The Holy Spirit

PART 2

We learned in part 1, that the Holy Spirit was there in the beginning of our time.

In the beginning ‘God’ created. The word Elohim means ‘God’. It is a plural noun, meaning God the Father; God the Son; and God the Holy Spirit. The Trinity; three Gods but one in unity. Each with their own function. 

The Holy Spirit was there at creation and our coming into existence. 

John 3:3

Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly I say to you, unless one is born again he can not see the kingdom of God.

We Must Be Born Again!

How can we be born again?

The phrase ‘ Born Again ‘ more literally  means ” born from above .” Just as your mother gave physical birth to you, if you want to have eternal life, you need the Holy Spirit to give you a spiritual birth. This is the moment of conversion. At this moment you go from being spiritually dead to spiritually alive through Christ. 

The Holy Spirit beckons us to accept what Jesus has done for us. To believe! Jesus’s sacrificial death on the cross, paid for our sin. We must believe and receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior. We must repent of our sin and turn to God’s ways.

Principles of Repentance

1.We must recognize our sins. We must admit to ourselves that we have sinned. 

2. We must feel sorrow for our sins.

3. We must forsake our sin.

4. We must confess our sins.

The Holy Spirit is the one who is first active in our lives to bring us to repentance.

Once He does this, we will repent of our sins, or we can ignore His prompting.  The choice is ours.

When we follow His leading, we will experience being ‘Born Again.’

This Is When Your Life Will Change!

You will be in fellowship with the Holy Spirit. He is our: Comforter, Counselor,  Helper, Intercessor, Advocate,  Strengthener, and Teacher. 

He will speak to you with encouragement and guidance. Also He will give you correction when you are not following His leading. 

Jesus knew that we would need help when His time came to return to His Father. He asks His Father to send us a Helper, the Holy Spirit. 

John 14:16 -18

And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 

Even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. You know Him for He dwells with you and will be in you. 

I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you. 

How comforting to know that we are loved so much. You may have been abandoned or gone through terrible situations but God was there all the time. He was looking down from Heaven seeing you. He was not going to leave you alone. He had a plan for you to give you a future and hope.

The Holy Spirit is your Helper, to guide you in your life, to reach your destiny. He will be speaking to you. Your part is to listen for His guidance to bring you into your destiny. 

He is waiting for you to fellowship with Him.

Start listening for His voice. He will be speaking to you. Train your ear to hear His still, small voice.

Bless you dear friends as each of you journey in your life and ministry. We are praying for you, your families and your ministries. 

Bless you. Pastor Barbara and Stanley.      2/24

   The Holy Spirit

The Person of The Holy Spirit

Part 1

Genesis 1

In the beginning God created the Heaven and the earth.

And the earth was without form, and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

In the beginning ‘ God ‘ created.

The Bible is divided into the Old Testament and the New Testament.  The Old Testament was written in Hebrew, with Aramaic in a few books.  The New Testament was written in Koine Greek. This was the common language of the Eastern Mediterranean. 

Let’s look at ‘In the beginning God created.’

Genesis 1:26-27  And God said , ‘Let Us make man in Our image. ‘

The word ‘God’  here in the Hebrew is ‘Elohim’.

Elohim is a plural noun for God’s or deities; it normally indicates the masculine plural.

We see God is saying, Let ‘Us’ make man  in Our image. This is the first time we see God referred to as ‘US.’

This is the first mention of the ‘Trinity.’   The ‘Us’ is God,the Father; God,the Son; and God,the Holy Spirit. All three, one in essence or nature. While the three persons define who God is. Each accomplishing a different function and indissoluble unity.

We see the first work of the Holy Spirit is in creation. The Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

The entire process of creation is viewed as a single shared action of the Three divine Persons. Each Person manifesting their attributes unique to them in the Trinity. This shows us and proves that everything comes ‘ from the Father,’  ‘through the Son,’ and ‘ in the Holy Spirit. ‘

The Holy Spirit

We have learned that the Holy Spirit  is the third Person of the Trinity. 

He is God.

He is a person who is infinitely wise, holy, just and gracious.

He is not merely an influence or power derived from a person.

He has many divine personal names, titles, offices, acts, attributes, and He receives personal treatment. He can be blasphemed.

We will study all aspects of the Holy Spirit in the following lessons.

Remember

Jesus’s encouragement to us.

John 14: 12

I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in Me will do what I have been doing.  He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.

