“COULD IT BE???”

 Could it be that THE CHURCH is so caught up with being a nursery to some that no warfare can be undertaken???  May GOD help us!!!  

❤️🙏❤️🙏❤️🙏❤️🙏❤️🙏❤️🙏❤️🙏❤️🙏❤️

“PRAYER!!!”

“PRAYER will make a man cease from sin, or sin will entice a man to cease from PRAYER” (John Bunyan).

When we consider that PRAYER is our direct link to the GOD of all CREATION, it only makes sense that the father of all lies would want us to stop talking to HIM. SUCH A DISCONNECT CRIPPLES US FROM A CLOSER SIN-FREE RELATIONSHIP WITH OUR GOD.  The writer of James 4:8 encourages us with these words: “Draw near to GOD, and HE will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double-minded people!" 

 

GOD, Thank YOU not only for letting but also for welcoming our fellowship with YOU. Amen.

Bro. Bill

In GOD we Trust!

This devotional was shared recently by a pastor friend of mine.  His almost daily message is placed on social media most mornings and I read it when I awake and begin my day.   This morning I can’t get past the first word of his devotional!!

Humanity actually has the POWER to do NOTHING without the leading and guidance of the HOLY SPIRIT!!!  From experience, the seventeen day coma I experienced in 2007.  “Cleanse your hands, sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double-minded people” are seemingly are seemingly wonderful commands, but we DON’T HAVE the wherewithal to even breathe correctly without someONE or something SUPERNATURALLY INSTILLING the mechanism to inhale and exhale.  

We tend to BELIEVE that we FOLLOW GOD because we are better than others, but John 6:44 says “NO ONE can come to ME unless the FATHER WHO sent ME DRAWS him.”  We ONLY have the desire to FOLLOW HIM because HE has placed that within us.  

“PRAYER” changes us!  When we finally are in a position to HEAR from our CREATOR, we are slowed down enough to HEAR HIM as Elijah in 1 Kings 19:11-13 (KJV), we are then ABLE to HEAR our CREATOR speak to us and be USED to accomplish HIS PURPOSE for our lives!!!

True “PRAYER” isn’t just giving a “wish list” to our CREATOR, it is listening to that “still small voice” that Elijah heard when he stopped complaining about how rough he was being treated!  GOD has displayed to me how OMNIPOTENT HE is!  I MUST listen to HIM more and NOT just bring my wants and desires to HIS THRONE!!!!   “PRAYER!!!!”

“OUR PRINCE OF PEACE!”

From Dr. Charles Stanley’s Ministry!  He went to GLORY awhile back, but the TRUTH he shared is still with us!! 

Our Prince of Peace

Isaiah 9:6

The Christmas rush is here. There are plans to make, gifts to buy, and parties to attend. Sometimes these activities leave us exhausted and cranky—instead of peace and joy, we may feel inner churning because there’s too much to do. Or perhaps this time of the year brings nothing but sad memories and loneliness. Unrealistic expectations and conflicts with loved ones often leave us depressed and discouraged.

How can Jesus be our Prince of Peace when our expectations and traditions fight against the tranquility we desire? To understand why Jesus was given this title, we must first understand what it means. First of all, God’s Son did not come to do away with all conflicts—not yet, anyway. One day He will return to earth and rule as King in an environment of external harmony, but that was not the purpose of His first coming. So while we’re on earth, we’ll have trouble (John 16:33).

When Christ left heaven to become a human baby, His goal was to bring us peace with God by reconciling us to the Father. His death on the cross paid our sin debt in full, and our relationship with God is restored. Now He offers us divine peace—an inner serenity that fills our hearts and minds no matter what is going on in our circumstances.

Is your life characterized by a quiet assurance that guards your heart and mind all day long (Phil. 4:6-7), or have stressful circumstances left you feeling depressed or agitated? Try setting aside time each day to fix your eyes upon Jesus. Then let Him heal your heart and calm your spirit!

“WAITING ON GOD!”

