Good morning!

​Often, it is suggested that part of our time on Good Friday be spent pondering sin, our sin which Jesus Christ took on himself and nailed to the Cross, considering how we sin and why we sin, to repent and walk the other way from our sin.
 
As I was in prayer in the recent past, God put on my heart to consider “When we receive Christ we are born again. What does that mean?”
 
I found the topic of sin to be front and center in my thinking as a result of that question.
 
This led to me to consider the origin of sin. We find that in Genesis. In Genesis, chapter 3, we see the fall – original sin. God sends Adam and Eve from the garden, carrying their sin with them. We see clearly that sin being passed down generation to generation in scripture…no one without sin (Romans 3:12)…not one of us is righteous on our own merits.
 
So even today, as newborns come into the world, they start with the taint of sin going all the way back to the garden. We each started out stained – before we knew and received Jesus.
 
These thoughts brought me to Jesus speaking with Nicodemus (see John 3:1-15). Nicodemus is struggling with the idea of new birth, being born again.
 
This led me to the thought that of course we need to be born again…we need to be born without the taint of the original sin and all the sin that followed in our lives --- in order that we may stand before the judgement seat, clean and holy.

When we accept Jesus and receive Him, we receive the Holy Spirit, we receive His righteousness – and erased from us in this rebirth is that stain of original sin and for all other sins, past present and future, we are forgiven.
 
Wow – for me the new thought here that leaves me marveling at God’s amazing plan is that my sin rooted in the Garden is erased – this is the SIN that introduced death and spoiled creation and has touched all of us.
 
That is what Jesus was trying to tell Nicodemus – that is rebirth.
 
I may have this all wrong but I do know that rebirth does mean we have been made clean before God.
 
What do you think? I hope this has you considering these deep and precious gifts as we celebrate Jesus and His work on Resurrection Sunday.
 
Just an aside going back to Genesis, chapter 3, we see God make reference to the coming Savior, Jesus Christ, our ultimate salvation through the Cross and Resurrection, when He tells the serpent that his head will be bruised by the heal, and we know that is the heal of Christ.

This reminds me that the Cross, as we remember it this Good Friday and ponder what it means to God's kingdom and to His people, on one hand my sin put Jesus on the Cross, yet on the other hand Jesus in His perfect sacrifice washed me clean and gave me rebirth.

Jesus says as He completes His work - "Tetelestai" - "it is finished" - meaning God's plan to restore all things that were broken in the Garden in Genesis, chapter 3 will be restored by the perfect work of Jesus.
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we enter this weekend is that each of us are being led into a deeper understanding of depth of love displayed and given each of us by You and what you did for us on the Cross and through the Resurrection. We look forward to worshipping you this on Resurrection Day and every day! Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

Good morning!

I read a book a few years ago by Randy Alcorn, a pastor out in Oregon, founder and director of Eternal Perspective Ministries and an author of many books both fiction and non-fiction. This particular book is a work of fiction titled “Safely Home”. It is a story about what it is like to be a Christian in China today. One of the commentaries on the book is how accurately Randy describes what life is like as a Christian in China. That brought to mind the verse you see below, a verse I have shared before:

• 10 And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.

          Colossians 1:10-12
 
 
Here in the US we do not have the same challenges as those who live in more oppressive parts of the world (although in recent years we have seen some attacks and incursions related to faith, it is negligible in comparison).

So rather than endure a challenge, I know sometimes I want to be in a hurry and get to the end point of some effort really fast. It is challenging sometimes when projects seem to take forever – at least that is what I tell myself. But in China anything related to living out your faith is a challenge in endurance, steadfastness, patience and tears.
 
Often we point to God’s timing as the answer to our need to endure. Often for me, that is a great answer. In other parts of the world this is the only answer.
 
Sometimes, though, the answer is God wants us to endure, on His behalf, in the service we are doing in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ. In other parts of the world this is always the answer.