We see in this scripture  Jesus  is telling us that we will do greater things than He did while He was on earth. He was sending us the Comforter, the Holy Spirit. 

While Jesus was on earth He did what He did through the Holy Spirit. He had laid aside His divine power. He knew we would have the Holy Spirit to help us and that we could do greater things than He did while He was on earth.

So why aren’t we?

We will study some of the obstacles that we face in ministry and in our life that block the moving of the Holy Spirit.

Please Know

The Holy Spirit seeks to get hold of us and use us. There is a lost and dying world out there. People need to know the Lord Jesus as their Savior and Lord.

And now I pray you will seek God and ask Him to speak to you. He will lead you into all truth.

We all have an exciting journey ahead. As we press in with God, excited to be used of the Lord. He will speak to us and guide us as to the mission He has for us.

Bless you as you serve the Lord.

We are praying for you and your ministries.

Pastor Barbara.                                  1/24

    Put On Christ

Part 4

When Jesus came to earth as a baby, He had laid aside His divine power. This is called the ‘kenosis of Christ.’ He operated completely as a human. He emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.                                                            Ref. Philippians 2:7

So how did Jesus do the miracles that He did on earth?

How?

Matthew 3:16-17

As soon as Jesus was baptized, He went up out of the water. At that moment Heaven was opened, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on Him.

And a voice from Heaven said, “This is My Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.”

We see here that Jesus’ ministry is both confirmed and revealed on earth. The presence of the Holy Spirit was on His life.

Also we see the presence of the Trinity; the Father,  the Son, and the Holy Spirit. 

What Did We Learn From The Kenosis of Christ

1. Jesus was truly human as well as divine. He lived a perfect human life as an example to all men who desire to please God.

2. Jesus laid aside His natural and divine attributes, and became a perfect example of yieldedness to God and the Holy Spirit. In doing this He overcame the world, the flesh, and the devil.

3. Jesus did His works solely by the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

4. Jesus did His work by the anointing to demonstrate and prove to all believers that they could do even greater works than He did.

5. Jesus life and works were done as a pattern for all believers after Him.

6. All the manifestations of divine attributes in Jesus’s earthly life were really the operations of the Holy Spirit, which He was constantly baptized into. They were exercises of the spiritual gifts.

7. Jesus possessed the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit to the full to demonstrate what being like God is really like, and to encourage us who aspire to that position of, sons of God with power.

Jesus operated in the gifts, through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Let’s Look At the Gifts.

1 Corinthians 12: 1, 8-11

Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant.

For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another the different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.

But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one as He wills.

The Nine Gifts of the Holy Spirit

The Gifts of Revaltion

The Gifts of Inspiration

The Gifts of Power

Revelation Gifts:

The Word of Wisdom

Is a supernatural revelation, or insight into the divine will and purpose, often given by the Spirit to solve perplexing problems and situations.

The Word of Knowledge

Is a supernatural revelation of Divine knowledge or insight in the Divine mind, will or plan, to know things that could not be known of oneself.

Discerning of Spirits

This is a supernatural revelation or insight into the realm of spirits to detect their presence and plans.

Power Gifts

Gift of Faith

This is a supernatural ability to believe God without human doubt, unbelief, and reasoning.

The Gift of Healing

This is the healing of all manner of sickness by supernatural power, without human aid or medicine.

The Working of Miracles

This is supernatural power to intervene in the ordinary course of nature and to counteract natural laws if necessary. 

Gifts of Inspiration

Prophecy

Prophecy is the supernatural utterance in the native tongue. It is a miracle of divine utterance, not conceived by human thought or reasoning.  It includes speaking unto men to edify, exhort and comfort.

Tongues

The supernatural utterance in other languages that are not known to the person speaking. 

The Interpretation of Tongues

The supernatural ability to interpret the meaning of the tongues that were uttered in other languages not known by the one who interprets by the Spirit.

So as we come to the end of this series   ‘ Put On Christ ‘  there has been alot of new information. It may have brought revelation on some new information. It may have brought conviction of things that God doesn’t want you doing. You are so aware now, that the works that Jesus did, you can do. You need to work with the Holy Spirit, because it is Him, who does the working of the gifts through you.

It is a process in our lives. We have to die to self (our old ways) and Put on Christ ( His ways and behavior).

As we study and pray, the Holy Spirit will guide you into all truth. He will never condemn you, but He will convict you of sin (wrong doing before God). Confess the wrong to God and repent ( turn away from it and t no God’s way) .

