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Pour Into The Next Generation

47 And all the royal officials have gone to King David and congratulated him, saying, ‘May your God make Solomon’s fame even greater than your own, and may Solomon’s reign be even greater than yours!’ Then the king bowed his head in worship as he lay in his bed, 48 and he said, ‘Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, who today has chosen a successor to sit on my throne while I am still alive to see it.’ ~ 1 Kings 1:47-48 NLT

We aren’t meant to stay in the same position forever. God raises us up and brings us into high places for a season. We aren’t immortal yet. One day every one of us will die, so God raises up another to replace us. Sometimes He raises them up before we have died so that we can pass the mantle on to them while we are still alive to so them succeed and guide them. And sometimes this is difficult to see take place.

It can be discouraging and make you feel like you’re no longer good enough or that you’re now used up. But that’s not the reason God does this. He wants you to raise up the next generation so that they might be prepared to take over when you’re gone. So that they have all of the lessons and words of wisdom that you passed down while you were in your place of authority over them. Don’t look at it as being replaced; look at it as being succeeded. Guide them, and you’ll live on through them.

One of my favorite shows ever made was Boy Meets World, and Eric, the oldest son in the show, said this to his dad:

You said to me that there would come a time when you weren’t around, and that’s not so… I remember everything you taught me, and I’m gonna turn around and teach that to my children. So you see, Dad, you’re always gonna be around.

See, when you pour out yourself and your knowledge and wisdom into someone else, you leave part of yourself with them even after you’re gone. King David understood that. He praised God that he was able to see his son succeed the throne. It’s a blessing to be able to influence and guide the next generation, so when you get the opportunity to raise up another and pass on your mantle, don’t be discouraged or disappointed. Most good things must come to an end but praise God that you got to see the beginning of the next good thing.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Pour Into The Next Generation.

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Glorify The Father

7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. ~ John 15:7-8

Jesus is making a covenant promise to us. He said all you have to do is to abide in Him and let His words abide in you, then you can ask whatever you wish, or whatever you desire, and guess what? He will do it for you just because you have asked Him. Why? Because we have a covenant relationship, and I am a covenant-keeping God.

Now I want you to notice that the granting of our prayers and petition is directly connected to bearing fruit. It is directly connected to the harvest and to the increase. Why? Because the Father is glorified every time we have answered prayer because every time we have an answered prayer, we increase and bear fruit, and it leads to the Father being glorified.

I want to challenge you to take Jesus up on His offer of you abiding in Him and His word abiding in you. Then ask whatever you desire and see the Father glorified.

LORD Jesus, please show us what it means to abide in You and Your word to abide in us. Then give us the faith to receive what we ask for in prayer, that we might glorify the Father, for it is in Your name that we pray, amen.

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Cling To The New and Better Covenant

24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. ~ Hebrews 12:24

Everything has a set time, and all things happen in that set time. There was a time before the Law, during the Law, and after the Law. Before the Law was a time when lawlessness ruled, during the Law was a time when sin ruled, but now, the Law has been removed, and we are under a new and better covenant. A covenant that brings liberty to the follower and grace to the believer. A covenant built on the hope of our LORD and Savior to redeem us from our sins and this mortal body.

We have so much to be thankful for because of this new and better covenant, but because we now have a grace like never before, we take this covenant for granted. We live day to day as if we won’t be judged for the way that we live. We speak as if our words won’t be judged one day. We lie to ourselves and to others so that we can ignore the conviction that we feel deep down. This new covenant allows us to enter into the very presence of God Almighty and for Him to dwell inside of us, so why do we take it for granted? We forget all that Christ did for us so easily because we’re not as thankful and grateful as we should be.

When we’re filled with thankfulness and gratefulness, we never forget what someone has done for us. We remember it year after year after year. It stays with us. Maybe we need to learn how to be more thankful and grateful when it comes to our salvation. Our entire salvation is in our hands. Jesus already paid the price; it’s now on us whether we accept it and follow Him or turn away and say no, thank you, I’m better off alone. There’s an old song that says:

There is a man
His name- His name is Jesus
He use to live in this world we’re going through
He died and He’s gone to prepare a place for you
What more do you want Him to do?
What more do you want Him to do
To prove that He loves you-
He do
He died on the cross to save – save us all
What more do you want Him to do?

Jesus did everything that we need in order to gain salvation, yet we’re not grateful. He gave His very life so that we might be saved, yet we’re not thankful. He gave us a new and better covenant through the pouring out of His own blood, yet we continue in our sin and expect Him to accept us, refusing to change. There’s so much for us to be thankful for, so why aren’t we? I challenge each of you to start each day thanking God for at least one thing and end each day thanking God for at least one thing. Then keep adding to that list until your heart softens and you’re filled with thankfulness.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Cling To The New and Better Covenant.

