Life

There is life on this planet. This would be the life of God in the body of Christ. 

This is the greening of the earth and the fulfillment of God's purpose.

And it is very good. 

Few Are Chosen - Matthew 22:11-14

Matthew 22:11-14 ESV 

“But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. And he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.”

The tribes of Israel were chosen as a people to be the people of God. They have a role in serving God, but not as the bride. 

The Bride of Christ is chosen one person at a time. There is but one wedding and one bride. The Bride is taking shape even now. We can elect to be a part of the body of Christ, or choose someone else. 

Many are called, but few will answer. Those who do will be chosen. 

Our wedding garments will be the righteousness of Christ. We don these when we put on Christ. He will have no trouble recognizing Himself in us. 

As You Do

Forgive and you will receive forgiveness. As you love you will be filled by love. This is also a matter of faith.

As you do, so it will be done. 

Like A Beast - Psalms 73:21-22

Psalms 73:21-22 ESV 

When my soul was embittered,

when I was pricked in heart,

I was brutish and ignorant;

I was like a beast toward you.

Being apart from God makes a man similar to a beast on a spiritual level. A beast has no inkling of God and and a man with similar understanding is described here as "brutish and ignorant".

With Jesus, we are able to rise from the fields and stand before God with newness of life.

Draw near as He has drawn near and take refuge in His mercy. 

Psalms 73:27-28

For behold, those who are far from you shall perish;

you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you.

But for me it is good to be near God;

I have made the Lord God my refuge,

that I may tell of all your works.

Believing

Believing is acting as if it is true.

Until Now - John 5:15-17

John 5:15-17 ESV 

The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.”

God has not rested from His work. The creation account in Genesis is a roadmap of the creation of man from a dark formless state into man made in the image of God. 

In this passage Jesus tells us both He and the Father are working.  Jesus has begun the final phase of the creation of man. The Sabbath rest is something that lies ahead of us. God is not finished with us or the world. 

We find rest from the world, though we remain in the world, because we have entered the kingdom of heaven, or more accurately, the kingdom of heaven has entered us. 

The Sabbath rest of God will begin when He dwells with man in the New Jerusalem. 

Will Be Opened - Matthew 7:6-8

Matthew 7:6-8 ESV 

“Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.

The kingdom of heaven is for all who seek it. If you ask, it will be given, if you seek, you will find it, and if you knock, it will be opened to you, but there is something you must do. 

To hear the call of the Holy, you must be listening. To find the way you must be searching for it. A door placed in front of you will not open unless you knock. 

If you are not interested in the Holy, you have much company. In fact, it takes a wide road to handle the traffic. If you don't see the value of the pearl of wisdom, there is no need to bother you with it. You know what you know. 

A life can be enjoyed by every beast of the field and bird of the air.  Every creature created by God has the glory as given when the world began. 

THE life is reserved for those who trade what they have for the pearl of great price and enter that which is Holy, that is the body of Christ. This is the glory of God given to the one made in the image of God, which is the Bride of Christ. 

He has paid that great price and calls through the door He has opened. We can all hear Him if we but listen. 

To Prepare A Place - John 14:1-3

John 14:1-3 ESV

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

John 14:23

Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.

Where is the house of the Father that Jesus goes to prepare?  Look at verse 23. He will make His home in us. Where is the room that awaits us? It is the room in our hearts that we provide for Him and the Father to come. 

How does this happen? When we receive the Holy Spirit. The Spirit works with us to prepare us to be made in His image. He prepares a place for us by preparing a place for Himself. 

We are the house of God, a living temple that is not built by the hands of man, but by the will of God. 

For Good Works - Ephesians 2:8-10

Ephesians 2:8-10 ESV 

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.

Our salvation is not based on works, but by the grace of God. However, we are created for good works which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. 

We are attached to the vine so that we would bear the fruit of the Spirit. Jesus connects us to His life by the gift of His Spirit. 

Every branch that bears fruit is pruned by the Father to bear more fruit. This refers to man being made in the image of God. 

If a branch bears no fruit, there is no need for pruning and the branch is removed.

John 15:9-10

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love.

The good works prepared beforehand are His commandments that allow us to abide in His love. He has shown us the way by keeping His Father's commandments. 

That Fire Becomes Ours

God is an all consuming fire that burns away the dross of our impure flesh and exhumes us from the darkness of the grave. That fire becomes ours as we enter into His light. 