Keep going, always moving forward towards God. He has a great future planned for you.

1 Corinthians 2:9

But as it is written. Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard. Neither have entered into the heart of man. The things which  God hath prepared for them that love Him.

I pray you will believe God. Don’t go into your own human reasoning.  The Bible tells us that human reasoning or thinking, is void of the Holy Spirit. We only know what we know, the Holy Spirit knows all. Trust Him and His leading.

I will close this teaching and pray that the Holy Spirit will give you understanding and revelation.

Our next series we be ‘ The Person of the Holy Spirit ‘.

Bless you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Pastor Barbara.                                               4/23

Put On Christ

Part 3

So How can we

‘Put on Christ ?’

1 Corinthians 2:19

But we have the mind of Christ and hold the thoughts of His heart.

When we receive Jesus and ask Him to be our Savior, this is the beginning of our spiritual journey. The Holy Spirit comes to reside in our spirit. We now have a seed of the Fruit of the Spirit in us. We now have a responsibility of developing the Fruit of the Holy Spirit.

We Have To Develop ‘The Fruit of the Holy Spirit. ‘

The above scripture says that we have the mind of Christ. But in reality when we believe and receive Jesus as our Savior we receive a seed of the ‘Fruit of the Spirit ‘. Our thinking and behavior are exactly the same as it was before asking Jesus to be our Savior. We have to develop the fruit of the Spirit in our souls.

The Fruit of the Spirit

What is the Fruit of the Spirit?

It is the nine Christlike attributes of Jesus. When the nine attributes come together in a Christians life, he has ‘Put on Christ. ‘ This life will be led by the Holy Spirit.

As we grow and develop spiritually, we start to behave in a different way in all situations. We live a godly life led by the Holy Spirit. The opposite of a godly life that displays the Fruit of the Spirit, is an ungodly life operating in the works of the flesh. In the last lesson I spoke about our flesh; our friends in Pakistan shared that when the teaching was translated in their Urdu language it changed the meaning of our flesh. Our flesh as scripture indicates is our old nature before our rebirth and mind renewal. It does NOT mean ‘meat.’ It has nothing to do with not eating meat. This misses the whole point of the need to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

Jesus is our example.

Jesus is our example of how to live as a Christian. He displayed the Fruit of the Spirit in His daily life. In our lives, when the nine attributes of the fruit of the Spirit come together, we then are displaying a complete picture of the character of Christ. We have ‘put on Christ. ‘

Galatians 5: 22-23

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

LOVE is mentioned first.

There are different kinds of love mentioned in the Bible. The Greek word for God’s sacrificial love is agape. The other loves mentioned are; eros is romantic love; phileo is friendship love; storge is family love. God loves us so much that He gave His only Son for us. Let us love others this way !

SELF-CONTROL is mentioned last.

Self-control is the active effort we put forth to resist going back to something we know we shouldn’t do. It frees us to follow and obey God’s instructions. It is self discipline over our life. God gave us freewill to do what we want. Let’s do what God has for us. It will be good!

KEY

Love and self-control are key. If we have love and self-control, the other fruits will easily develop. We will be more peaceful, patient, kind and gentle. We need agape love, which is the love God showed when He allowed His Son to die for our sins. When we have developed this ‘love’, we will be more forgiving and patient with people.

Self-control is much easier when we have ‘agape’ love. We don’t see the wrong in others anymore, we see the Christ in them.

Let’s Make A Decision To Bear Fruit!

If our hearts are fixed on Jesus and we are filling our minds with His word, we will bear fruit. Obedience to what the Lord is telling us to do is a must.

The Result

We will have put on the Lord Jesus Christ. Our attitudes and behavior will line up with His. The Holy Spirit will have a freedom to work through us to reach a lost and dying world.

In closing dear brothers and sisters in the Lord, let us go forth in unity to reach the world for Jesus!

May the Lord bless you and keep you protected. May He provide for your needs. May He annoint your words to reach the lost.

Bless you dear ones. Pastor Barbara. 3/23

Put On Christ

Part 2

Make No Provision For The Flesh

Romans 13:14

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.

We see three instructions in this scripture. They are not suggestions, but God is giving us commands.

* Put on the Lord Jesus Christ.

*Make no provision for the flesh.

*Do not fulfill it’s lusts.

*We put on the Lord Jesus Christ by having His behavior and attitudes, in all circumstances. Our old mind sets change as we learn to obey and follow Him.

