Tag: Allah or Jesus

HEAVENWARD

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HEAVENWARD

By Rick Mathes

Philippians 3:14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

The Word teaches that we perish for lack of knowledge. I consider it a choice to be uninformed. Never in the history of mankind hs there been such access to knowledge as we now enjoy.

Each of us must follow a Paul and bring along a student like Timothy. The brain is a terrible thing to waste. No one can rob your mind if you have the mind of Christ. Satan cannot touch you. Pauls keys to knowledge were threefold:

  1. Forget the past. When you die to the flesh you are dead to the flesh. You can get the corpse of a mighty sinner, stuff his nose with cocaine, pour a bottle of Jack Daniels down his throat and throw a naked prostitute on him and he won’t even flutter an eyelid. He’s dead. Don’t drag a dead body along with you nor look back. Remember Lot’s wife?
  2. Reach for future things: Follow the yellow brick road to glory. There is a highway to heaven if front of you littered with blessings and good things only a loving Father would provide.
  3. Press on toward the prize. The very words of God guarantee that we are predestined and elect. The very words of God guarantee that we are predestined and elect. If you were God, what would you do with sinful you? If you had to impose on you what you really deserve what would you have coming to you? Now consider that you have not received what you really deserve. This is a cause for a life of thanksgiving and anticipation of His return.

How can we express our joy as we travel heavenward? We must be ambassadors of Christ so that when people get to know us they get to know the Lord. We need to let go and let God. When Jesus is sovereign in your life Satan and all the fallen angels shake in the smoldering boots.

I can hear the hoof-beats, the trumpet is about to sound, the Lord’s return is nearer than we think. It’s time to look for Jesus. In the Primitive Church, when they had services they always had a “spotter” outside looking up for Christ to return. They expected Him any minute! It wouldn’t hurt to have that same expectancy today!

HEAVEN AND EARTH

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HEAVEN & EARTH

By Rick Mathes

Ephesians 3:15 (NASB77) 15  from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name,

Being born twice and dying once really has a lot of advantages if you compare earth and heaven. My first essay in college was, “This is hell, heaven lies hereafter” and I wasn’t too far off with that observation was I?

Look in any direction to any person anywhere in the world and all you will see is a sinner. We all fall short and are imperfect Adam really blew it when he let Eve conn him into eating that apple. The let loose a floodgate of original sin that flows through every vein since Cain and Able right on down to you and I. It is impossible for us to obey the law 100% and anything short of perfection is hell bound apart from the blood sacrifice of the last Lamb, Jesus.

You don’t teach a newborn baby to be bad; they are born angry and crying. We continue with a life of suffering and tears. We are despised by Satan’s following and we who are elect are really strangers on a foreign planet. Now contrast that with heaven and it’s no comparison at all.

Heaven is a society of everyone serving the best interests of everyone. No wonder there is so much cause for rejoicing. Love is running rampant; when you are in a sinless society, God’s love rules. There is no cause for war crying sorrow or even hate, revenge or retaliation; a perfect world for the “Savior’s survivors” to be rewarded for their faith.

Can you even imagine no sickness, pain or discomfort? We will all be completely healed physically and spiritually. No mental illness, crime no immorality will ever be found or permitted. Sin will cease to exist. You will only be able to ay yeas to Jesus because there won’t be any temptation to sin or devil to say no to. How blessed can it get?

Everyone will be equally honored because God will love each of us equally with all the love and honor He has. We will all have a threat the same as Paul’s. This will be much cause for singing and celebration. I know I will be singing, “How Great Thou Art” for at least the first thousand years! With such a contrast what choice do we have but to serve Jesus here and then be rewarded there!

 

HEART TEST

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HEART TEST

By Rick Mathes

1 Thessalonians 2:4 (NASB77) 4   but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men but God, who examines our hearts.

We can hide our hearts from those around us but we sure can’t hide from Christ. We are completely transparent before Him. So I have compiled a check list you may use as a guideline to test your own heart so that at least you will be real with yourself and aware that Jesus is knows.

Is your heart:

  • broke               contrite            haughty           overcharged
  • grieved            willing              fretting             troubled
  • discouraged    obstinate          heavy              darkened
  • proud               wicked             searchable      impenitent
  • trembling         perfect             despiteful         evil
  • soft                  pure                 new                 deceitful
  • upright             clean               stony               hard
  • fixed                subtle               flesh                whorish
  • perverse          wise                 meek               mischievous
  • mercy              sorrowful         honest             compassionate

As I advance in age the condition of my heart both physical ad spiritual has become closer to the top of my daily priorities. I have had a quadruple bypass and have both a family doctor and an internist keeping a professional eye on what keeps me on my feet and preaching.

