It’s a known fact that one cannot walk with God and live a life of darkness. And that no one can claim to be a Christian and still live in evil and immorality; and there’s no way that one could love God and court sin at the same time. We see this thought revealed in 1 John 1:6 where John says: “If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:”.  When we walk in the light as the Bible tells us we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sins (1 Jn. 1:7).  Also, God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all, and God’s Word is true, for He leads us out of the darkness and into His marvelous light. Light brings clarity, reveals truth, and dispels darkness, where light exist no darkness can remain. In darkness, good and evil look alike, but in the light, truth is revealed. So, it is with sin for it cannot exist in the presence of a Holy God. 

Understand that “if we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1 Jn. 1:8). “Because you say, I am rich and increase with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind and naked:” (Rev. 3:11); for self-sufficiency is the fatal danger of a lukewarm attitude.  If one desires a relationship with God, they must put aside their sinful ways of living. And to claim we belong to Him but then to live out our lives for ourselves is hypocrisy and we are no more than liars. All sin breaks our fellowship with God, it interferes with our worship, it hinders our prayers and it can stop the ears of God. It can be difficult, however, for many people to admit their faults and shortcomings even to God.  It takes humility and honesty to recognize that we have weaknesses and shortcomings but most of us would rather pretend that we are strong and are never seen as weak. You see, God already knows all about our sins, so we don’t need to fear telling Him anything about us. But humbly come to Him with a heart of repentance, God will never push us away – no matter what we have done.  

Throughout the Bible, God instructs us to confess our sins, to acknowledge our iniquity which we have transgress, and confess and forsake them. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful, and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9 (Wesley NT). Also to “rend your heart and not your garments." Now return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness And relenting of evil” (Joel 2:13 (NASB). Now, do you think God is trying to tell us something?  

Confession is supposed to free us to enjoy fellowship with Christ. But many Christians do not understand how it works. It should ease our conscience and lighten our cares, but there is still a feeling of guilt, so we continue confessing the same sins over and over.  There are even those that believe that God forgives them when they confess, but if they died with unconfessed sins they believe that they would be forever lost. These do not understand that God has already forgiven them even the present and future sins. We do not need to confess old sins and add to it sins of today, He allowed His Beloved Son to die just so He could offer us a pardon and free us from the bondage of darkness.

When we come to Christ, He forgives all the sins we have committed or will ever commit. His precious blood has washed us clean “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:” (1 Peter 1:18-19). So, we don’t need to confess the sins of the past all over again and there is no need to fear that God will reject us.  Our relationship with Christ is secure. Now when it is true confession it is also a commitment not to continue in past sins again. There must be a complete turning away from the old and walking a new walk. We wouldn’t be genuinely confessing our sins to God if we were planning to commit them again and we just wanted temporary forgiveness. So, pray for strength to defeat the temptation when sin arises.

So, don’t let darkness hold you or keep you in bondage, “We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men (Isa. 59:10), “But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes” (1 John 2:11).  He who hates is not following Christ, therefore he walks in darkness and are subject to demon spirits controlling them.  The result of darkness is, God’s presence is absent, spiritual forces of evil are all around, it hides our evil deeds, depression and sadness dwells there and all hope seems lost.

Remember that “…God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” (1Jn. 1:5). And as Jesus said “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12).  Father, I ask that you search our hearts, try us and know our thoughts and Lord, if there be any wicked way in us, please lead us in the way everlasting. Lord, speak to us of any hidden sins that we may have forgotten or that we may not know is sinful in your eyes. Wash us and make us clean as you help us to walk in the light. In Jesus’ mighty name we pray, amen.

Chosen2Prayer

Let go of the pain of the past

There are things in life that hinder us from achieving goals, moving to new areas, taking chances in love or even having a fruitful and bless marriage, all because our past has grown destructive hindering roots within us. The past has also affected our present situations and has kept us hostages from reaching our future. Many of us can’t seem let go of the past in our own strength, we need God to help us, we must let Him shine His light on what we are holding onto and when it is revealed, we have to release that into His hands. Release the pain, the torment, the abuse, the lies, the deceit, release it all to Him, so that peace can flood your soul. We do not need to be walking in the pain of the past but in the love of God, in the freedom of what Christ gave to all. There may be some reluctance to dealing with the past, the memories seem to be still fresh and the pain still hurts, but as you learn to let go with each step God’s light within get brighter and brighter.