*We will make provision for our flesh where and when we are the most tempted. Our flesh is our old nature, our unrenewed mind. We are meant to depend on God. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God”.

*Lust is a strong powerful desire or passion for anything that is sinful. It wages war against your soul. Fleshly desires and passions pull us away from God’s will for our lives. You have to take control of your lusts and desires, don’t let them take control of you. When we continue in them, they become a habit.

The Works of the Flesh

or Acts of Our Sinful Nature

Galatians 5: 16–21

This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that you cannot do the things that you would.

But if you be led of the Spirit, you are not under the law.

Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these;

Sexual immortality

Impurity

Sensuality

Lack of self-control

Idolatry

Witchcraft

Sorcery

Hatred

Variance

Emulations

Jealousy

Fits of anger

Disputes

Wrath

Strife

Rebellion

Heresies

Envying

Murders

Drunkenness

Riotous behavior

And such like :

Of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they that do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

WARNING

We see that God is giving us a warning. He does not want us doing these things. He wants us to be conformed to the image of Christ.

Our Old Nature Fuels Sin!

When we are born again, our spirit man has received the Holy Spirit. Our soul is the same until we begin the process of change, the ‘metamorphosis’. Our old nature will cause us to act in an un Christ-like way. The sad news is, some stay like this and don’t renew their thinking and behavior.

We have all met Christians who, when they don’t get what they want, they act up in an unseemly manner. We are to be the ‘Jesus’ that people see in their every day life. Our words, attitudes and love for people are cleary seen and felt if we are displaying our Lord’s behavior.

Change Is Coming

Change will come to those who have crucified the sinful nature with it’s passions and lusts.

As we put on the Lord Jesus Christ, a wonderful change will happen in us. People around you will see and feel it. You will be aware. Religion will not do this for you. Religion is not a relationship with Jesus, but a set of rules and regulations. As you get to know Jesus intimately, you will want to change. Your love and thankfulness to Him for what He has done for you, will be a motivator for you to change.

There’s No Change Until There’ is Change !

Good News

Those Who Have Crucified The Flesh Have Changed !

They have Put On The Lord Jesus Christ!

Galatians 5:22

But the fruit of the Spirit is

Love

Joy

Peace

Patience

Kindness

Goodness

Faithfulness

Gentleness

Self-control

Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with it’s passions and desires.

The Fruit of the Spirit is the character of Christ.

This ‘fruit’ has to be cultivated in our soul. We are given a seed of the fruit of the Spirit, when we believe and receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior. This is called ‘the borne again’ experience. The Holy Spirit comes to dwell in our spirit being. Remember we are a three part being, body, soul and spirit. The fruit develops in our soul as our character is becoming Christ-like. This happens as we discipline ourselves to behave as God has instructed us to.

A Process!

Remember: Developing Christ-like behavior is a process. It’s a process that you have to work at. It doesn’t happen by magic. You have to desire to change; to stop responding in the flesh/ the carnal self. Our old self. Make no provision for the flesh.

I encourage you to start or continue on in your ‘metamorphosis ‘.

Fruit will begin to develope in your life. It is an exciting journey. Your life will be transformed for all that God has for you. You will move closer to your destiny.

The choice is yours:

Fruit and more fruit.

OR

Self and more Self!

I pray for all of you that you will chose Jesus and His plan for your life.

Bless you in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Pastor Barbara. 2/23

Put On Christ

Part 1

Can you hear Him calling you? He is. Listen carefully….. He’s calling you to ‘Come, come follow Me!’

Jesus is calling you! ‘Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from Me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light. (Reference Matthew 11:28-30)

Follow Me!

The Lord Jesus wants us to come to Him and follow Him. We have already believed that He died for our sins, we have believed that we are sinners and have repented of our sin. So what’s next? That is what this New Series will show you. Believing and receiving Jesus is just the beginning of your Christian walk.

Do You Want More Than Salvation?

Salvation is the best decision we can make in our life. We receive the gift of ‘eternal life’. Living forever in Heaven, when our time on earth is done. But how are we living until then?

There Is More!

Amos 3:3

How can two walk together, except they be agreed?

To follow someone, we need to know them intimately. Trust in them builds, as we get to know them. We agree with their way of thinking and doing. The result is we can agree with and work together with someone. We identify with them.

In this series ‘ Put On Christ ‘ I will be teaching:

How to put on Christ.

What to take off.

The cost.

The results.

God Instructs Us To Put On The Lord Jesus Christ

Romans 13:14

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.

