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Showing posts with label Jesus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jesus. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

OUR Perfect Change ...

Our Perfect Change...
                                       
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Beginning in Acts 4, Peter and John are called before the Sanhedrin, the Temple elders and leaders who put Jesus to the cross, and was questioned because of their preaching and teaching concerning the resurrection of the dead.  The Sanhedrin was filled with Sadducees who did not believe in any resurrection.
Acts 4
8Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: "Rulers and elders of the people!9If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed,10then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.11He is " 'the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone. '12Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."13When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.



One of the most important topics for our faith rarely preached about, rarely heard about in Sunday Schools, and rarely talked about in Bible Studies is the fullness we can find in feeling the movement of  the Holy Spirit in our lives.  It is can be difficult to know, recognize, and understand the in-filling of the Holy Spirit (Acts 4:8), the very real presence of it in our lives unless you have seen it, have been taught about it, but best of all vividly experienced it.

In your reading this message, consider the following thoughts from scripture that comes to us from the New Testament: 

1-  God puts our faith in us (Romans 12:3).

2-  Jesus died for showing us how to live and
      belief in Him as our Savior is our
         Salvation from our sinful selves
(Romans 10:9).

3-  But, it is receiving the Holy Spirit in our humble acceptance of Jesus and genuine confession of our sins that truly brings the fullness of God and Jesus to our lives(Acts 2:38) and
    the Holy Spirit continues to change us forever.

It is then the Holy Spirit that 

   fills us with boldness  (Acts 4:8)
      providing us Strength and Power (Ephesians 3:16),
        leads us (Matt 4:1),
          speaks in, to, and through us (Matt 10:19-20),

             convicts us of our sin (John 16:8)
                Brings us Renewal for a righteous life (Titus 3:1-10),
                  Gives us Joy (1 Thes 1:6),
                     fills us with Peace and Patience 
(Galatians 5:22-23) and

these with many other functions that helps us
   build our Trust in God just as
      the Holy Spirit did for the disciples.



The Promise of and Work of the Holy Spirit


Jesus in His patience had to suffer from the lack of real understanding about His mission by and from His very own disciples.  In His final journey to Jerusalem, Jesus reveals to the disciples His coming suffering and death and Peter said 'NO", then again He stops Peter from fighting the guards when being betrayed by Judas in the Garden.

In John 16, we see Jesus presenting to the disciples parts of his plan for them, the Promise of the Holy Spirit.  And again, they do not understand.

Jesus promised one who would come after Him (the Holy Spirit) to give the disciples a Counselor to guide them in their days ahead.  They did not totally understand the promise and how this would affect His mission through them.  

In the next several weeks as Jesus' Passion played out as He had predicted, they forgot Jesus' promise and rather, became as scared little boys.

John 16

5  "Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, 'Where are you going?'

6  Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief.
7  But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.
8  When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment:
9  in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me;10in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer;
11  and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
12  "I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.
13  But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
14  He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.
15  All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.
16  "In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me."

The Disciples Received the Holy Spirit
     after the Resurrection of Jesus

After the death of Jesus, according to the Gospel of John, the surviving disciples gathered in a room, and the doors were shut!  They feared the Jews and just considered they would be the next to die.  At the lowest of their lowest times, in the dread of their deepest fear, and in the fullness of their greatest emptiness Jesus in His perfect timing came to His disciples and fulfilled His promise to them.



From John 20:
18  Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her.

19  Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, "Peace be with you."
20  When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.
21  So Jesus said to them again, "Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you."
22  And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.
23  If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."


In the same manner we are promised 
        the glorious in-filling the Holy Spirit!


In our proper behavior, 

    in our belief in Jesus, 
      in our repentant nature, 
we too receive and are anointed by the Holy Spirit:

Paul writes:

Acts 2:

33  Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.
34  For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand,
35  Till I make Your enemies Your footstool." '
36  "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."
37  Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?"
38  Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

In their lowest of times, the disciples were changed by Jesus when He breathes on them the Holy Spirit.  The disciples, changed by the Holy Spirit, were suddenly filled with new understanding of His mission and became as conquerors for Christ.

