Tag: alive

Yet shall we Live

“Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live.”

“who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”

John 5:28  Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.

John 6:39     And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.  For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 11:25     Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,

Job 19:25     For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth.  And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God,

1 Corinthians 15:22     For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

1 Corinthians 15:42    So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable.  It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.  Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.  But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual.  The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven.  As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.  I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.  Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,  in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.  For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.  When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”

1 Thessalonians 4:14     For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.  For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.  For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

1 Thessalonians 4:14     For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.  For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.  For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

Be encouraged in our destiny –  Raised from the dead and forever alive with Christ!!!!!!!!!!

Alive but Dead

“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins”

Joh 5:25  “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.

Revelation 3:1   “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. “‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead.

Ephesians 2:5    even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—

Colossians 2:13    And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses,

1 Timothy 5:6    but she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives.

James 2:26     For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

Hebrews 4:1    Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it.  For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened.

Dead but still alive? Walking with God through our life should have God honoring and glorifying life to it. Some might set the expectation for this very low and say because I don’t do certain things I am honoring and glorifying God.  I don’t think it is about doing or not doing but rather a deep heart desire to be lead by God and seeking to hear His whispers of guidance and commitment to humbly serve, honor, follow and obey.  If the spirit of God is not present in our life we are dead though we live.  Our best plans, thoughts and actions are of no good if they are not foundationaly set in seeking and desiring to honor and glorify God.  There is so much we are bombarded each day and we need to be careful to set our heart, mind and soul in His word keeping our ears, eyes, and heart open to see, hear and do that which brings true honor and glory to Him alone.

And they fled

Zechariah 13:7  “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me,” declares the LORD of hosts. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; I will turn my hand against the little ones.  In the whole land, declares the LORD, two thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one third shall be left alive.  And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are my people’; and they will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’”

Matthew 26:31   Then Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’

Matthew 26:56    But all this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left him and fled.

Mark 14:27    And Jesus said to them, “You will all fall away, for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.’

Mark 14:50    And they all left him and fled.

John 16:32   Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone.

Isaiah 53:4    Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.  But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.  He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.  By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people?  And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.

Can you imagine what it would be like to have lived in the time of Zechariah and hearing this and then 400+ years later it being fulfilled.  How many people during that time looked at this and said “more foolishness” or “this makes no sense”.  Much about the gospel is foolishness to those who do not believe.  Prior to being saved each of us would have to say it was words on paper to which we had no wisdom or understanding.  Then at some point God opened our heart and mind to this wonderful news in a way that is almost unexplainable.  Our whole life changed in that moment.  We saw everything in a new light.  It was as though blinders were taken off our eyes and everything was made new.  In fact scripture says at this moment of belief we are new creations.  Our previous purpose of living, doing, saying, thinking…. all went away …… but we need to be ever diligent knowing this sinful nature lurks.  Lust of the eyes (I want more), lust of the flesh (I want the pleasure), pride of life (I want prestige).  Satan is behind every temptation.  Peter, knowing this, put it this way: 2Pe 1:4 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, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge,  and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Who is more Blessed?

“Blessed is the one who considers the poor!”

“It is more blessed to give than to receive”

Psalms 41:1  In the day of trouble the LORD delivers him; the LORD protects him and keeps him alive; he is called blessed in the land; you do not give him up to the will of his enemies. The LORD sustains him on his sickbed; in his illness you restore him to full health.

Deuteronomy 15:10 You shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him, because for this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, ‘You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.’

Isaiah 58:7  Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?  Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.  Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,  if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.  And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.

Proverbs 19:17    Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will repay him for his deed.

Ecclesiastes 11:1  Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days.  Give a portion to seven, or even to eight, for you know not what disaster may happen on earth.

2 Corinthians 9:8  And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.  As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.”  He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.  You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.

Acts 20:35   In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’

Luke 14:13  But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

Matthew 25:34  Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,  I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’  Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?  And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?  And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

Learn to Give out of a generous heart.  Learn to Help out of a generous heart.  Giving is an act of obedient responsibility but to many it is missing from their lives.  There is blessing given deep into the heart of a generous giver.  This blessing comes from God and it is knowing He has given to you and allowed you to be used by Him to share.  He honors a generous heart with Joy in giving that can not be easily explained but it is very real in the lives of those who learn to listen to God and give generously and with purpose.

Transgressions Blotted Out

” Let us lie down in our shame, and let our dishonor cover us. For we have sinned against the LORD our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even to this day, and we have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God.”

“So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

Psalms 25:7  Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of your goodness, O LORD!

Psalms 79:8   Do not remember against us our former iniquities; let your compassion come speedily to meet us, for we are brought very low

Psalms 109:14   May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!

Isaiah 38:17   Behold, it was for my welfare that I had great bitterness; but in love you have delivered my life from the pit of destruction, for you have cast all my sins behind your back.

Isaiah 43:25   “I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins

Isaiah 64:9    Be not so terribly angry, O LORD, and remember not iniquity forever

Hebrews 8:12  For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.”

Hebrews 10:16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,”  then he adds, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.”  Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.

Proverbs 5:7-14   And now, O sons, listen to me, and do not depart from the words of my mouth.  Keep your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house,  lest you give your honor to others and your years to the merciless,  lest strangers take their fill of your strength, and your labors go to the house of a foreigner,  and at the end of your life you groan, when your flesh and body are consumed,  and you say, “How I hated discipline, and my heart despised reproof!  I did not listen to the voice of my teachers or incline my ear to my instructors.  I am at the brink of utter ruin in the assembled congregation.”.

Psalms 51:1  Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.

Ephesians 2:4-8  But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,  even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—  and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,  so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.  For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

It scripture is very clear and people are recorded knowing they were without hope and dead in their sin unless God in His mercy: “blotted it out”, “remembered it no more”, “cast their sin behind His back”.  They understood there was nothing they could do to remove this sin from before God.  They had great understanding of God’s judgement of sin and they were helpless before Him.  Before Christ they had faith in laying their sin at God’s feet and trusting His mercy to not count it against them.  They confessed that they did not obey the voice of the Lord their God.  We also read that all of mankind is without excuse because thought they new God they have chosen not to honor Him or give thanks to Him.  So what is a person to do to be right with God?  Confess you are a sinner, repent and turn away from your previous ways of living, believe, and trust in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, and then live your life with a heart, mind, and soul desire to humbly serve, honor, and glorify God in all you do, think, and say.  “For by grace your are saved”!!!!!!