We see in this scripture that we are given a command, not a suggestion. We are to put on the Lord Jesus Christ. Another command is to not make provision for the flesh.

What Is The Flesh?

The ‘flesh’ is not referring to your bodily flesh in the above scripture.

The flesh is our old nature. The way we were at salvation, before we started the transformation process of becoming Christ like. Our flesh/ old nature has many undesirable qualities.

How Can We Put Ok

n Christ?

We go through a transformation process. A type of metamorphosis like the butterfly; a caterpillar becomes a butterfly.

Romans 12:2

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

When we believe and accept Jesus to be our Savior, we have the same thinking and behavior as we had before our salvation. Our minds need to be transformed to what is good and acceptable, and is God’s will for us. The word of God is what is good and acceptable and is God’s perfect will for us. Our thinking and behavior has to undergo a massive change. Our old thinking has to be transformed to every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. To make Jesus your Lord, means you have given Him control of you life. Your thinking, actions and behavior line up with His nature, responses and behavior. The ‘Fruit of the Spirit’ is the character and nature of Jesus.

The Process

It is a process! Is it easy…..NO!!! Why is this? It is because since our birth we have developed thinking patterns, reactions and habits about:

How we deal with instructions.

How we handle hurt, loss and pain.

How we handle forgiveness.

How the news effects us.

How we handle rejection and abandonment.

How we grieve loss.

How we handle anger.

How we handle betrayal.

How we trust.

Good News!

But the good news is…..You can change your thinking and behavior!

Learn God’s truth, His Word, believe it and most importantly OBEY it.

This is how the transformation happens in our thinking. Then our reactions and behavior line up with the Word.

If your desire is to be Christ-like, join us on this Freedom Journey. Your life will gradually be transformed. You will be Set Free by the renewing of your mind. Old mind sets will be renewed to the Word. Past and present hurts will be healed. A new joy will fill your soul. A new call on your life will come.

Goodness and mercy will follow you all the days of your life.

The Lord says to you this day…I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Then you will call upon Me, and come and pray to Me, and I will hear you.

You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.

Blessings dear friends. If you haven’t asked Jesus to be your Savior, do it now. Join us as we journey on this path of life.

I will be praying for you dear ones. Bless you in the name of the Lord.

Pastor Barbara. 1/23

.

  Intimacy with Jesus

Part 12

Intimacy  with Jesus will change your life for the better!

We were created with a strong inner desire to be in a close relationship with someone. Who that someone is depends on who we pick . We all have a specific measure by which we decide who that special person or persons will be.

God created us; He made us a three part being. Our spirit and soul, that live in a body. Our spirit and soul never die; our body dies. The body is our ‘earth suit’. We need this body to be able to live on planet Earth.

Our soul is where our emotions, intellect, will and imaginations are housed. God gave us ‘freewill ‘. This is the ability to make our own decisions. We decide and make our own decisions, no one is forcing us.

We have all made decisions and chose to have an intimate relationship with a special person. In many cases we have been deeply hurt by that person we loved and trusted. We end up feeling rejected, lonely and in despair. It was not necessarily our decision that caused the unfaithfulness and pain, but the other person’s freewill choice. 

I Just Can’t

This can cause us to declare,  ‘I’m never trusting anyone again. I just can’t take the pain.’ These deep wounds can keep us from entering another relationship. For some, they can not trust Jesus because of what they have been through. 

Pain can scar you and cause you to isolate yourself. It slowly builds a wall of protection for yourself. This wall of protection also keeps the good relationships and opportunities out.

Fall In Love With Jesus!

Intimacy with Jesus will show you that He is always there for you. He loves you unconditionally.  The more you know Him, the more you will fall in love with Him and trust Him! He is intimately acquainted with you. Psalm 139 tells us clearly how much He knows us.

There will be a change in your life WHEN ……there is a change in you!

Change Is Good!

Change is a good thing when God is in it. Changing how you think to how God wants you to think will bring you amazing results.  He created us and He knows what is best for us and also what we need.

Our minds will be renewed, to have the mind of Christ, when we believe and ask Jesus to be our Lord and Savior. We still have our old way of thinking and acting. When we have put on Christ and His way of thinking, a change will happen.

The Fruit of Change!

Peace will fill our soul.

The pain in our soul will heal.

Our emotions will become stable.

Joy will fill our soul.

We will freely give forgiveness to those who have hurt us.

We will forgive ourselves.