We too find a new humility, meekness and boldness for Christ when we accept and feel the Holy Spirit in our lives.  Through the Holy Spirit within us, we come to more fully feel the presence of God's love and protection, and Jesus' redemption from the evil around us and the sinfulness in our lives.  With the infilling of the Holy Spirit, we come to truly feel the "peace that passes all understanding"
(Phil 4:7).

Just as with the disciples, when we receive the Holy Spirit into our lives, our circumstances do not change very much, but our response to circumstances, our vision of our future, and our desire for Loving God does change us.  Knowing that it is God's Spirit, the Holy Spirit that gives us the courage, the strength, the patience to not just survive in our lives but much better; the Holy Spirit gives us the wonderful desire to thrive in our lives- living In God's grace and mercy to a Glorious life.

We may have little in our lives, but remember, Jesus took 2 fish and five barley loves to feed thousands of people; He created the universe out of nothing; truly, with the Holy Spirit, God's Spirit in us, our lives will most assuredly thrive.  Seek the Kingdom, Pray daily for humility to better understand the infilling of the Holy Spirit, then feel God's Spirit present in your everyday life, filling you with your Spiritual needs exactly as you need it, just as He did with Peter before His first meeting with the Temple Elders.

Faith, Patience and Prayer


The best lesson on the realization on infilling of the Holy Spirit came to me the first Sunday in January 2009.  The preacher that Sunday made this statement- "to have and feel the Holy Spirit in your heart, you much pray and pray and pray...... everyday.... often".  Doing that changed my life making me realize what truly happened to me on June 3rd, 1972.

Pray in humility and meekness as the preacher indicates, and in time you will feel a greater fullness of the Spirit as your pray more often.  In its total fullness, the Spirit may just fill you to your greatest when you are at your lowest time.  In my lowest time on that June 3rd, 1972 I was filled to my greatest, and the peace provided by the Holy Spirit descended on me, in the midst of the war around me and the war within me.


Through our belief in Jesus, humility, and confession of our sins, we receive the greatest source, guidance, and influence to change our lives, the Holy Spirit.  It is God's plan, a most perfect plan for our lives.

Thanks Be to God.

lonnie

Click here for   June 3rd, 1972.

© lonnie coggins

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You can print the message including this sharing message only for your friends and for non-profit.  You MUST copy and paste the message to a word processing document.   After you copy and paste add the following at the end of the message:

© Lonnie Coggins        source- Facebook "A Daily Thought Group"
ldcoggins@gmail.com              www.adailythought.NET

If you desire to use any of these messages in a For-Profit manner you must contact me (email) for permission.  Typically, I will most likely give permission.

Please email me if you find any broken links in this message.


lonnie

Publication  0212


intro

A GREAT CHANGE COMES TO US IN ACCEPTING JESUS, A CHANGE that is with us forever.  It is not a change of our doing, but what Jesus brings us, just as He did for the disciples.  Click the link for more on this great change.
 Please share the message on your Fb page as you like, and if you like, click the FB 'Follow' button to have notifications of these publications.  For other messages like this, visit my FB page, or on FB visit-"A Daily Thought Group".
http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2014/04/our-perfect-change.html



Wednesday, April 2, 2014

The Words of Jesus, The Ring of Truth

The Words of Jesus, The Ring of Truth
                                       
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"I tell you the truth..." is an often used phrased in the New Testament NIV, about 60 times in the Gospels, 29 times in Matthew alone.
Other versions often translate the Greek of this as "I tell you...", or "Truly, I say to you...", and another- "I say unto you...".  I like the NIV translations and I read just as often the KJV*, but the NIV really causes you really take notice of what is about to be said.  I often said, "I tell you the truth..." in my middle school  classroom from time to time when I was a teacher.  The students took to heart when they heard from me, "I tell you the Truth, you will go to the office if you speak out of turn one more time."  But like many people, they hear but do not listen, and even in their listening they often do not follow directions.

Jesus had a way with words as He was the master of expressions.  When He says, "I tell you the truth...", we really need to take notice.   Here are a few of his words, His expressions, and His phrases that mean so much to our lives.  I finish with a comment from Saint Paul.  Read carefully, easy to read, easy to learn, and then, follow directions.