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Remain Faithful To The Faithful God

19 Then, at break of day, the king arose and went in haste to the den of lions. 20 As he came near to the den where Daniel was, he cried out in a tone of anguish. The king declared to Daniel, “O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?” 21 Then Daniel said to the king, “O king, live forever! 22 My God sent His angel and shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not harmed me, because I was found blameless before Him; and also before you, O king, I have done no harm.” 23 Then the king was exceedingly glad, and commanded that Daniel be taken up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God. ~ Daniel 6:1-5

What had happened was Daniel, a Jewish exile, was promoted to be the chief of the king of Babylon’s wise men, or chief of the magicians, according to Daniel 4:6, 9. Not that Daniel was a magician in any sense, only that he was an interpreter of dreams. A very wise man. At the end of Babylon’s reign of power, Daniel was the only one able to interpret the writing. Now, the king, Belshazzar, was so pleased, or thankful, that he made Daniel the 3rd highest ruler in the land. Which was short-lived because he was killed that very night and his kingdom was overtaken by the Medes and the Persians, and king Darius, the Mede, was made king (Daniel 5:31).

Daniel could have been discouraged. He could have been angry at God for taking away another king that he had earned great trust and favor with. Instead, Daniel remained faithful to God. He didn’t waiver in his faith, not even once. In fact, Daniel was so consistent in his faith that those who wanted to have him removed could only think to make his faith illegal. And even then, Daniel remained faithful to God. He knew the punishment. He understood the risk, but his faithfulness to God was more important than his life. Because of this, God was with him in the lions’ den.

This is the same kind of faithfulness God desires us to have. A faithfulness that no matter what may come our way, God will be there for us. That God will be with us on the mountain and in the valley. During seasons of tribulation and during seasons of prosperity. The LORD will remain faithful to those who remain faithful to Him. He is our great provider, but He is also our great deliverer.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Remain Faithful To The Faithful God.

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Jesus’ Representatives on the Earth

20 that He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And He put all things under His feet and gave Him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. ~ Ephesians 1:20–23

When Jesus was raised from the dead, He was seated in the heavenly places at the right hand of God the Father. The right hand of power. He was given a name above all names and is exalted above all rule and authority and all power and dominion and above every name that is named, not only then, not only now, but throughout all eternity. Nothing in all of creation will ever overcome His rule. All things are forever put under His feet. All things are subject to Him. And the good news is, the Father has given Him, Jesus, His beloved Son, to the Church, which is us, His body. The Body of Christ.

Therefore, if Jesus is given to us, and we are His body, and not just His body, but the fullness of Him who fills all in all. In other words, there is no one greater, so then whom shall we fear? There is none who is more powerful. And there is none who loves us more. Everything He has, we have access to. When Jesus came as a man, putting aside His Godhood, and refused to use any of His own divine powers, He relied on the Holy Spirit. Why? To leave us an example that if He could do it as a man, we could do it as well.

Think about it. We are His very representatives here on earth now that He is gone. Is it His will that we look weak and pathetic? No! He has empowered us to do even greater miracles than He did, by His own words. Why do we not see them? Because we do not believe the way the early Church did. They had a real relationship with Jesus as both God and close friend. See, when Jesus was taken up into heaven, they did not preach a Gospel that said miracles and signs and wonders all ceased when Jesus was taken up. No! They carried on where He left off with healing the sick. Even their shadows healed, something that Jesus did not do.

They did not say, “Be healed if it is Jesus’ will.” No! They said, “Silver and gold I do not have but what I do have, give I unto you, in the Name of Jesus of Nazareth rise up and walk.” And many other miracles like these they did because they believed they were His representatives here on the earth.

Father, please help us to believe and understand that we are Your representative here on the earth and that You have given us authority to use Your great and mighty name. Help us to serve You wholeheartedly and without doubt or fear of what people say or how they ridicule us. But that we will be obedient only to You that we might bring you glory and honor. In Jesus’ Name, we pray, amen.

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Cling To The Promise of His Resurrection

8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and may share His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. ~ Philippians 3:8-11

Today is Resurrection Sunday. The day Jesus rose from the dead with healing in His wings and salvation in His hand. He will give that free gift of salvation to whomsoever will come. If you’re thirsty, come. If you’re lonely, come. If you need healing, come. If you need freedom from tormenting spirits, come.

Whatsoever you need, come, and you will find it in Jesus. Is your marriage broken? Give it to Jesus. Are your loved ones strung out on drugs? Give it to Jesus. Is your spouse an alcoholic and despises church? Give it to Jesus. His hand has not shortened that He cannot save. Whatever your need is, come, and Jesus will meet that need. Maybe you’ve been having dreams about Jesus and His salvation; here’s what you do. Repent of your sins and ask Jesus into your heart. If you are saved, thank Him for His salvation and follow Him with everything that’s within you. There’s nothing like dwelling in the presence of God. Give Him all of your pain and stress, and He will take it from you and give you peace in return.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Cling To The Promise of His Resurrection.