We will stop stressing over the future.

We will have faith to trust that He is taking care of everything. 

We will give up our plans and trust His leading. 

Be Open!

Change will happen in us as we grow in our relationship with Jesus, if we are open to it.

My Testimony!

It may be hard to believe that having an intimate relationship with Jesus will do all this and more, but it will. l know He will do it for you because He did it for me!!!

I write all this from experience.  The Lord walked with me through many very dark and hurtful times.

I have experienced betrayal by a husband, a pastor, and friends.  In this life, we will all experience many kinds of hurt and betrayal.

The Key!

Put Jesus first. Take His yoke upon you. Learn from Him. Don’t just know about Him, know Jesus intimately. So much so that your love for Him causes you to do whatever He asks you to do. Also to give up something that He is not in.

My life is so blessed now……I may have lost a husband, a home, and a family split up, but I am now in the center of His will, doing what I love the most. Feed My sheep is the Lord’s instructions to me. And that is what I do…I teach the Word of God.

Also God brought a godly man into my life. Stanley is my very faithful husband. He is my help mate in life and he heads the prayer department for Set Free to Soar Ministry. He diligently prays over your prayer requests. 

Never say never!

With God all things are possible !

We have been studying the life of Jesus in the series Intimacy with Jesus. We will be starting a new series ‘Put On Christ’. In this series we will go deep into Jesus’s earthly life…..

His baptism.

His wilderness testing. 

The start of His earthly ministry. 

His character and nature, the Fruit of the Spirit.

He operated by the gifts of the Holy Spirit. 

His sacrificial death on the cross.

His Resurrection. 

RIGHT NOW!

Jesus sits at the righthand of God, ever making intercession for you. He loves you and calls to you….Come!

Bless you, dear friends.                Pastor Barbara                                41/23

                                                     ‘ Jesus ‘ Our Example

Part 11

Have you ever had an example to follow in your life?

For many of us it has been a mother or father. Maybe a pastor, friend or sibling. They have lived a life that we saw and it motivated us to live that way. And to some of you there might not have been a good example. But you have one now.

I have a friend whom I met in a course I was taking. Her name is Libby. She always pointed upward, towards the Lord when we were discussing the Lord. I have a wonderful loving family who was and is there for me. But there was something different about Libby. I would visit her and we would talk. She listened to me and she would remember what I had said. I  was so impacted that someone would listen to me and remember everything I had said, that I would weep with thankfulness. She was giving me God’s love and care. I am forever thankful for this great woman of God who was an example to me. May God continue to bless her abundantly.  I love you Libby.

The Lord is always there for you. He is listening to you and your prayers. He is never far away. He sees all, knows everything and is all powerful.

Our Perfect Example

Father God gave us His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.    We are so loved that, God gave His Son for us. He gave us the example to follow. Jesus is His name.

Colossians 1:15

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn overall creation.

Imagine , Jesus, who walked on this earth. The same earth that we walk on. He is the exact image of our Father God, who dwells in Heaven. What an example He has given us to follow. He loves you so much. Follow Him and see your life change. I did and my life has changed with a future that is good and  filled with hope.

Some Questions to Ponder.

Have you ever wondered, how is it possible to change my thinking?

How can I follow a new example if          l’ve always followed another example?

I know I should but it’s too hard.

Why should I change and follow this new example?

The Bible Tells Us How To Change.

Romans 12:2

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

This scripture tells us how to change. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. What does that mean?

When we change our way of thinking, this causes us to change. A gradual transformation takes place.  The renewing our thinking is referring to us believing what the Bible says.

Our Mind Has to Change

We are a three part being; body, soul and spirit. We are a spirit, who has a soul, and we live in a body. The soul is comprised of our mind, will, emotions and imaginations. So the part to change is in our mind. Our thinking has to change or be transformed. 

Transformation is a process. The process is called ‘ metamorphosis’. The reality of how a butterfly goes through the amazing change, from the caterpillar to the butterfly state. This can take 2 to 5 weeks. Amazing!

This symbolizes our soul’s journey from an earthly existence to a spiritual one. As we meditate on the word of God, our minds are renewed to obey what God is telling us to do. As this process continues and grows, the metamorphosis takes place. We wake up one day and our thinking is different, we don’t understand it. What has happened is that you have now grown spiritually. You will think, speak and act differently. You will have put on Christ who is our perfect example. 

Remember…..This is a process!

Taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is he that puts his trust in the Lord.