 This morning I was delivered this devotional from a Pastor in Ohio , originally from Scotland, named Alistar Begg.  He was very interesting to begin with because he has a Scottish accent, but the content of what he offers was something that gripped me.  

I am led to share the King James Version of the text as it is quite more “emphatic” about “ WAIT, I say, on the LORD”!!! Please also NOTE that I have capitalized the word WAIT wherever it is in the text.  

WAITING ON GOD

Psalms 27:14                               

“WAIT for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; WAIT for the LORD!”

Do you enjoy WAITing? Most of us, if we’re prepared to be honest, would answer with an emphatic “No!” We need only to sit and WAIT for somebody to reverse out of a parking space to be reminded of how impatient we really are. Usually, we desire that our needs be met according to our timetable, and modern life teaches us that this is a fair demand. And yet this LACK OF PATIENCE poses a major problem for the Christian—because if we find it difficult to WAIT, we’re going to find it very difficult to walk by faith.

In the Bible, we often see faith demonstrated as men and women WAIT on the promises of God. (See, for instance, Romans 4.) Indeed, God’s “precious and very great promises” (2 Peter 1:4) are seldom given with any kind of time guarantee. This makes all the difference in the world. Most of us can muster up the ability to WAIT if we know that we only have to WAIT until next Friday, or until five o’clock, or whenever. But that is not WAITing in faith. Rather, Scripture exhorts us to WAIT not on a specific time but on the faithfulness of the one who promises—namely, GOD HIMSELF.

If we are in need of strength—STRENGTH TO ENDURE ILLNESS, to resist temptation, to show kindness to a challenging coworker—and we turn to the Scriptures for encouragement, we discover that “they who WAIT for the LORD shall renew their strength” (Isaiah 40:31). Likewise, at the birth of the church, the word of Christ to the disciples was that they should wait in Jerusalem “for the promise of the Father” (Acts 1:4). In the same way, we are called to wait “for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). The Bible tells us to WAIT, to watch, to pray, to look, and to be ready, not with a knowledge of the timeframe but with the knowledge that God is faithful?

You likely know what it is to have your character tested in faith’s WAITing room. Remember that genuine faith involves WAITing, and it requires that we WAIT not on external circumstances but on our God, who sees His people and who “acts for those who WAIT for him” (Isaiah 64:4). Let that build patience within you, both for the WAITing times in this life and as you WAIT for the Lord to return and bring you into the glory of your eternal life.

HIS PROMISE!”

 1 Kings 8:20                            (ESV)

“[20] Now the LORD has fulfilled HIS PROMISE that HE made. For I have risen in the place of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and I have built the house for the NAME of the LORD, the GOD of ISRAEL.”

“BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD!”

 Psalms 46:10                     (KJV)

“BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD”: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.”

Most of “this world” operates in “turbo” mode, moving at a pace that far exceeds what we were built for.  A recent quote from Oswald Chambers (1874-1917) was shared with me that I apparently was given in 1978 by the church I was attending when I graduated from high school named “My Utmost for His Highest”!  It said “It’s much easier to do something than to trust in God. That is why so few of us work with God, while so many of us run around doing tasks he never asked us to do, saying we’re working for him. We would rather busy ourselves with work for God than believe in him.” 

  

The book in question was given to me by people who loved and cared for me and I have NO IDEA what happened to it. However the MESSAGE that was relayed to me EXTREMELY “on-point” of what GOD told me following a “Massive Brain Hemorrhage” almost 30 years later.  I was working on anything and everything instead of spending time alone with my CREATOR!  Even with what I have been through, I “STILL” have to be reminded to “BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD” is running this show…. I am just fulfilling a small portion of HIS PLAN!  

Oswald Chambers was only 43 years old when he died.  He already knew A LOT more than me, and I am in my 60’s!  Having been ill this week has caused me to be at home, feeling VERY poorly as I recuperated.  GOD has HIS WAY of reminding that HE doesn’t need to put me in a 17 day coma to get my attention!  I try to make the effort to “BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD” is THE DIRECTOR, and I am just playing the role that HE HAS for me!!!

