is happiness joy? Defined “Joy” is a feeling of great happiness. Well… we’re back to the beginning…
It’s easy to see why happiness is elusive…
Now with all this in mind let us look at what God says… His prescribed insight…
We have but hints in the good news… wait Good News alone should make us happy!
The Good News introduces us to Jesus and includes and defines relationship… but unfortunately for most Christians it is not redefined… remaining as a mental state… it is not decisively taught in truth for the simple reason most men vacillate (Double minded) from Holy Spirit to flesh… some times changing in one breath or sentence… Here and now through the eyes of the Holy Spirit… as God is love… He is Spirit… so love as is faith which works by love as an emotional condition to be accepted by the will… here we enter prayer unexpectedly as we find joy an emotional essence for both meeting with God and being in relationship to God. To choose following God takes an act of the will… a decision indeed… that takes us away from reason or logic as an exclusive means to have relationship to God. Here it is absolutely necessary to clarify that in and of faith… we leave our thinking past and present to “Put on the mind of Christ” without which… will bring us back to our devious and sinful mind plagued by the original sin inherited through eating of the tree of knowledge. So this mind no matter how we saturate it with good… it will ever be the enemy of God. Born again gives us the mind of Christ but we need to release ourselves from our old man… into the new man and new thinking… that of God’s thinking.
The twelve for three plus years following had no idea of most of what Jesus was doing or why… until through extensive obedience they were given the Holy Spirit which and only by which they had understanding.
Now… maybe we can hear God… “You who have ears!”
What God accomplished in the church at Corinth slightly opens the door of seeing joy… in the hearts of men and released through men.
“They have been severely tested by the troubles they went through; but their “joy” was so great that they were extremely generous in their giving, even though they are very poor”
You should question what prompted there joy… how it affected them to give is obvious… but the root to such joy!
“And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you” Here is these recorded words of Jesus the Door opens wider to this feeling inspired by our meeting with Him… here we learn joy is everlasting…
“These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full”
By these words sandwiched in between Jesus declaring His love for them/us we are given the full insight by the Holy Spirit of the living God… We have no Joy nor happiness… outside of Jesus… simply because He is the supplier of Joy… the very essence of Joy!
Until you leave the flesh as did the twelve… to whom this was addressed… we may hear or get a glimpse of it… but to “Hear from Jesus… to you one to one… as he did call and as you are following… know for yourself the Joy of God… as it is told to you by Him… in how He feels this joy for you!
This is Joy!!!
MORE
as the Spirit leads