For Reflection

Radically Real Christian

When I say, "I am a Christian,"
I'm not shouting, "I am saved."
I'm whispering, "I get lost"
That is why I chose this way.

When I say, "I am a Christian,"
I don't speak of this with pride.
I'm confessing that I stumble
And need someone to be my guide.

When I say, "I am a Christian,"
I'm not trying to be strong.
I'm professing that I am weak
And pray for strength to carry on.

When I say, "I am a Christian,"
I'm not bragging of success.
I'm admitting I have failed
And cannot ever pay the debt.

When I say, "I am a Christian,"
I'm not claiming to be perfect.
My flaws are too visible
But God believes I'm worth it.

When I say, "I am a Christian,"
I still feel the sting of pain.
I have my share of heartaches
Which is why I seek HIS name.

When I say, "I am a Christian,"
I do not wish to judge.
I have no authority
I only know I'm loved.

Used by permission Copyright 1988 Carol S. Wimmer

This one, I agree with 100%. I am humbled by the author's sensitivity to God's true message, and how I have so often been so far from it!

Spiritual Wellness (4/29 - 5/5)

1 Timothy 4:7-9 (ESV)

⁷ Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; ⁸ for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. ⁹ The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance.

Hebrews 10:23-32  (ESV)

²³ Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. ²⁴ And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, ²⁵ not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.


I Corinthians 6:14,15 states, “Didn’t you realize that your body is a sacred place, the place of the Holy Spirit? Don’t you see that you can’t live however you please, squandering what God paid such a high price for? The physical part of you is not some piece of property belonging to the spiritual part of you. God owns the whole works.”

The Blood

Protected By The Blood

Ex 12:7,12-13 (NIV) "... they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs... On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn--both men and animals--and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt."
Rom 5:9 (Wey) If, therefore, we have now been pronounced free from guilt through His blood, much more shall we be delivered from God's wrath through Him.

Cleansing Blood
Heb 9:15-22 (Phi) Christ is consequently the administrator of an entirely new agreement, having the power, by virtue of his death, to redeem transgressions committed under the first agreement... For, as in the case of a will, the agreement is only valid after death. While the testator [the person named in the will] lives, a will has no legal power. And indeed we find that even the first agreement of God's will was not put into force without the shedding of blood... "This is the blood of the agreement God makes with you." And you will find that in the Law almost all cleansing is made by means of blood; it implies again and again "No shedding of blood, no remission of sin."

Life In The Blood

Lev 17:11a (NIV) For the life of a creature is in the blood.

Which is more "real" and permanent: the world we see or the spiritual world? What mystery are we participating in, what truth is being revealed in the Communion elements?

John 6:41-60 (Phi) At this, the Jews started grumbling at him... "Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose parents we know? How can he now say that 'I have come down from Heaven'?"... Jesus answered and said, "I myself am the bread of life. Your forefathers ate manna in the desert, AND THEY DIED!... The bread which I give you is my own body, and I shall give it for the life of the world."

This led to a fierce argument among the Jews, some of them saying, "How can this man give us his body to eat?" So Jesus said to them, "Unless you do eat the body of the Son of Man and drink his blood, I assure you that you are not really living at all. The man who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up when the last day comes. For my body is real food, and my blood is real drink." ...Many of his disciples heard him say these things and commented, "This is a hard teaching indeed; who could accept that?" Mat 26:27,28 (Phi) "Drink this, all of you, for it is my blood, the blood of the new agreement shed to set many free from their sins."
Mark 14:24 (TEB) Jesus said, "This is my blood which is poured out for many, my blood which seals God's covenant."
Luke 22:20 (JNT) "This cup is the New Covenant, ratified by my blood, which is being poured out for you."
1 Cor 11:25 (NIV) "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me."
1 Cor 10:16 (NIV) Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ?

Sin cont. 4/22 - 4/28

Is all sin rebellion?  I believe so.  The path you take could unintentionally lead you to sin, but you do decide whether to participant in the sin or decide to turn away.  Rebellion is knowing what's right, but choosing to satisfy self, rather than sacrificing to please God.  Let me reexamine this, because I just actually made an assumption that we all know what's right and wrong in the sight of God.  Now that I think of it unintentional sin could apply to those that don't know God's will.