My large concern is to make sure my heart beats with His. I can hear my heartbeats in the quiet of my bedroom when it’s time to get right with the Lord. Each beat is like a New Orleans funeral march putting me one step closer to going home with each step, each beat. So I am keenly attentive to my heart being in sync with His.

We can’t ever b too ready to go home so getting into the Word should top our daily priorities and searching our hearts for anything offensive to Christ very important. Just pray, “Father God, I’ve been saved by your grace, Brother Jesus, it’s by your stripes I have been healed and Holy Spirit you know the mind of the Father and heart of the Son, What does the God what me to do?”

 

 

HEAR HIS VOICE

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HEAR HIS VOICE

By Rick Mathes

John 10:27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me;

There is a logical progression of thought that I have advocated all the years I have been a minister of the Word. This is how it must work:

  • Hear
  • Listen
  • Learn
  • Apply
  • Evaluate

It is all the more important if the calling to knowledge is from the Logos personally. Our discernment of the direction or target is very crucial to our correct procedure of response listed above.

The obvious first call is to salvation for God so loved the world He didn’t send a committee! He sent His very own Son. I am so proud of Jesus! WE have only a smoldering destination full of soot, smoke and unbearable flames and searing heat without Him.

There isn’t any choice but to be separated and consecrated to Him. Now that was a lot to consider! I have always felt as far back as I can remember that I just didn’t fit with the people and even family around me. I have always been uncomfortable with non-believers but like them I have had a real hard and relentlessly persuing holiness. Do you want to be holy more that you want to sin?

It’s a matter of self-denial which drives the leaders of the, “name it-claim it” faith movement. We must be lesser so that He might be greater. The more we let go of the world the tighter out grip on His free gifts must be. The Word teaches to let go of the world. There has never been a UHall trailer attached to the rear-end of a hearse. Now I will lament out loud that there aren’t many of us Christians as door-mats. I am however an anvil that has been the cause of many broken hammers.

The consetration of oujr efforts is to hear His voice and respond with all that is within us. No holding back. We must know His voice and be so intent on it htat we can distinctly hear it in a crowd of demonsl. The way to sharpen that issue is to be in humble service to Him and so close and familiar with Him His voice is unmistakenly His.

 

HEALTHY MINDS

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HEALTHY MINDS

By Rick Mathes

Romans 12:12 rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer,

We are to have the mind of Christ. This comes by knowing Him so well you know how He thinks. For you, reader, it’s like knowing your spouse or child so well, boss or business partner so well you know what they are thinking while they are thinking of it. So it is with our Lord. We have that close of a relationship with Him as we grow in knowing Him.

It takes a life committed to Him. Now you don’t need to be an ordained minister or give the church all your worldly possessions but you do need to do everything with attaining His approval in mind; with all the glittery world sins, packaged so attractively, this can be difficult. Thus, you need to do spiritual weight lifting, put on the armor and lift the sword in a commitment to sacrifice your likfe if you are called too.

Spirits soar if the joy of our Lord as we grow in sanctification and the Holy Spirit quickens us to prepare for our homecoming. It flows from our hert which is the source of our feelings. Jesus is the first through and the original true loved. The more we exchange who we are for who he is the more we understand and appreciate the continuing love as it should be for all.

Our hearts swell with all that gives us mental health. We need to take care of 5 pressure-points of life that are vital to our wellbeing: physical, mental, vocational, educational and spiritual. It all balances out right and so we keep our feet firmly planted on this topsy-turvy world as pilgrims that are just passing through.

Only someone with a clear conscience can enjoy these blessings of healthy minds but not definitively explain it. It is the goal of the Holy Spirit for us to be wholly His. To really stand before Him holy, there can’t be any unconfessed sin. Our whole life-time is to accomplish that lofty goal.

The key to good mental health is to acquire a good sense of who you are before the Lord. When you feel His warm embrace and know His love the Holy Spirit will see you through this temporary earth experience until we are taken home to our reward. It’s then we are returned to our first nature once again.

 

DEEP FAITH

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                                                                   DEEP FAITH          

By Rick Mathes

1 Timothy 3:9 but holding to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience.

We are created by a creator much like a painting is created by a painter. Just think of what the painting would think of the painter. It would only understand that which was revealed in the painting such as brush strokes and colors. But there would be a wealth of understanding beyond the ability of the painting to comprehend much like we have the mysteries of our Creator God. Let me name just a few.