Bless you. Pastor Barbara

40/23

The Childhood of Jesus

Part 10

The childhood of Jesus according to Matthew 2: 1-23

Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the King. A census was being done by Caesar Augustus because he had decreed that everyone would be taxed, so the people had to be counted. Joseph and Mary were living in Nazareth of Galilee, so they had to travel to their hometown of Bethlehem for the census. Bethlehem was the town of David, and Joseph was of the line of David, also Mary.

While Mary and Joseph were in Bethlehem, Jesus was born. Mary gave birth to Jesus, wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger. 

After the forty days of her purification, Jesus was presented to the Lord. Mary and Joseph then returned home to Nazareth. 

The Wisemen Hear

Wisemen had heard the prophecy of the One to be born in Bethlehem.  They came to Jerusalem inquiring of the whereabouts of the One that was prophesied to be born in Bethlehem and be the King of the Jews”. They had seen His star and started their search to find Him. The star led them to Bethlehem and then to the house in Nazareth where they lived.

King Herod Hears of Jesus’s Birth.

*King Herod heard of the prophecy also and gathered his chief priests and scribes together and demanded to know where this Christ child should be born. He then privately calls the wisemen and enquires of them. He sends them off to find the Christ child and to let him know His whereabouts.  Herod tells the wisemen he wants to know so that he can go to the Christ child and worship Him. *This is the first plot to kill Jesus.

When the wisemen saw Jesus they fell down and worshipped Him. They then presented the gifts they had brought with them; gold, frankincense and myrrh.

God’s Protection of the Child Jesus!

The wise men were warned in a dream,  that they should not return to Herod. So they departed to their own country another way. When the wisemen did not return with news, Herod realizes that he has been mocked and he becomes very angry. He orders all children two years of age and under to be killed in Bethlehem and the surrounding coasts.

Jesus’s Childhood According to         Luke 2: 39-52

Luke 2: 39-52

:39 And when they had done everything according to the law of the Lord, they went back into Galilee to their own town, Nazareth.

The Law required 40 days of purification after the birth of a boy, so they stayed in Bethlehem. After that time period was completed and doing all that was required of them by the Law, they returned to their home town of Nazareth.

:40 And the Child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and grace ( favor and spiritual blessing) of God was upon Him.

Jesus grew in body and spirit. He was personally trained by God through the Holy Spirit. He was filled with wisdom, and the favor of God was upon Him. God had given Jesus the wisdom of a learned person. He knew how to speak a word in season to those who were weary. Jesus was woken each morning by God who spoke into His ears; and He received revelation teaching.

:41 Now His parents went to Jerusalem every year to the Passover Feast.

:42 And when He was twelve years old, they went up, as was their custom.

:43 And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem. Now His parents did not know this,

:44 But, supposing Him to be in the caravan, they traveled on a day’s journey; and then they sought Him ( diligently, looking  up and down for Him) among their kinsfolk and acquaintances.

:45 And when they failed to find Him, they went back to Jerusalem, looking for Him all the way.

:46 After three days they found Him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.

:47 And all who heard Him were astonished and overwhelmed with bewildered wonder at His intelligence and understanding and His replies.

All were astonished and bewildered who heard Jesus speak in the Temple. They didn’t understand how He had the intelligence and understanding that He did. Jesus had received divine insight into truth and instruction by God for twelve years. As His body grew and His mental faculties developed, He was being taught by God through the Holy Spirit. 

*Jesus also had earthly teachers but He was always far ahead of them. He had more understanding than all of them.*Reference: Psalms 119: 97-104

:48 And when they ( Joseph and Mary) saw Him, they were amazed; and His mother said to Him, Child, why have you treated us like this? Here Your father and I have been anxiously looking for You (distressed and tormented).

:49 And He said to them,*How is it that you had to look for Me? Did you not see and know that it is necessary (as a duty) for Me to be in My Father’s house and (occupied) about My Father’s business?  *These are the first recorded words of Jesus.

*At the age of twelve every Jewish boy became ‘a son of the law’. The Law required a price to be paid in redemption money for the first born child. Joseph paid 5 shekels ($3.25) giving him the right of ‘father’, and claiming the obedience of the Child.   *Reference: Numbers 3: 47; 18: 16

The Child, Jesus, now ‘a Son of the Law’, is old enough to be a servant of God. The divine will of God was in operation and Jesus was ready to be in His Father’s house, so He stayed back when Joseph and  Mary left with the caravan. He wanted to be about His Father’s business, it was necessary and His duty. God had been teaching Him and giving Him divine revelation.