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Love He Who First Loved Us

22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in His mouth. 23 When He was reviled, He did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but continued entrusting Himself to Him who judges justly. 24 He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By His wounds you have been healed. ~ 1 Peter 2:22-24

As Jesus was on the cross, the crowd and soldiers reviled Him. They mocked Him and spit on Him. They taunted Him and even went as far as to gamble for His clothes in front of Him. The Roman soldiers beat Him until He was unrecognizable; nevertheless, He never returned evil for evil. Jesus only responded to their evil with good. He even went as far as to pray for their forgiveness as they reviled and mocked Him. This is the love of God.

While we were still sinners, God Himself set off His Godliness and took on the form of man so that He might take our sin upon Himself. Jesus overcame the world and made a way for all people to be saved. Our God’s love for us is greater than we could ever comprehend or imagine. Never forget the sacrifice of the Lamb of God, who poured out His blood for us. Give thanks and praise to the LORD who first loved us by giving His life for us on the cross.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Love He Who First Loved Us.

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Do Not Fear Death

14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. ~ Hebrews 2:14-15

Jesus didn’t just come down as God. Jesus came down as a man. He came down as flesh and blood. He was tempted in every way we are so that we could, in turn, overcome every sin through Him. He took our punishment upon Himself and paid the price for our sins.

Therefore, we have nothing to fear, especially not death, for to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Why? Because if we are crucified with Christ, then we will also rise with Christ. How is this possible? Because Jesus isn’t dead in the grave. No. Jesus is alive and well. He seated in honor and majesty at the right hand of the Father, full of grace and Truth.

Therefore, because Jesus lives, all who follow Him shall live as well. So, do not fear death. Do not fear the afterlife, for that is where our great reward will be. The things of this world will fade, but eternity and all of its rewards and riches will last forever.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Do Not Fear Death.

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Be Careful What You Choose

39 “But you have a custom that I should release someone to you at the Passover. Do you therefore want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” 40 Then they all cried again, saying, “Not this Man, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a robber. ~ John 18:39–40

Pilate had just finished interviewing Jesus again. He could not find any fault or any reason to put Jesus to death. No matter how desperately he sought to find a way out of crucifying Jesus because he knew Jesus did not deserve capital punishment.

So, thinking he could somehow catch the Jews between a rock and a hard place, so to speak, he offered them a deal he knew they could not refuse. “You know I always release one prisoner of your choosing at Passover. Now, I have here this murdering robber, Barabbas, whom I could release, but he is such a menace and a threat to society, I have no choice but to release Jesus, the King of the Jews, to you.”

But in unison, they all shouted, “No, no, not this man, give us Barabbas.”

They did not even use His name; they called Him this man. The one who came to redeem them. The One sent by God as their promised Messiah, they did not even bother to call  Him by His name.

Understand this, God does not force Himself upon anyone. We must choose to serve Him. We must choose to accept Him. It is never His choosing. If it was, the whole world would be saved since the Scriptures say:

9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

2 Peter 3:9

God does not want anyone to perish, but we must choose not to perish. We must choose Jesus over Barabbas. The next time you are faced with choosing to do the right thing, as a pose to choosing the wrong thing, choose right.

Don’t worry about what others might say or what others might do, do what is right and choose Jesus. It is always in our choices. Even when the crowd is yelling crucify, do not be led astray; think before you choose. There is always a right way and a wrong way to choose. There is always a right thing, and a wrong thing to choose, so, be careful what you choose.

Father, please help us to choose the right thing. Open our spiritual eyes to see so that we are not misled by the crowd. Give us discernment that we might choose the right and forsake the wrong; in Jesus’ name, we pray, amen.

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Enter Through The Blood

22 And they brought Him to the place called Golgotha, which means The Place of the Skull. ~ Mark 15:22

Jesus was brought to Golgotha. There the Roman soldiers nailed His hands and His feet to an old rugged cross. Jesus hung there suffering for hours. At the time of the evening sacrifice, the time when the Passover lamb was to be slaughtered, Jesus, with a loud voice, cried out and gave up His spirit and died.

At the exact moment that Jesus died, something miraculous happened. The curtain in the Temple that separated the Holy place from the Most Holy Place where the Mercy Seat was and the Presence of God dwelt was torn from top to bottom. This was a very significant manifestation of God’s glory.

First of all, the curtain was approximately 45 to 60 feet tall and about 4 inches thick.
Second, it was torn from top to bottom.

This was a clear indication that it was not the power of man that tore the veil, but God Himself, letting ordinary men into His holy presence. Remember, the Holy of Holies was curtained off from the rest of the Temple, and only the high priest could enter in, and he could only enter once a year, on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. He could not enter without first offering the blood of a bull and a ram, but we now enter in through the blood of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 4:15). Therefore, give thanks to Jesus, who paid our debt and made a way for us to enter into the presence of God.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Enter Through The Blood.

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