Why do the wicked prosper? For example, I did quite well making dishonest money and fleecing people before I was saved. I had two Cadillac cars, a 50 foot cruiser and partied around the world. When I came to Christ broken and empty handed I was perplexed how I would thank Him that I was never caught or convicted of a felony. On the other hand, partners and friends of mine all wound up dead, crazy or incarcerated.

You tell me: What is born again? If I ask 100 Christians I will get 100 different answers. We all can look at this beautiful gem sparkling and glowing from a different angle while describing the same gem or crown of jewels.

The Muslims call it “Kismet” which means “fate.” The Calvinists call it “predestination” and yet there is a world of difference between the two. So those who oppose both subscribed to the “free will” or “humanism” is indifference to the Word of God’s teachings of unconditional election. Free will or fates are fatalistic.

The Pharisees believed in a life after death and the Sadducees did not. The Jehovah’s Witnesses say there is nothing but soul sleep at death and the Mormons believe we will become gods and have our own plane. It gets worse! The Roman Catholics re-crucify Christ in their Mass for our atonement, then they go to a priest they call Father for him to forgive their sins which were atoned by Jesus as the Mass and then they die and go to the flames of Purgatory to purge them of their sins. Duhhh? But if you buy enough prayer candles and say lots of rosaries, those who died might get a 1,000 off their sentence in these temporary flames. Where is this in the Bible?

Lastly we misunderstand the incarnation or hypostasis of the God-Man we have given ouir lioves to. It is a mysterious union with Christ that Ws birthed by His resurrection as a reward for His suffering our sins on that cross. He died so that we may live and we must do the same. We must died to sin that we might live in Him. Amazing!

 

DEEDS OF DARKNESS

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DEEDS OF DARKNESS

By Rick Mathes

Ephesians 5:11 (NASB77) 11  And do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them;

The darkest deed Satan ever had in his arsenal was to kill the Son of Man on the death stake. This victory overGod caused the fallen angels to rejoice that Lucifer was the prevailing king of the universe. How could He have gotten that low in His miserable existence.

For starters his only weapon is sin. Sin murdered our Savior in the worst manner ever conceived by man: crucifixion. Sinning results in death and that death results in an eternal dying in the flaming furnace reserved for those who have not stepped out of darkness into life.

The only action worse than sinning is teaching others to sin; you can do this by actual one on one lessons for sure. But many more learn by watching you allow others to sin without our intervention. When you do not rebuke and correct an active sinner, your absence of remedial correction endorses the sin and absolves the sinner. It’s a silent green light to go and likewise sin.

Akin to teaching others to sin is tempting them to sin. Nothing tempts more than a successful sinner flaunting the treasure of his evil deeds. Just seeing a fallen man basking in the glory of his plunder provokes others to go and do likewise.

A hidden deed of darkness is when you know someone is up to no good and everyone else doe also and you don’t rebuke or correct the sinner, especially if they are professing believers. This lack of correction, this apathy toward the evil deed is perceived as an endorsement. Not doing something is something indeed. It’s joining you to the sin because you wouldn’t take acts against them.

So your sinful examples of hurting people, places, damaging things and burning bridges behind you has a  debt to pay and you will be the beneficiary of its consequences: a cross to carry. This consenting to sin is literally giving Jesus the finger! This includes tolerating the sin. How many lives have you destroyed because of your personal example?

Will you then put on the armor, lift up the sword and defent sin or pledge your life and fortune to the service of the King of Kings? The God of light not darkness: stop, stand still, turn around and come back to Jesus your Lord. Welcome home!

CONQUERERS

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CONQUERERS

By Rick Mathes

Romans 8:37 (NASB77) 37  But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.

C.H. Spurgeon: Jesus is the representative man for His people. The head has triumphed and the members share in the victory. While a man’s head is above the water you cannot drown his body.

All the hope of ministry lies in the

Spirit of God operating on the spirits of men.

Jess disciples in His absence. The Holy Spirit then is all the Christ we need until His return. We pay so little attention to the Spirit of God that maybe now, in this devotional, we can give credit where credit is due.

Can you even imagine they removed the head of a trained monkey and attached it to a headless body of another monkey and it retained all its knowledge and training! A surgeon removed the heart from a patient and put it into a pan and then returned and put the silent heart into the man again and it began to throb with life. Where is life if all our body parts can be replaced? In Christ!