By Sword, Famine, And By Pestilence - Jeremiah 32:36-44

Jeremiah 32:36-44 ESV 

“Now therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning this city of which you say, ‘It is given into the hand of the king of Babylon by sword, by famine, and by pestilence’: Behold, I will gather them from all the countries to which I drove them in my anger and my wrath and in great indignation. I will bring them back to this place, and I will make them dwell in safety. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, for their own good and the good of their children after them. I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me. I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.

“For thus says the Lord: Just as I have brought all this great disaster upon this people, so I will bring upon them all the good that I promise them. Fields shall be bought in this land of which you are saying, ‘It is a desolation, without man or beast; it is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.’ Fields shall be bought for money, and deeds shall be signed and sealed and witnessed, in the land of Benjamin, in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, in the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the Shephelah, and in the cities of the Negeb; for I will restore their fortunes, declares the Lord.”

The four horsemen in Revelation repeat the signs of the wrath of God against Israel in Jeremiah. Some may see this as a key to unlocking the mystery of the Book of Revelation. It picks up and resolves the story of God working through His elect to bring His peace into the world.

He will restore their fortunes and an earth to its full glory. 

Apart From Him

We can do nothing apart from Him. 

If we do nothing, we do it apart from Him. 

Paraphrase of Dallas Williard.

Truth Has Stumbled - Isaiah 14-15

Isaiah 59:14-15 ESV 

Justice is turned back,

and righteousness stands far away;

for truth has stumbled in the public squares,

and uprightness cannot enter.

Truth is lacking,

and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey.

The Lord saw it, and it displeased him

that there was no justice.

Truth has given way to falsehood and the real is covered by the fake of deception. To depart from evil draws the ire and hostility of the world, making one a target for ridicule and persecution. 

This took place in Israel. It is taking place with us. 

There is no one to save us except the strong arm of the Lord. 

Isaiah 59:16

He saw that there was no man,

and wondered that there was no one to intercede;

then his own arm brought him salvation,

and his righteousness upheld him.

The Language Of Living

Love is the language of worship and is the voice of living a life as a sacrifice of prayer. 

The Sand Of The Sea - Romans 9:27-28

Romans 9:27-28 ESV 

And Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: “Though the number of the sons of Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will be saved, for the Lord will carry out his sentence upon the earth fully and without delay.”

Revelation 12:17

Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea.

The devil will stand on the sand of the sea, the people of Israel. He will overcome them as signified by them being found under his feet. 

They are the earth that appeared when they were separated from the sea of man in the creation account, which speaks to the formation of the man into the image of God. That is accomplished through the body of Christ. 

A remnant will be saved and the eternal covenant between these people and God will be fulfilled. They will witness to the nations and they will know that He is God.  

The Waters - Psalms 69:1-2

Psalms 69:1-2 ESV 

To the choirmaster: according to Lilies. Of David. Save me, O God!

For the waters have come up to my neck.

I sink in deep mire,

where there is no foothold;

I have come into deep waters,

and the flood sweeps over me.

Revelation 12:15

The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood.

The deep waters of the world flow from the mouth of the dragon. They are the people that do the bidding of that serpent which slithers along the paths of the world.

We are thankful to receive the mercy of riding the ark of the body of Christ over the waters of the world.

Awake - Ephesians 5:13-14

Ephesians 5:13-14 ESV 

But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,

“Awake, O sleeper,

and arise from the dead,

and Christ will shine on you.”

Isaiah 26:19 ESV 

Your dead shall live; their bodies shall rise.

You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing for joy!

For your dew is a dew of light,

and the earth will give birth to the dead.

We are born in the shadow of death when we enter the world. This is the state Adam fell to when he died to the Lord. He returned to the earth from which he was taken. The ground was cursed. 

We dwell in the dust of the earth until the dew from heaven falls to us and awakens us to the life of God. The dew of light moistens us with the refreshing waters of the Holy Spirit. 

What He Has Done - Psalms 66:16

Psalms 66:16 ESV 

Come and hear, all you who fear God,

and I will tell what he has done for my soul.

He has shared His life with me, a continuous river of living water that has no end. 

Everything Is Good - 1 Timothy 4:3-5

1 Timothy 4:3-5 ESV 

who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer. 

Everything is good as created by God, but it can become soiled and corrupted by the hands of man. 

They can even be made holy by the word of God and prayer, which also happens in the hands of a man who has joined hands with God. This is why the earth longs for the revealing of the sons of God. That which has been cursed because of man will be renewed because of man. 

The ultimate example of this is a person who believes in God and lives their life in the form of a prayer of thanksgiving for the life He provides. We are purified by receiving the gift of God and only the pure can see all things as pure. 

Everything Is Good - 1 Timothy 4:3-5

1 Timothy 4:3-5 ESV 

who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer. 