Now, what did I do with the book MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST???

“IN ALL WISDOM AND INSIGHT!”

 Ephesians 1:3-10                      (ESV)

Spiritual Blessings in CHRIST 

“[3] Blessed be the GOD and FATHER of our LORD JESUS CHRIST, WHO has blessed us in CHRIST with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, [4] even as HE CHOSE US IN HIM BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD, that we should be holy and blameless before HIM. In love [5] HE predestined us for adoption to HIMSELF as sons through JESUS CHRIST, according to the purpose of HIS WILL, [6] to the praise of HIS glorious grace, with which HE has blessed us in the Beloved. [7] In HIM we have redemption through HIS blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of HIS grace, [8] which HE lavished upon us, ”IN ALL WISDOM AND INSIGHT” [9] making known to us the mystery of HIS will, according to HIS purpose, which HE set forth in CHRIST [10] as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in HIM, things in heaven and things on earth.”

ALMIGHTY GOD doesn’t make mistakes!  HE CHOSE US IN HIM BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD, knowing that I would be the wretch that I am!  

Why did HE do such a magnanimous thing?  1 Timothy 1:15 (KJV) says “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that CHRIST JESUS came into the world to save sinners; OF WHOM I AM CHIEF”!!!

I don’t know about the Apostle Paul (writer of Ephesians and 1st Timothy), but there are days when I am wondering what ALMIGHTY GOD had in mind BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD???  Scripture says HE CHOSE US “IN ALL WISDOM AND INSIGHT” regardless of how poorly I sometimes reflect HIS LIGHT to a lost and dying world!!!

“HE HAS NOT BELIEVED!”

 There is a widely accepted CHRISTmas tradition that really is TRUTH (John 14:6), not a gimmick!!  A MAN WHO brings gifts to HIS CHOSEN, but HE isn’t limited to December 25 to perform HIS WORK!  

JESUS the CHRIST, yes, the CHRIST that CHRISTmas is ALL about, came to PURCHASE a gift of ETERNAL LIFE for the entire world.  This JESUS says in Luke 19:10 says “For the SON of MAN came to seek and to save the lost.”  But this same JESUS also says in John 3:18 “Whoever believes in HIM (SON of GOD) is not condemned, but whoever does NOT BELIEVE is CONDEMNED ALREADY, because “HE HAS NOT BELIEVED” in the NAME of the only SON of GOD.”  

HE CALLED me on January 08, 1978 and I turned to HIM and HIS direction for my life!  Now I do not follow HIM as well as I should.  The Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 1:15 “The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that CHRIST JESUS came into the world to save sinners, of whom I AM THE FOREMOST.”  Notice that Paul didn’t write that he WAS the foremost, he wrote I AM THE FOREMOST!  I feel as though I might be MORE FOREMOST than anyone, especially the Apostle Paul!  

“This world” will continue to mimic JESUS and HIS traits until the TRUMPET sounds, but “the enemy” cannot bring PEACE and COMFORT like JESUS can!  JESUS CHRIST brings A GIFT that is IMMEASURABLE and INDESCRIBABLE!  “HE HAS NOT BELIEVED” in the NAME of the ONLY SON of GOD is reserved for people who are CONDEMNED ALREADY!  Are you one who is “HE HAS NOT BELIEVED”???

“INCREASE OUR FAITH!”

Luke 17:5-6                         (ESV)

“INCREASE OUR FAITH!”

[“5] THE APOSTLES said to the LORD, “INCREASE OUR FAITH !” [6] And the LORD said, “If you had FAITH like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.”

THE APOSTLES  is defined by one dictionary as “any of the early followers of JESUS who carried the CHRISTIAN message into the world:”.   Another dictionary defines APOSTLE as “Apostle, (from Greek apostolos, “person sent”), any of the 12 disciples CHOSEN BY JESUS CHRIST.  The term is sometimes also applied to others, especially Paul, who was converted to Christianity a few years after JESUS’ death.”  THE APOSTLES were CHOSEN by their CREATOR to BELIEVE in HIM like few others.  In Luke 17:5 “THE APOSTLES said to the LORD, “INCREASE OUR FAITH !””