This inner vitality from Him makes us “able not to sin.” We have put out the flames of hell and have been resurrected from the dead. There was a time we walked around looking for a place to be buried but we were cowards to take our life. Now we cherish the Lord because His is the way, the truth and the life. We can defeat the most evil demons of hell and not even fear Lucifer himself because we win!

Sin cannot have dominance over us any more than darkness can put out light. All of hell, all sin, all demons and Lucifer himself is nothing more than an itch on God’s nose! So why are you surrendering to the losers?

Finally, we have a Commander-in-Chief that leads us to certain victory. We join Him as family, His family and full heirs to His estate. It is this eternal Glory in His Kingdom that we pledge our life, liberty and fortunes.

It all begins at the beginning: we are more than conquerors because we put on the full armor of God and fight our battles on our knees in prayer. Imagine that! We have His ear, His full attention anytime we need Him. What more assurance do we need that the battle is ours?

 

CONFESS AND REPENT

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 CONFESS REPENT

By Rick Mathes

Matthew 3:2 ” Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Many will confess but very few truly repent and it is very important that you do so. Every time you wantonly sin Satan writes that sin on the caulk-board in heaven and every time you repent, the Holy Spirit erases the sin out of sight. Sanctification’s objective is to keep the blackboard clean but just confession won’t do it.

  • Confession sin is worrying about the punishment that is the consequence of sin.
  • Repentance is worrying about the sin whose consequence is punishment.
  • Conversion is a change of action after you have had a true change of mind.
  1. The first sermon John the Baptist preached was “Repent!”
  2. The first sermon Jesus preached was “Repent!”
  3. The first sermon Peter preached was “Repent!”
  4. The first sermon Paul preached was “Repent!”

Are you getting the message?

Repentance is simply a turning toward Jesus. I never quit drinking. It quit me. When you are looking upon Him, the devil has no entry level. I love Jesus more than the sin and you should too.

When you turn to God you have put your back to Father Lucifer. The devil does not like your disrespect of the “Angel of light.” You have declared war on hell and I can guarantee all of his fallen angels are going to break loose on you like a swarm of angry hornets. You can expect violence and deceit unimagined from the most unlikely people!

Reverend Lucifer is too slick to make him obvious. He would rather turn your heart back to him from the pulpit of your favorite churches. If your minister doesn’t preach repent, submit and obey you have been sitting under the evil one. You have become a Satanist because you won’t turn from the sin the Holy Spirit has been convicting you of.

You refuse to turn from sin to the Savior and cause the very angels of heaven weep for you as the Good Shepherd laments one lost lamb.

The fruit of true salvation is good works. You were created in the image and likeness of Jesus and all he did while he was on planet earth and served those who were His. Repent and do likewise so that all will know that you have had a conversion experience and are now walking you talk!

COMMUNION

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COMMUNION

By Rick Mathes

1 Corinthians 11:23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread;

Sharing the bread and wine in remembrance of Him is the privilege of the believer. Non-believers or those seeped in willful and unrepentant sin are not welcome at the table. No, we aren’t actually eating His flesh and drinking His blood. Ask the Apostles who were there if they did. No, it’s just a symbol on the outside of what has happened on the inside. We become one with Him when we are born again. It is at this point of communion that we reaffirm that we are not ours anymore. We surrender all as we remember Him and His sacrifice for us: a very special commemoration.

In sharing the elements as fellow Christians in good standing, we confess our sins and our allegiance to the King. When the Body of Christ comes together in corporate worship we declare to the world our unity regardless of denominations. Our doctrinal differences or distinctives melt into thin air as the Holy Spirit blesses all that confess Jesus as Lord equally.

Our being in one accord is clearly communicated to all who will look. The talk is real when the walk confirms it and that is certainly the case as we all remember Him for who He is and who we should be in Him. Our actions speak louder than words. St. Francis of Assisi once said, “Preach the gospel and use words when necessary.”

As we commune as one in Him, the Holy Spirit seals us until Jesus returns and breaks the seal. He, only He, the Lamb of God is qualified to break the seal so that the Groom may be united with the Bride (The Church).

This amounts then, in its totality as a consecration of us for Him. Roman Catholic priests have their thumb and two fingers consecrated, declared without sin, so as to touch the host (Body of Christ) they believe is truly His flesh. I suggest that a true biblical communion results in the Holy Spirit consecrating not just our fingers but our whole being so that we will be pure and holy in His sight.