Everything is good as created by God, but it can become soiled and corrupted by the hands of man. 

They can even be made holy by the word of God and prayer, which also happens in the hands of a man who has joined hands with God. This is why the earth longs for the revealing of the sons of God. That which has been cursed because of man will be renewed because of man. 

The ultimate example of this is a person who believes in God and lives their life in the form of a prayer of thanksgiving for the life He provides. We are purified by receiving the gift of God and only the pure can see all things as pure. 

Why Your People Die - Jeremiah 27:12-13

Jeremiah 27:12-13 ESV 

To Zedekiah king of Judah I spoke in like manner: “Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people and live. Why will you and your people die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, as the Lord has spoken concerning any nation that will not serve the king of Babylon?

The four horsemen in Revelation symbolize the judgement of God on the nation of Israel. The king of Babylon rides the white horse conquering and afflicting the people, followed by the horses of sword, famine, and pestilence. 

These curses tell us that most of Revelation is the conclusion of the story of Israel which will have a happy ending, though it will take much sorrow and grief to get there. 

The ground was cursed in Genesis due to disobedience. Israel would be cursed with violence, hunger, and disease due to disobedience. Just as Adam was ejected from the Garden, so was Israel scattered from the promised land. Israel will return to the land and man will re-enter the Garden of the presence of the Lord. This will be due to obedience. 

Behave - 1 Timothy 3:14-15

1 Timothy 3:14-15 ESV 

I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that, if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.

There is but one church in the world and it is the church of the living God. There is but one truth in the world and it is the truth of the living God. 

We should behave accordingly. 

His Offspring - Romans 9:6-8

Romans 9:6-8 ESV 

But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring.

Not all of Israel's descendants belong to Israel, but some do. Not all of those who call on the name of the Lord are in the body of Christ, but some are. 

Some in Israel put their faith in God and followed His commandments. Some followers of Christ place their faith in Him and follow His commandments. 

These are the children of promise, of the promise of God, and are His offspring.

Matthew 7:21-23

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

Believes In Me - John 11:25-26

John 11:25-26 ESV 

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

Though he die, he will never die. Sounds non-sensible until you remember who said this.

We put our faith in the one who is faithful and has the power to make it happen. Believing is not for the uninformed or those whose thinking is root-bound within himself. Think outside the pot, for that is where freedom lies. That's where believing takes you. Are you ready?

A Gift - 1 Peter 4:10-11

1 Peter 4:10-11 ESV 

As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

We each have received the gift of life. We each have received the gift of ourselves, a unique creation in the light of God. God's grace is as varied as we are unique. 

Yet we are all fit together in the body of Christ for His glory. 

How We Know - Ephesians 3:19

Ephesians 3:19 ESV 

and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Can we know something that surpasses knowledge?

The fullness of God is pleased to dwell in Christ. He allows us to be filled with that fullness, for He is with us and dwells within us. 

We know because He told us so. We know because the Spirit testifies to our spirit that this is so. 

We know because He promised to not leave us alone and God keeps His promises. 

We know something that surpasses knowledge. We speak of faith which bridges the gap between the finite and the infinite. That is how we know. 

Thrown Down - Revelation 12:7-9

Revelation 12:7-9 ESV 

Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

Angels can choose God as shown by Satan and his followers who did not. They are created in the light yet can choose the darkness. Men, who are born into the darkness, can choose the light.

When we define heaven as being in the presence of God, both men and angels have rejected the Creator.

There is choice in heaven and earth. Satan chose to rebel. The bride of Christ chooses to obey. 

Satan falls to the earth and the bride rises from that same earth and ascends into heaven. Choice evokes the divine exchange and the light is separated from the darkness. 

The Way

The Way of faith is a journey much like the journey of the Israelites that would bring them through the wilderness to the promised land. It is our journey through the wilderness that will bring us to the tree of life. 

In both cases, God leads the way.

The Spirit Expressly Says - 1 Timothy 4:1-2

1 Timothy 4:1-2 ESV 

Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared,

Putting our faith in Jesus is an ongoing walk throughout life. This is what is meant by perseverance to the end. 

As in the parable of the seed sown on different soils, faith to the end is not a given or given to us. It is the thing we must give and maintain. 

Jesus says to the churches that if we do, if we conquer our flesh, we shall attain our inheritance. 

Our work is believing God. Do this today and every day. Our time is short. 

God In Christ - Ephesians 4:32

Ephesians 4:32 ESV 

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

When we enter the body of Christ, we are in the best company in all creation. We are one with the Father and Son and one with each other. 