In many places our church has faithful mission partners, this is in some cases always the answer.

If you look at what we (our local churches) do through Christ, it hasn’t been a sprint, but a story of endurance, patience, often tears but many times joy! For our mission partners or others around the world that suffer significant oppression, this is their hope – not a sprint, but endurance in Christ, through Christ.

We each can take to heart though that each of us brings some level of our own endurance as a gift from God to what you do as members of the Body of Christ. How awesome is that. And that is beautiful.
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we enter this weekend is that we never forget to pray for those whose only answer is endurance in Your name, that we hold them up in prayer for Your strength to be life giving blood to their lives daily and that they know Your presence as we know Your presence in our work and endurance (when we need it)! Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

Good morning!

Resurrection Sunday is fast approaching. As we consider Good Friday and Jesus death on the Cross, He (Jesus) demonstrated the ultimate in gaining victory in spiritual warfare as He was fully obedient and trusting in the Father for victory over satan that day 2000 years ago when He gave His life - not just for us, but for the Kingdom, for restoration of all things!

I do not know about you, but most of the time I do not remember dreams. But the ones I do remember stick with me because of a) the content of the dream; b) how it might relate to what is going on in my life; c) some fear or terror I might have felt during the dream; or d) some physical manifestation that occurs during the dream.
 
I would suggest that sometimes, maybe often, dreams relate to spiritual things happening in our lives, possibly spiritual battles that we need to entrust to God. We need to wrap ourselves in His love, trust in our Savior Jesus in those moments – even as we retire at night to sleep, to rejuvenate ourselves for the day to come. I see these verses as speaking to me about how I can prepare myself before going to sleep at night – seeking His protection for my spiritual well-being while I sleep

• “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” – James 4:7-8

 
I am not sure you will find this funny, but a few years ago I fell (actually seemed to me like I flew) out of bed. I was having a dream and I had to dodge something in the dream and ended up on the floor…made me laugh (that morning…not so much when it happened that night). How does this relate to God and this verse from James? My heart was racing from the intensity of the dream and some fear I must have been feeling.

Life can make us feel that way so for me asking God to be with me in those moments brings peace and calm…stills my heart and in that, I can really feel the nearness of God. Paul spoke to us about spiritual warfare (see Ephesians 6:10-20 - putting on the full armor of God for battle) – it is real and can happen – even while we are sleeping.

So let us seek the presence and protection of Jesus at all times. Drawing near to God is a weapon against the darkness of this world, against the power of sin, against fear and a weapon that allows us to share the Good News and God’s love with our neighbors and our enemies alike.

Remember this as you prepare yourself - heart, body, mind and soul - to celebrate Resurrection Sunday!
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we enter this weekend is that at all times we look to you for our safety and protection, Your armor, allowing us to know Your peace as the evil one tries to distract us with fear and uncertainty. We trust in you Lord Jesus! Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

Good morning!

​When I first really realized God knows me, tears ran, at least they did for me.
 
I remember that moment that is not too far in the past, when I realized that God really does know me, He knows me by name. Just that fact is something that should make us joyful and secure in the knowledge that God loves each of us. Jesus shares in Luke 12:7 “Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows”. God is talking about ALL of us – each of us is dearly valued by Him.
 
Here are some other ways God shares through His Word about how he knows and thinks about us:

1. You are each made by the hand of God, each unique – Psalm 139:13 - For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
2. You are loved by God; God cares deeply about you – and he wants us to know this! - so many verses speak to this - here are a couple – Jeremiah 31:3 - The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness. Ephesians 3:16-19 - I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
3. Each of us is special to God, within us a purpose – His purpose – Ephesians 2:10 - For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. And Jeremiah 29:11 - For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
4. As believers in His Son, we are important and precious to God, so much so he shares this in 1 Peter 2:9 - But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
5. We know this truth, that Christ died so we could be forgiven our sins so we should remember this… and God back in the Old Testament shared this in Psalm 103:12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
6. When we become believers we are no longer seen ugly in our sin but beautiful as we are covered in the blood of Christ – we are seen as a new creation – 2 Corinthians 5:17 - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
7. We are chosen – wow – John 15:16 - You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.
8. We are now friends of Christ, daughters, sons of God, family – John 15:14-15 - You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. And in Hebrews 2:10 In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. Ephesians 2:18-20 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.
9. We belong to Him. Each of us has been called back to the Father through Jesus Christ in the same way we see Jacob called back and claimed by God in Isaiah 43:1 - But now, this is what the Lord says—he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