Sinning unintentionally, means that you do not observe all that God has commanded you, that you have sinned unintentionally without the knowledge of wrongdoing. In this case a prayer of intercession must be prayed on your behalf.  Even if you don't know that you've sinned, a prayer of forgiveness still needs to be prayed for that sin.  Intercession is one way your sin can affect someone else. 

What motivates you to sin?

People sin because:

• "There is no fear of God before their eyes" (Romans 3:18). 
• "My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6)
• we deceive ourselves, saying that we haven't sin.  1 John 1:8
• we sin because we speak negativity. Proverbs 18:21
•  We sin because we are led astray by bad influences. 1 Corinthians 15:33,Proverbs 13:20, 

The bottom line is we are willful people.  What me want, we pursue.  What we think, we speak, then what we speak, we want and what we see, we do.  Because of our sinful nature, we sin because it's more desirable to sin.  If we want a relationship with God, we have to train ourselves to resist temptation even though it seems so unnatural to resist it.  We also have to surround ourselves with people that are pursuing a relationship with God and rightousness.


 The one thing I can't stress enough is that God didn't create us to live alone (Genesis 2:18).  His design is for us to be apart of a unit.  Whether through family, marriage, friendships, partnerships & fellowship in a church, God wants us to be apart of a community.  More importantly God wants us to experience on earth the oneness & unity He wants us to experience with Him. But why? 
Hebrews 10:24-25, says relationships with other Christians allow us to stimulate one another to love and encourage others in good deeds.

How God Wants Us To Live

Matthew 22:37-40 ESV

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

John 15:5 ESV

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

Proverbs 14:12 ESV

There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.

Matthew 7:1-29 ESV

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye. ...

Matthew 4:4 ESV

But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Ephesians 5:1 ESV

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.

Mark 12:30 ESV

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’

Luke 9:23 ESV

And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

Ephesians 5:17 ESV

Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

John 7:24 ESV

Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”

Hebrews 6:1 ESV

Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,

Matthew 6:33 ESV

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Acts 17:23 ESV

For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.

Psalm 103:1-3 ESV

Of David. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,

Psalm 73:25 ESV

Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

2 Peter 1:3 ESV

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,

Galatians 5:22 ESV

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

Psalm 83:18 ESV

That they may know that you alone, whose name is the Lord, are the Most High over all the earth.

Question: "How does my personal, private sin affect others?"

Question: "How does my personal, private sin affect others?"

Answer: If you lived isolated on an island in the middle of the sea, then perhaps your private sin would not affect anyone but yourself. However, since the maxim is "no man is an island," there is a good chance that you have a family or at the least friends and acquaintances that you come into contact with on a continual basis. All of them will be affected in some way by sin because sin has consequences (Romans 6:23). 

That is a principle that follows the pattern laid down at the creation. Everything created has a seed from which it propagates itself after its "kind" (Genesis 1:11, 21, 25). In other words, you do not plant corn and expect to harvest beets. You cannot “plant” sin—even in private—and not expect to reap a harvest of consequences. And consequences have a way of spilling out over everyone and anyone that comes into contact with us because of another principle called "association." This means that those around you can be blessed or hurt by association with you and the choices and actions you make, both privately and publicly.

The Ten Commandments

Exodus 20:2-17

The Message (MSG)

20 ^1-2 God spoke all these words:

I am God, your God,
    who brought you out of the land of Egypt,
    out of a life of slavery.

³ No other gods, only me.

^4-6 No carved gods of any size, shape, or form of anything whatever, whether of things that fly or walk or swim. Don’t bow down to them and don’t serve them because I am God,your God, and I’m a most jealous God, punishing the children for any sins their parents pass on to them to the third, and yes, even to the fourth generation of those who hate me. But I’m unswervingly loyal to the thousands who love me and keep my commandments.

⁷ No using the name of God, your God, in curses or silly banter; God won’t put up with the irreverent use of his name.

^8-11 Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Work six days and do everything you need to do. But the seventh day is a Sabbath to God, your God. Don’t do any work—not you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your servant, nor your maid, nor your animals, not even the foreign guest visiting in your town. For in six days God made Heaven, Earth, and sea, and everything in them; he rested on the seventh day. Therefore God blessed the Sabbath day; he set it apart as a holy day.