People who BELIEVE are those who have FAITH,  The Apostle Paul was one of the greatest examples of a person of FAITH. In Romans 10:17 he wrote “So FAITH comes from hearing, and hearing through the WORD of CHRIST “.  John 1:1 says “In the beginning was the WORD, and the WORD was with GOS, and the WORD WAS GOD”.  Then in John 10:30 JESUS HIMSELF says “”I and the FATHER are ONE.”  So to “INCREASE OUR FAITH” is to INCREASE OUR HEARING FROM GOD!!!

We don’t just HEAR from GOD on our own timeframe.  Sometimes we literally have to EXPERIENCE “the valley of the shadow of death” before we are able to BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT HE IS GOD!  Saul was persecuting BELIEVERS when JESUS “SPOKE” to him on the road to Damascus in Acts chapter nine!  By the time Acts chapter thirteen comes around Saul was known as Paul because his life was CHANGED by KNOWING JESUS!  

THE CHOSEN, THE APOSTLES, said to JESUS “INCREASE OUR FAITH” in Luke 17:5   Just because we are CHOSEN doesn’t mean that our FAITH is where it needs to be and we have “arrived” Spiritually!  By the Apostles asking to “INCREASE OUR FAITH” they were saying to increase their BELIEF that JESUS WAS THE SON OF GOD!  They were ASKING to be USED to be PERSECUTED by “this world” to EDIFY and GLORIFY JESUS!!!

FATHER IN HEAVEN, “INCREASE OUR FAITH” to EDIFY and GLORIFY the NAME OF JESUS to this lost and dying world!!!

“NOT EVEN TO A SINGLE CHARGE!”

 Matthew 27:14                      (ESV)

“But HE (JESUS) gave him no answer, “NOT EVEN TO A SINGLE CHARGE”, so that the governor was greatly amazed.”

JESUS was/is/will ALWAYS be the SON OF GOD, THE WORD according to John 1:1.  But when HE was presented with the opportunity clear HIS NAME to Pilate and the Chief Priests, JESUS responded with silence to everything!  THE WORD didn’t refute anything, “NOT EVEN TO A SINGLE CHARGE”!!  

It isn’t WRITTEN precisely why JESUS never responded, but THE TRUTH (John 14:6), THE WORD (John 1:1), and our PEACE (Ephesians 2:14) allowed lies and deceit to be used to unjustly cause HIS crucifixion so I would have eternal life with HIM!  My SALVATION was purchased with JESUS being SILENT while what was RIGHT was being ignored!  

We must have a clear enough KNOWLEDGE of THE TRUTH to be able to identify it, even when the entire world doesn’t SEE it!  John 6:44 says “NO ONE can come to ME unless the FATHER WHO SENT ME DRAWS HIM”!!!  Although we are instructed to GO and TEACH in Matthew 28, our SALVATION was bought because JESUS was silent to HIS accusers.  HE CHOSE to not address the LIES, “NOT EVEN TO A SINGLE CHARGE”!!!

“BE STILL!”

 

There is much discussion these days about everything to do with current events???  The “unsettledness” of the entire world SHOULD be near the top of everyone’s list!  

Instead we see folks raising the debate on which team should be in a playoff that will “supposedly” determine the “National Champion” of college football!  

Imagine if you had the ability to decree that the ENTIRE WORLD ponder ONLY ONE THING?  This item would need to be MONUMENTAL in importance for not everyone is moved by sports, money, health, or any other subject that is inserted in the sentence.  

Consider what could possibly be SO IMPORTANT that EVERY PERSON ever CREATED would find it beneficial to have it addressed in their life?  How about to rest assured that our lives are inline with what we CREATED for????

“BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD”, I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” might be a good place to start???

Just pondering……

 Just pondering………

What if, instead of saying “Good Luck” to a person who is about to endure something, shouldn’t or couldn’t we speak “Praying for you” for that person???