 You see, when God reveals things to us it is for our benefit to finally let it all go, facing the past will free us from emotional pain, psychological issues, and physical distress. Forgiveness is the key to getting past the past, we must forgive all who have hurt us, we need to forgive ourselves for our part and we must ask God to forgive us and those who were the perpetrators. To get free of the pain we must face the truth, as hard as it may be. The Word says: “agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him… (Mt. 5:25)”. It is vital that we resolve as much as we can in the strength and power of God, make things right at this present time, for when we stand before God it will be too late.

Chosen4God

Prayer is a vital key to every single Christian, for it is our communication that we use to commune with our Father, God.  It is talking with Him and telling Him about what is going on in our lives.  One way of praying is to pray the Word back to God, {Isa 55:11 KJV} "So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper [in the thing] whereto I sent it." When we pray the Word back something will be accomplished in us for this is a promise of God to His Children.  The Word is power(ful) and it is something that we (should) have absolute faith in.

There is nothing on earth more powerful than the Word of God, and Psalms 91 is a most memorable Psalms that many know and many of us quote it almost daily to ourselves and even to friends.  It is a Psalm that brings comfort, assurance, blessing and hope to the children of God; it is a Psalm that teaches the protection of God for His chosen, it is a Psalm of love of a Father.

Praying God’s Word has a way of assuring us that God will listen to what He has said to us and that we can be assured of an answer from Him. Consider praying this Psalm or seek the Word to find one that fits your need at the moment, God will listen.

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Heavenly Father, we thank you that these things are written in Psalms 91, that we can dwell in the secret place of the most High, and we thank you that we can abide under the shadow of our Almighty God.  We thank you that we can say Your are our Lord, our refuge, our fortress and our God, whom we can trust.  We thank you for delivering us from the snare of the fowler, and from the deadly pestilence, We thank you for covering each of us with your feathers.  We thank you that we can walk under Your wings and take refuge.  We thank you that Your faithfulness and truth is our shield and armor.  We thank you that we are not afraid for the terror by night, nor for the arrow that flieth by day, nor for the pestilence that walked in darkness, nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. We thank you that a thousand shall fall at our side, and ten thousand at our right hand; and none will come near us.  We thank you for giving Your angels charge over us to keep us in all ways and that Your angel’s hands will lift us up as we do not dash our foot against a stone.  We thank you that we can tread upon the lion and serpent and trample the young lion and dragon under our feet.  We thank you that when we call You, You will answer us, be with us in trouble, deliver us, honor us, satisfy us with a long life and show us Your salvation.

Heavenly Father, we are thankful that our Lord Christ Jesus spoiled all principalities and powers and made a show of them openly and triumphed over them in Himself.  We claim all that victory for our lives.  We reject all the insinuations, accusations, and temptations of Satan.  We affirm that the Word of God is true and we choose to live in obedience to You Lord Jesus and in fellowship with You.  Open our eyes and show us the areas of our lives that do not please You.  Work in us to cleanse us from all ground that would give Satan a foothold against us.  We do in every way stand in all that it means to be your adopted child and we welcome all the ministry of Your Holy Spirit into our lives.

Heavenly Father, we pray that now and through our lives, You would strengthen and enlighten us, show us all the ways in which Satan and his demonic spirits are trying to hinder, temp, lie, and distort the truth in our lives, enable us to be the kind of person that will please you.  Enable us to be aggressive in prayer and faith.  Enable us to be aggressive mentally, to think about and practice Your Word, and to give You, Your rightful place in our lives.

Heavenly Father, we place all of our cares, all of our anxieties, all of our worries, all of our concerns once and for all on You, because we know that You love us and watch over us according to Your Word in 1 Peter 5:7.  Father we pray for the peace of Jerusalem and May all those prosper who love You. To God be all the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Be bless…

Chosen4God

Light bearers…                 

We are called to walk with Him in wholeness; in whole-someness; in holiness. No pains have been spared to make it abundantly obvious that no matter what our culture, society, or time in history, He invites us to walk with Him in dignity, decency, and on a plain above apart from our contemporaries. (Phillip Keller)

There have been many, many great examples given to us in the Bible of those who walked with God.  There is one that we know the least about but he left us an example of what it would be like when we walk with God in complete surrender and it’s Enoch (Gen. 5:22-24).  He was a man whose heart and life exudes a love for God that we can’t begin to comprehend; it says in Hebrews 11:5 “…that he pleased God.” Can anyone say that their walk pleased God as Enoch?  “…for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).  