¹² Honor your father and mother so that you’ll live a long time in the land that God, your God, is giving you.

¹³ No murder.

¹⁴ No adultery.
¹⁵ No stealing.
¹⁶ No lies about your neighbor.

¹⁷ No lusting after your neighbor’s house—or wife or servant or maid or ox or donkey. Don’t set your heart on anything that is your neighbor’s.

Sin is Rebellion against God

First of all, to know that you've sin is to know that God is the creator and has designed the right way to live.  Sin sends a message that you reject God's design and authority. Dealing with sin can put you in some unbearable situations.  I’m here to remind everyone what bible says about fleeing from sin.
•       1 Corinthians 6:18 says when we sin, we offend our own bodies.
•       2 Timothy 2:22, says Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness 
•       Matthew 26:41 Says watch and pray, so you won’t not fall into temptation.

Why do you think God is so concerned whether we sin or not?  Even though sin is rebellion against God’s grand design, He’s more concerned about how your sinful decisions affect you and the innocent, unsuspecting people around you.  See He loves you so much that He was
willingly to enter flesh to firstly be an example for righteous living and to be the living sacrifice needed for the remission of sins.

Let's examine Moses's story..  Needles to say Moses took a lot of flack from people with displaced anger & frustration.  The Israelites were frustrated about wondering in the dessert seemingly without a plan or purpose.  I can't say I'm entirely unsympathetic to their plight.  But before accepting his calling, Moses knew he had a temper.  Often times Moses let his temper get the best of him.  Now God knows that we are flawed people, he has called us to get control of our bodies.


For those that think losing your temper isn't all that bad.  Consider the following scriptures:

Proverbs 13:3
Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin
 
Proverbs 14:17
A man of quick temper acts foolishly, and a man of evil devices is hated.

Colossians 3:8
But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.

Proverbs 15:18 
A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.

Proverbs 19:11
Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.

Someone once asked me a very good question about the judgement God handed down to Moses.  After Moses in anger struck the rock and included himself as having something to do with bringing water from it.  The question was were was God's forgiveness for Moses?  I agree that Moses was a dedicated servant of God.  I was also very sadden to that it ended for him the way that it did.  One very important thing we need to see is that Moses tried to horn in on receiving praise for a gift that was given from God.  Moses was simply the vessel being us to bring the blessing forth.  It's very dangerous & shortsighted for us to try to get praise for a blessing that was given by God.  Especially if it's taking praise from God. Give praise were praise is due!

Scriptures to Keep in mind

1 Thessalonians 4:3
For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality;

Ephesians 5:17
Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

2 Thessalonians 2:13
But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.

Ephesians 6:6
not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart,

Colossians 3:5 
Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

1 Thessalonians 4:4
that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor,

James 1:19
Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;

Proverbs 17:27
Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.

Proverbs 21:23
Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble.

Proverbs 14:29 
Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.

Proverbs 13:3
Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life; he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin

Proverbs 14:17
A man of quick temper acts foolishly, and a man of evil devices is hated.

Colossians 3:8 
But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.

Proverbs 15:18
A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.

Proverbs 19:11
Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.

Faith Fair

http://agodlyword.blogspot.com/p/upcoming-events.html

There are several gifts God has for us as we're traveling on this Christian journey. God never promised a life without suffering. The fact is people today make decisions based on what makes them happiest and don't consider how their decisions may affect those around them, people either they know or don't know. We've seen many instances, especially in recent days, that the actions of one can affect masses of people. How do you know that you're protected from those with evil intentions? Can you ward off evil spirits? Can you ensure that no matter what goes on around you, your household is safe from all hurt, harm and danger? If you're were suddenly put in a life and death situation, do you have assurance that you'll be with God in the end?

My goal is to encourage people to work to increase their faith. The bible says that the word is the bread of life. Are you hungry for it? It's through the study of Scripture that we'll build a stronger faith in God. I want to create opportunities to include God in our daily lives, highlight scriptures to ensure we're putting on the whole armor of God and promote a renewed connection with God. I will organize community events aimed at generating reading groups, disseminating suggested bible study topics and discussing the bible. Matthew 18:20 says, For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

Can We Talk?