Treasures in Heaven

Matthew 6:22,23pp -- Lk 11:34-36

19"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.


Jesus Comforts His Disciples
John 14
1"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me.2In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.4You know the way to the place where I am going."


Jesus the Way to the Father

John 14

5Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?"6Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life.
   No one comes to the Father except through me
.
7If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him."



Forgiving Others
  • Luke 6:37 NIV

    [Judging Others] [6:37-42pp -- Mt 7:1-5] "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.
  • John 20:23 NIV

    If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."

Greatest in the Kingdom
Matthew 18
1At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"2He called a child, whom he put among them,3and said, "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.4Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.5Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.6"If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were fastened around your neck and you were drowned in the depth of the sea.


The Greatest Commandments
Matthew 22
31And as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by God,32"I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob'? He is God not of the dead, but of the living."33And when the crowd heard it, they were astounded at his teaching.34When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together,35and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him.36"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?"37He said to him, " "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.'38This is the greatest and first commandment.39And a second is like it: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'40On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."


Do Not Worry

Matthew 6:25-33pp -- Lk 12:22-31

25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life ?28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.


Jesus Teaches Nicodemus

John 3

1Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council.2He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him."3In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. "4"How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"5Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.6Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.7You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.'8The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
Confessing Jesus, the Son of Man, as the Messiah

  • Luke 12
    8"Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men,
           him the
    Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God.
    9But he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God.



The Shepherd and His Flock

John 10:11-1411"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.12The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it.13The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.14"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me--

Finally, The Great EyeWitness Testimony to Jesus
From the writing of the great Jewish/Christian theologian
Saint Paul writes to the Romans:


Romans 10:9    That if you confess with your mouth,

 "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart 
that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.


Jesus came to Earth because God loves us.
Jesus and God desires a relationship with us.     Just as we desire a relationship with people we love,
Jesus taught us how to live life- Matthew 5-8.
Jesus, the most perfect, was/is rejected by people because God requires obedience and being responsible for our actions and behaviors.
Jesus in His being rejected suffered a horrible death.



But, in the End, after Jesus' death and because 
Jesus was obedient to the Will of God, God verified and made Holy all Jesus said and all He did.  God Glorified Jesus' life and Glorified His Words in raising Jesus from the dead.  Thank God, We believe in a Risen Saviour.
If you have not accepted Jesus as your Savior, do it now.On your knees confess, "Lord God, I do believe you are Lord of my lifeI believe Jesus died on a cross as a sacrifice for my sins,and for that, Jesus is my Saviour."
Consider as you think about this:
In you first moment of Eternity,As you stand before Jesus,The last words you do not want to hear from Jesus is,
"I do not know you".

As a little child, a lost sheep, 
Hear, Listen, follow directions,  but especially Follow Jesus,
So He will know your name.



Jesus is Truth

I hope you feel
the Ring of HisTruth in your heart,
because
His Truth Is Always Good for Us.



Thanks Be to God


© lonnie coggins

*NIV    New International Version
*KJV   King James Version

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You can print the message including this sharing message only for your friends and for non-profit.  You MUST copy and paste the message to a word processing document.   After you copy and paste add the following at the end of the message:

© Lonnie Coggins        source- Facebook "A Daily Thought Group"
ldcoggins@gmail.com              www.adailythought.NET

If you desire to use any of these messages in a For-Profit manner you must contact me (email) for permission.  Typically, I will most likely give permission.

Please email me if you find any broken links in this message.


lonnie

Publication  0210


intro
MOST PEOPLE RECOGNIZE THE TRUTH OF JESUS WHEN THEY HEAR IT, and in hearing it, some people do not like it because it requires responsibility and obedience.  Click the link for some prefect thoughts that ring true.
 Please share the message on your Fb page as you like, and if you like, click the FB 'Follow' button to have notifications of these publications.  For other messages like this, visit my FB page, or on FB visit-"A Daily Thought Group".
http://lonnieadailythought.blogspot.com/2014/04/words-of-jesus-ring-of-truth.html