We are prone to see from a human standard, we look at the education, the skill set, the intelligence, the financial stance of a person, more than the true part that God considers – the heart.  He does not need to look at the outside or the accomplishments of man, but is the heart humbled, is it one willing to yield completely to His Will.  What did Enoch have that we don’t? There was something so special with Enoch and his walking with God that God took him just like that.  There was something that he possessed that we don’t have or may not yet have reached his level of intimacy as he had with God. 

Another great example would be Abraham, God told him to leave his family and to leave his country as well. Abraham was called of God for a purpose and through him He promised him “…I will make thee a great nation, and I will bless thee and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing” (Gen. 12:2). Abraham’s faith and obedience to God were blessing that were passed on to us as believer, for we are of the seed of Abraham and we are also promised the same blessings as Abraham through the covenant, God promised; “And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee” (Gen 17:7).  Did you know that Abraham was 75 years old when he started his walk with God?

At this point in life we would all ready be in our retired state of mind but Abrahams faith was all he had to go on and a promise from God.  He set out across the desert waste to walk with God in explicit faith.  It doesn’t matter how old we are when God calls us just as long as we have a heart filled with obedience and faith in His promises then we can take that first step towards His purpose. Are you willing to obey when God calls you?

I believe Enoch and Abraham had something that we all are seeking and searching for today, but we have yet to obtain it.  I believe that it’s something that goes much deeper than faith, and that there is an intimacy level that is reached with God as we walk with Him all day, everyday – 24/7.  God has to consume our mind, our heart, our soul in such a way that every breath becomes a prayer of praise to Him.  I believe that it’s a level of intimacy that is achieved not in six months nor in a year, but in a life time.

We need to strive in devoting ourselves to be completely saturated in the Word, and our walk must be devoted completely to holiness with the Father.  You see, sin always blocks our vision of God; and holiness is coupled with living in peace where a right relationship with God leads to a right relationship with fellow believers.  Paul tells us this in Hebrew 12:14 “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see God.”  We must press towards the prize that many which have gone on before us have already obtained (see Phil. 3:12-14).  Holiness in this sense is talking about your consecration and sanctification, for in 1 Thess. 4:3 God commands us to know His will “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication:” Meaning, we must separate (sanctify) ourselves from all kinds of sexual perversion, and sex sins, all sins of the flesh (see Mark 7:21-23; Gal. 5:19-21) we must know how to possess these vessels (your body) in sanctification and honor. 

This is where the enemy traps many who are striving to walk with God, by using the lust of the eyes then the lust of the flesh and even the pride of life, these are all part of the world and so many have fallen into this trap (1 John 2:16).  Think about this, the mind is the battlefield, the enemy gains access when we allow unclean thoughts to take shape and he gains victory when we choose to act on these thoughts. You see, when darkness (sin) is still present within our minds the enemy has legal right to play havoc in your life, “…God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5).  So where we need to start at is by “Casting down imagination, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ “(2 Cor. 10:5). Until you truly understand that by renewing your mind with the Word of God the enemy will continue his destructive path. 

Let’s stop here and recap, first as you read your Bible you will find that there were many, many good examples that God gives us of those who by walking with God in obedience were able to do great exploits for God. Now don’t think their walk was without problems, stumbling blocks, or hindrances because there were plenty lurking around. There were shouts of despair, moments of darkness, uncertainty, and even persecution, but in the end they found light, love and life, and they found Him to be a friend that will see them through what He has called them to do.  

Enoch and Abraham were just two examples that show us the importance of having a relationship with the Almighty.  Light and darkness cannot walk side by side with each other. You must chose how you want to walk and be faithful to that choice because our enemy, Satan wants to kill you, steal your peace, joy, happiness and destroy your life and your future (John 10:10).  Finally, we must keep our mind renewed in the Word, we must strive to walk in holiness and we must stay separated from the Worlds view of living and believing because "Ye are bought with a price; be not ye the servants of men" (1Cr 7:23).  So till next time Saints keep walking with God.

Be bless

Chosen4God