Just a simple thoughts of a Brain Hemorrhage Survivor who understands THE WORDS we say  could be our last!!!

“A DESOLATE PLACE!”

 

Mark 1:35-39                          (ESV)

JESUS Preaches in Galilee

“[35] And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, HE departed and went out to “A DESOLATE PLACE”, and there HE PRAYED. [36] And Simon and those who were with HIM searched for HIM, [37] and they found HIM and said to HIM, “Everyone is looking for you.” [38] And HE said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.” [39] And HE went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.”

JESUS IS GOD, according to John 10:30, so why did HE feel the NEED to go to “A DESOLATE PLACE” to be able to pray to the FATHER?  JESUS was also fully human, which I Believe necessitated HIM NEEDING to spend time ALONE with the FATHER to strengthen HIS relationship with HIM.   An excerpt from a Bible Scholar’s website puts it this way, “The healthy Christian life is neither wholly solitary nor wholly communal. We withdraw, like Jesus, to “a desolate place” to commune with God (Mark 1:35), and then return to the bustle of daily tasks and the needs of others.”

In the first chapter of Mark, JESUS had just experienced MANY people who needed healing!  Just on the previous day HE had healed Simon Peter’s mother-in-law and then healed “all who were sick or oppressed by demons” (Mark 1:32)!  The entire city was outside of the door where JESUS was!!!  Wasn’t this the perfect scenario to GROW HIS KINGDOM?  Why wouldn’t HE take advantage of the opportunity to grow HIS work???  

One thing that most of us have difficulty grasping is that GOD does HIS most awesome things when we “get out of HIS way”!  A popular Christian website offers this observation: “All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” —Blaise Pascal (1623–1662)!  This servant was only 39 years old when he died, but ALMIGHTY GOD had already OPENED his EYES to SEE what many never are able to observe!  We NEED to withdraw and stop trying to help GOD be GOD, for HE doesn’t require anything from us!!!

I’ve shared many times that the most AWESOME MIRACLE I have experienced in my physical life happened from July 09, 2007 to July 29, 2007.  Even my medical records indicate that my healing was a “miracle from GOD”!  Much of those 21 days were spent with me in a coma, unable to assist with ANYTHING!  One might UNDERSTAND that I would be able to SEE that GOD DOES NOT require me to do ANYTHING for HIM to accomplish HIS PLAN!  JESUS voluntarily went to “A DESOLATE PLACE” so HE could be ALONE with GOD!  What do I have to do to be able to SEE that GOD desires me to do the same???

“YOUR HAND!”

 “YOUR HAND!”

Isaiah 64:8                                 (ESV)

    [8] “But now, O LORD, YOU are our Father;

        we are the clay, and YOU are our POTTER;

        we are all the work of “YOUR HAND”.”

A largely forgotten hymn that was sung in church in my youth was HAVE THINE OWN WAY, LORD.  The hymn was reportedly written in 1906, but its words need to be heard by ALL people who are CALLED to live for HIM.  

1 Have thine own way, Lord! 

Have thine own way! 

Thou art the POTTER, 

I am the CLAY. 

Mold me and make me 

after thy will, 

while I am waiting, 

yielded and still. 

2 Have thine own way, Lord! 

Have thine own way! 

Search me and try me, 

Savior today! 

Wash me just now, Lord, 

wash me just now, 

as in thy presence 

humbly I bow. 

3 Have thine own way, Lord! 

Have thine own way! 

Wounded and weary, 

help me I pray! 

Power, all power, 

surely is thine! 

Touch me and heal me, 

Savior divine! 

4 Have thine own way, Lord! 

Have thine own way! 

Hold o'er my being 

absolute sway. 

Fill with thy Spirit 

till all shall see 

Christ only, always, 

living in me!

Isaiah 64:8 might be the verse Adelaide A. Pollard used when writing this hymn over 100 years ago, but its MESSAGE is very humbling to me.  Do I frequently succumb to “while I am waiting, yielded and still”?  Or do I more often than not beg GOD to work on the timeframe of my thoughts?  