:50 But they did not comprehend what He was saying to them.

Joseph and Mary did not understand what Jesus was saying. In their understanding, Joseph was Jesus’s father and he was a carpenter.

:51 And He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was (habitually) obedient to them; and His mother kept and closely and persistently guarded all these things in her heart.

:52 And Jesus increased in wisdom ( in broad and full understanding) and in stature and years, and in favor with God and man.

So Jesus returns home with them and is obedient to their wishes. Mary keeps all that had taken place to herself even though she didn’t understand. The angels had revealed enough to Mary and Joseph that they were aware of the great mission that was ahead for Jesus, but they didn’t comprehend it in full.

We see the obedience of Jesus as a child to His earthly parents. His desire was to be about His Father’s business but His time had not yet come. There was still more preparation to be done. And then He was to be tested.

Jesus has given us the perfect example to follow in our life.

He was obedient from a child right up to His sacrificial death on a cross. He did it for you, because of His great love He has for you and the world.

Obedience has a cost but the reward of obedience far outways the cost. Jesus gave us the example to follow. When love is involved, obedience is easy.

Bless you dear ones as you seek Him and His presence in your lives. As you follow His leading you will see Him move on your behalf.

Bless you Pastor Barbara. 39/23

#9  Why Jesus Became Human!

Reason #3 Sin

Romans 5: 12, 14

Therefore, as sin came into the world through one man, and death as the result of sin, so death spread to all men, ( no one being able to stop it or escape it’s power) because all men sinned.

Yet death held sway from Adam to Moses (the lawgiver), even over those who did not themselves transgress as Adam did. Adam was a type of the One who was to come. 

Genesis 3

We see in scripture that sin had come into the world. Adam and Eve were living in the Garden of Eden. God had given them instructions on what they were to do. They were not to eat or touch the fruit of the tree, in the midst of the garden lest they die.

The serpent told Eve that she would not die if she ate the fruit and she would be like a god. That her eyes would be opened and she would know good and evil.

So Eve saw that the tree was good for food and that it would make her wise. She took the fruit and ate, and gave it to Adam, who was there with her, and He ate. Remember, God had given him instructions that they were not to touch or eat the fruit.

Their eyes were opened and they saw that they were naked. They heard God calling them and they hid from Him because, now they new that they were naked.

Scripture tells us that by one man, Adam, sin came into the world. Adam had disobeyed a command that God had given him. The moment Adam ate the fruit, he had sinned. The penalty of eternal death took effect on everyone then and to follow.

Some will say, that it was Eve’s fault for  the world now being condemned under sin. Let me show you something  In case you haven’t seen it. 

Genesis 2: 16-18

And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:

But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shall not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

And the Lord God said, it is not good that the man should be alone, I will make him an help meet for him.

We see that God had told Adam about the tree and not eating the fruit, before He had made Eve. Adam knew but disobeyed God. Yes, Eve took the fruit first, but Adam was with her and did not stop her. That is why Roman 5:12 states, by one man sin came into the world. God held Adam responsible. And now the world was condemned under sin and separated from a Holy God.

Romans 3:23

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

The Wages of Sin is Death.

Romans 6:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This death is a ‘spiritual death’. Spiritual death is the separation of man from God. God cannot look upon sin, He is holy.

We are sinners because all mankind came under this judgement when Adam sinned. We naturally have a sin nature now, that separates us from a Holy God. We may think that we are righteous and living a godly life. But our sin nature is there and has to be removed if we want to have fellowship with God.

Isaiah 59:2

But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you, that He will not hear.

This is why Jesus became human!

All mankind were under the penalty of death because of Adam’s sin, all were now condemned.

Jesus came to earth, He laid aside His divine power. He was born as a baby and laid in a manger. He grew in stature and wisdom and performed many miracles. He was falsely accused, tortured and crucified. He died and rose on the third day.

A blood sacrifice was needed for the cleansing of the sin of the world. Jesus gave Himself for the sin of the world. He paid the price for our sin. God, the Father loves us so much that ‘ He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.’

The choice is ours…..receive the free gift Jesus has provided and spend eternity in Heaven.

OR

Do not believe what Jesus has done for you. Reject His gift for you and spend eternity in Hell.

I will be praying for you. Today is the day of salvation. Taste and see that the Lord is good.

Bless you Pastor Barbara. 38/23