The question of the day is:

God being the creator of the world and everything in it, did He create evil?

http://www.openbible.info/topics/god_creating_the_world

Daily Scripture for the day

Isaiah 45:12

I made the earth and created man on it; it was my hands that stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their host.

Jeremiah 27:5

“It is I who by my great power and my outstretched arm have made the earth, with the men and animals that are on the earth, and I give it to whomever it seems right to me.

Isaiah 45:18

For thus says the Lord, who created the heavens (he is God!), who formed the earth and made it (he established it; he did not create it empty, he formed it to be inhabited!): “I am the Lord, and there is no other.

Psalm 102:25

Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.

Genesis 1:26-27

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion

Who are I?

Keeping in line with the topic of the week I'm presenting the greatest example of a rebellious sinner.  This Personality's name means 'day star,' or 'son of the morning.  He had the favor of God upon him, but pride and sin cost him everything.

            

He was created to dwell eternally in the throne room of heaven, in the very presence of God.

He was a step above the others in his class, not only in appearance but also in intellect. His wisdom far exceeded that of other beings. He understood the ways of God. 

Even though he had wisdom, beauty, ability, perfection, he wanted more; he wanted to be worshiped like God. 

Once he was rejected by God, his goal became to constantly attempt to oppose the all mighty's plan. He even attempted to tempt Jesus. 

His name changed to The Prince of Darkness once he was ousted.

What's Wrong with sin?

It's so hard to minister to people about sin, when they believe  the decisions they make doesn't also effect those around them.  Or the people that believe their sin isn't all that bad.  I want to challenge them to revisit who they have wronged and see how their decision has effected others.  Let's take an example, we are visual people after all.  What about the first sin ever committed, Adam and Eve.  I can see it from the world's view, it's just a piece of fruit.  They're not hurting anyone, but aren't they?  God himself gave a direct command not to eat from the tree of knowledge of Good and evil or you'll surely die (Genesis 2:16-18).   

Now I again can hear the world again say, okay they made a mistake, didn’t God overreact by kicking them out.  We have to understand that forgiveness of sins comes after confession and repentance.  Once they were caught in their sinfully situation do you think they were sorry and sought forgiveness?  Let's take a look at Genesis 3:9-13.  Adam blame God & Eve.  Eve then blamed the Serpent, and you know what happened from there.  They were kicked out, kicked out of paradise.   I wasn't even there, but I certainly feel for them. 

Seeking Blog Host & Writer

My goal is to create a Christian Talk show, but before we get started I want to make sure we have an audience for this project.  I started this blog in order to test the market for the subject I want to showcase.  The subject is God of course, but I want to give people a sneak peek of the type of show and material I will present.  The official position I'm seeking to fill is Blog Writer & Host.

I'll test this position for a three month period. I will broadcast a new topic on a weekly basic.  The Writer and Host will work with me (producer) to develop story lines, plan activities, write, edit & produce segments and create context and story elements. During non-production days the talent will assist me with researching topics, organizing field shoots and conducting interviews, writing scripts, suggesting & selecting music; overseeing the production process and editing shots.

I'm looking to begin filming in two weeks and then post the video segments on the blog by May 11, 2013. The position will pay $25 per episode.  We will create 1 episode weekly for a trial three month period.  Because I'm working with a very limited budget, I'm only seeking non-union talent at this time.

If you're interested, I've included a story at http://agodlyword.blogspot.com/2012/09/audition-tape-blog-host.html that I would like to see you deliver by video submission.  This will be considered your audition tape.  I would love to see you deliver the subject matter will zest, clarity, confidence and feel free to add a personal touch to your video submission.  You can then submit the audition tape through the electronic submission form via the agodlyword.blogspot.com website.  Just go all the way down to the bottom of the webpage.  All entries must be submitted by April 20th 2013.

Thank you for you time.  Good Luck!
 

Bible Topic for the week of April 15 - April 21

Sin - is described in the Bible as transgression of the law of God (1 John 3:4)

We can debate the following questions:

• How do we know what’s sinful? 
• Who gets to decide what’s sin? 
• Why does this person have the right to dictate what’s right and wrong?  
• What’s the big deal if we sin?
• We live in a free society where there are already rules, why should we take on more rules?