I need to REMEMBER that I am the clay and HE IS THE POTTER!  “YOUR HAND” is where I desire to be, even when I am having to WAIT for YOUR deliverance!!!

“MY COVENANT!”

Genesis 17:7-8                                         (ESV)

“[7] And I will establish “MY COVENANT” between ME and you (Abraham) and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be GOD to you and to your offspring after you. [8] And I WILL GIVE TO YOU AND TO YOUR OFFSPRING after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their GOD.”

ALL SCRIPTURE is GOD-BREATHED (2 Timothy 3:16-17), even though GOD has used several different human authors to place the WORDS onto parchment throughout history.  Moses is believed by many to be the recorder of the first five books of the BIBLE, thus the focal passage for today’s devotional is FROM GOD, but was put onto parchment by Moses, not because he was sinless, but because he was CHOSEN by GOD!

Moses is not the one that Genesis 17 is written about though.  In Genesis 17:1 it is recorded “When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am GOD ALMIGHTY; walk before ME, and be blameless,”.   In Genesis 17:5 it is recorded “No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.”  Abraham was CHOSEN by GOD as well, but he also wasn’t sinless (Genesis 20)!  

We need to be careful NOT to be too caught up with any servant of GOD, for even King David, a man after GODS OWN HEART (1 Samuel 13:14) was a sinner!  The ONLY blameless person ever born was GOD IN THE FLESH, JESUS CHRIST!  HE IS TRUTH (John 14:6), and we need to use HIM as our guide to live our lives!  In Genesis 15:6, Abram BELIEVED GOD and GOD “counted it to him as righteousness”!  Even though Abraham was human, ALMIGHTY GOD counted his BELIEF as RIGHTEOUSNESS when HE saw Abraham!

What does ALMIGHTY GOD SEE when HE looks at me?  I am so UNCLEAN when it comes to obedience to THE LORD, but according to Hebrews 9:11-29 HE SEES THE BLOOD OF JESUS when HE SEES me!  Because of the SACRIFICE OF JESUS, when HE looks at me, THE FATHER SEES THE BLOOD OF THE LAMB!  “MY COVENANT” that was made between GOD and Abraham was COMPLETED when JESUS said “IT IS FINISHED” on Calvary!!!

From Bishop Robert E Smith, Sr.

“There are those who are partly blind, others completely blind, and still others under strong delusion. The one shall be saved (Rom.11:25-28), the other can be saved (2 Cor.4:3,4); but still others are damned (2 Thess.2:11,12).  Jesus Christ is Lord (Rom.10:9; Phil.2:11).”

“TO KNOW THE LOVE OF CHRIST!”

 Ephesians 3:14-19                        (ESV)

Prayer for Spiritual Strength

“[14] For this reason I bow my knees before the FATHER, [15] from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, [16] that according to the riches of HIS glory HE may grant you to be strengthened with power through HIS SPIRIT in your inner being, [17] so that CHRIST may dwell in your hearts THROUGH FAITH—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, [18] may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, [19] and “TO KNOW THE LOVE OF CHRIST” that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of GOD.”

The verses above are filled with requests for “Prayer for Spiritual Strength” and the attributes that GOD brings to a Believer.  To be “strengthened with power through HIS SPIRIT” is something that can only be attributed to ALMIGHTY GOD!!

Not only do we expect to be BLESSED with DIVINE characteristics, but we should also display “something different” to a lost and dying world………”TO KNOW THE LOVE OF CHRIST”!!!!

“LISTEN!”

 

John 6:59-65                             (ESV)

“[59] JESUS said these things in the synagogue, as HE taught at Capernaum.