 
When I reflect on that moment I realized the depth of love involved in God knowing me, my heart was filled with joy to the point of tears because I could hear the truth of God’s Word being shared through the Holy Spirit that God knows me AND cares about me AND cares about how I use my life – the life he gave me – in service to my brothers and sisters – known and strangers.
 
There is just so much here about how amazingly God cares; what is shared above is just like one sliver of how God loves us.
 
One question for each of you. Have you had that moment in your life when you knew with certainty, that God knows you by name – really knows you?
 
Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we go into the weekend is that each of us take our knowledge of God’s depth of love for us and we share it with one person – just one person! Amen!
 
Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick

Good morning!

I ran across this somewhere a few years ago. As we enter this third month of the year and walk through Lent expectantly and with hope that only comes through knowing Jesus Christ, further into this new year and towards Resurrection Sunday, it seems appropriate that we are reminded that when we truly believe in Jesus and proclaim His name, that in our rebirth as children of God, scripture has a lot to say about who we become, who we are in Christ…read and cherish the love you have found in Christ
 
Freedom Prayer - Who I am in Christ
“The Lord is the Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom.” 2 Cor 3:17
 
Freedom comes when we continue to walk in the Truth that our identity and sense of worth comes through who we are in Christ. Daily we are to renew our minds with the Truth that our acceptance, security, and significance are in Jesus alone. Meditate on the following truths daily. Try reading the entire list aloud, morning, and evening for the next several days. Think about what you are reading and let your ears rejoice in these truths!
 
I am Accepted in Christ -
I renounce the lie that I am rejected, unloved, dirty, or shameful because in Jesus Christ, the truth is that I am completely accepted. God says that:

John 1:12
I am God's child

John 15:15
I am Christ's friend

Romans 5:1
I have been justified

1 Cor 6:17
I am united with the Lord and one with Him in spirit

1 Cor 6:20
I have been bought with a price, I belong to God

1 Cor 12:27
I am a member of Christ's body

Ephesians 1:1
I am a saint

Ephesians 1:5
I have been adopted as God's child

Ephesians 2:18
I have direct access to God through the Holy Spirit

Colossians 1:14
I have been redeemed and forgiven of all my sins

Colossians 2:10
I am complete in Christ

I am Secure in Christ -
I renounce the lie that I am guilty, unprotected, alone, or abandoned, because in Christ I am totally secure. God says that:

Romans 8:1-2
I am free forever from condemnation

Romans 8:28
I am assured that all things work together for good

Rom 8:33-34
I am free from any condemning charges against me

Romans 8:35
I cannot be separated from the love of God

2 Cor 1:21
I have been established anointed and sealed by God

Colossians 3:3
I am hidden with Christ in God

Philippians 1:6
I am confident that the good work God has begun in me will be perfected

Phil 3:20
I am a citizen of heaven

2 Timothy 1:7
I have not been given a spirit of fear but of power love and a sound mind

Hebrews 4:16
I can find grace and mercy in time of need

1 John 5:18
I am born of God and the evil one cannot touch me

Lord Jesus, my prayer for each of us as we enter this weekend is that we never forget You and who we have become as Your followers. As we continue through Lent, walking towards Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday, let us shine the light we have been given by You, Lord Jesus and be Your salt in our relationships with others! Amen!

Have a weekend filled with the Peace that comes from knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
 
Patrick