In that place we forgive as we are forgiven. 

We love as we are loved. 

It is God in us and we in Him.  

Things That You Have Seen - Revelation 1:19-20

Revelation 1:19-20 

Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this. As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.

The messages to the seven churches encompass things that "are." These apply to the churches addressed and the Church as a whole until the time of His return. The stars bring the light of heaven into the world through the lamp stands of the Church, which is the body of Christ sown by the seed of Abraham. 

The things that are to take place after this apply to Israel and earth dwellers who have not placed their feet in the kingdom of heaven through faith in Christ. 

The angels of the seven churches may be seen as the presence of the Lord. He is standing in their midst just as He embodies the seven torches burning before the throne of God. The Spirit of the Lord which fills Christ is the mediator on earth between us and God. Christ has the sevenfold Spirit and is the Spirit that abides in us. It is through the angel, or messenger of Christ, that the truth is delivered to all believers. He is known as the Holy Spirit and is the seal of promise and the presence of Christ on the earth. 

He is the light of the world which now shines through the Church. That is why we are the light of the world, for He is within us. 

Isaiah 63:8-9

For he said, “Surely they are my people,

children who will not deal falsely.”

And he became their Savior.

In all their affliction he was afflicted,

and the angel of his presence saved them;

in his love and in his pity he redeemed them;

he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.

Christ has established the seedbed for the Bride of Christ. That garden will grow until the time is fulfilled and the Bride is taken. 

The Tossing Sea - Isaiah 57:20-21

Isaiah 57:20-21 ESV 

But the wicked are like the tossing sea;

for it cannot be quiet,

and its waters toss up mire and dirt.

There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”

The wicked are compared with the tossing sea. Troubled waters that are stained by the mire and dirt of darkness. There is no peace because they do not rest on the rock of the Lord. 

The Lord will lead us beside still waters and to the peace of the righteous. There we will find our rest. 

Utterance - Acts 2:4

Acts 2:4 ESV 

And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

The Holy Spirit brings unity and understanding to those who are filled with His presence. The door of unity with God and each other is given the common tongue of His own Spirit. 

Instead of attempting to build a tower into heaven by the futility of the labor of our hands, the fire of heaven comes to us by the right hand of God. We reach much further when we reach out for each other. 

The Midst Of A Bush - Exodus 3:1-6

Exodus 3:1-6

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Jesus would appear to Moses in the form of a burning bush. There at the foot of the holy mountain, Moses would behold the fire of God, able to shed its light without consuming the bush that contained the blaze in its limbs. 

Jesus would later appear to all of us in the form of a man. He left the heights of heaven and placed His foot on the soil of our earth, bringing the light of the world for all men to see. The fire of God was contained not in wood, but in the flesh and bones of a man. This fire would burn in the man, yet would not consume the man. 

We took the flame of God and nailed Him onto the tree of the cross. In our darkness put out that light, but the fire would remain and resurrect Him from that darkness to ignite the light for everyone. 

He would bring this fire to all of us. By His light we become children of light. We are ablaze with the light of life. From a burning bush with its roots in the earth, He has become our morning star. That light has overcome the darkness, for He has overcome the world. 

Fell At His Feet - Revelation 1:17-18

Revelation 1:17-18

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.

John is overcome by the glory of the Lord. This may remind us that no one can see the Lord and live. John falls to the ground, but rises by the right hand of the Lord. It is when we die to self that Jesus will lay His right hand on our shoulders. This happens while we are still in these bodies of flesh. When we lay these bodies aside at last, He will receive us with open arms. 

There is no need for fear. Our core fear and dread is the specter of the unspoken, yet inevitable meeting with death. Now there is a way beyond death. He was the first to rise from the dead and embody the last and final image of a man that is created in the image of God. Because He is the first and leads the way, we at last are able to follow Him through death's door and walk in the light of life. He took our image and wrapped it around the Spirit of God, wrapped as it were, in the swaddling clothes of our flesh. 

He has the keys of Death and Hades which means He can free us all who are trapped behind that door of death. What He has opened, no one can close. He invites all of us to come out of the tomb and shed our grave clothes for a new garment of the righteousness of God. 

In The Midst Of The Lampstands - Revelation 1:12-16

Revelation 1:12-16

Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.

The lamp stands represent the Church and they are the light of the world. These correspond to the twelve torches before the throne of God. Jesus is in their midst because He is the source of the strong arm of the Lord. From His mouth comes the word of God and the Spirit of truth, which is able to divide bone from its marrow and reveal all things. His face is like the sun because He is the light of the world.