[60] When many of HIS disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; “WHO CAN LISTEN TO IT”?” [61] But JESUS, knowing in HIMSELF that HIS disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “DO YOU TAKE OFFENSE AT THIS? [62] Then what if you were to see the SON of MAN ascending to where HE was before? [63] It is the SPIRIT WHO gives life; the flesh is NO HELP AT ALL. The words that I have spoken to you are SPIRIT and LIFE. [64] But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For JESUS KNEW FROM THE BEGINNING WHO THOSE WERE WHO DID NOT BELIEVE, and who it was who would betray HIM.) [65] And HE said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to ME unless it is granted him by the FATHER.”

JESUS spoke TRUTH!  It isn’t hard to imagine that “this world” found HIS talks to be hard to swallow!  But even HIS disciples said after hearing JESUS speak “WHO CAN LISTEN TO IT”?  Keep in mind, they were yet to have the HOLY SPIRIT indwelling them, so it should be understood that they didn’t have the same RUDDER that we do post Pentecost.  But HIS own disciples were unable to grasp HEAVENLY things UNTIL the HOLY SPIRIT “revealed” to them TRUTH!!!

As Believers, we are BLESSED to have the HOLY SPIRIT living inside of us.  However the typical Believer fails to acknowledge that ALMIGHTY GOD, through the HOLY SPIRIT, indwells a wretch such as me?  We COULD HAVE the CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSES guiding our lives, but some choose to “follow our own hearts” and do “what seems best” instead?  

Like the disciples in John 6:60, at times our actions display “WHO CAN LISTEN TO IT” without saying it!  Do our actions display a lack of FAITH that GOD lives within us?  Do the words we speak reveal the kind of FAITH that THE CREATOR likes within us?  Who do others SEE living inside of me???

“WHO CAN LISTEN TO IT” doesn’t need to be my question, but I need to be one who tells everyone I am led to what JESUS and the HOLY SPIRIT have done for me!  For me, the most effective way to HEAR from GOD is to BE STILL, then I can KNOW THAT HE IS GOD!!!!

“WHO CAN LISTEN TO IT?”

 John 6:59-65                             (ESV)

“[59] JESUS said these things in the synagogue, as HE taught at Capernaum.

[60] When many of HIS disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; “WHO CAN LISTEN TO IT”?” [61] But JESUS, knowing in HIMSELF that HIS disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “DO YOU TAKE OFFENSE AT THIS? [62] Then what if you were to see the SON of MAN ascending to where HE was before? [63] It is the SPIRIT WHO gives life; the flesh is NO HELP AT ALL. The words that I have spoken to you are SPIRIT and LIFE. [64] But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For JESUS KNEW FROM THE BEGINNING WHO THOSE WERE WHO DID NOT BELIEVE, and who it was who would betray HIM.) [65] And HE said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to ME unless it is granted him by the FATHER.”

JESUS spoke TRUTH!  It isn’t hard to imagine that “this world” found HIS talks to be hard to swallow!  But even HIS disciples said after hearing JESUS speak “WHO CAN LISTEN TO IT”?  Keep in mind, they were yet to have the HOLY SPIRIT indwelling them, so it should be understood that they didn’t have the same RUDDER that we do post Pentecost.  But HIS own disciples were unable to grasp HEAVENLY things UNTIL the HOLY SPIRIT “revealed” to them TRUTH!!!

As Believers, we are BLESSED to have the HOLY SPIRIT living inside of us.  However the typical Believer fails to acknowledge that ALMIGHTY GOD, through the HOLY SPIRIT, indwells a wretch such as me?  We COULD HAVE the CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSES guiding our lives, but some choose to “follow our own hearts” and do “what seems best” instead?  

Like the disciples in John 6:60, at times our actions display “WHO CAN LISTEN TO IT” without saying it!  Do our actions display a lack of FAITH that GOD lives within us?  Do the words we speak reveal the kind of FAITH that THE CREATOR likes within us?  Who do others SEE living inside of me???

“WHO CAN LISTEN TO IT” doesn’t need to be my question, but I need to be one who tells everyone I am led to what JESUS and the HOLY SPIRIT have done for me!  For me, the most effective way to HEAR from GOD is to BE STILL, then I can KNOW THAT HE IS GOD!!!!