Monthly Archives: February 2018

Testimony Evidence

Revelation 12:11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.
John 5:34 Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.

This week, especially in the last few days, by the grace of God, I have shared much of my story, my testimony, the evidence of God’s work in my life. I have shared different facets of recent years, my testimony is alive, and growing, seeking to draw glory to God in all the highs and lows of my life. I truly believe I was saved as a child, but turned my back on God at age sixteen, and I ran from God into the pleasures of sin for close to twenty years. I tell people sex, drugs, rock and roll, I have been there done that, and will not glorify it. Many things I did I held as trophies of sin, but now I hang my head in shame and thank God for his mercy upon me. Even after my life changed, when I began to respond to the tug of God upon my heart, when I truly wanted to change, I still fail today. God began to wrought out sin from my life (sanctification) , but sin still has it’s power upon me, and I seek to draw glory to God through all my current highs and lows of life, showing the mercy and grace of a God that loves me and you to a level we cannot comprehend. There is nothing different about me, there is nothing you have ever done, nothing can prevent you from receiving Heaven as a reward when you repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, that he came and died, arose, and paid the sin debt you cannot pay, he atoned your debt to a Holy God that will demand payment at the end of time as we know it.

My testimony word search found almost 100 entires in the New King James Bible. As I read many of them, these stuck out to me. The passage in Revelation demands much exposition, but our testimonies are something Satan can never take from us, they are the proofs of our faith, of the evidence of God’s power in our lives; and yes we must not give them up unto death. I spent much time in John’s gospel, in chapter five where Jesus heals the paralytic man at the pool of Bethesda. Of how Christ disappears, then later reveals himself to the man, who goes and shares with the Jews, and they seek to kill Jesus as a result. Even in what they meant for evil, God meant it for good. (Romans 8:28) John chapter five is Jesus’ proclamation to the Jews most zealous religious, “Why don’t you get it?” He points out to them how their minds are so distorted, of how they are so wrapped up in themselves, they cannot see the answer to what they seek, the evidence of God, their Savior standing before them! Can we today as Christians miss the evidences of God because of our religiosity? Can we feel sanctified by fulfilling religions duty of church attendance, of maybe even tithing, of serving on a committee or church duty, but no other heavenly fruit is ever produced the remaining six days of the week? Do those who know us best account of our testimonies of our faith, or do we really live for the world and eventually die in our religion?

At the end of Jesus’ greatest sermon, he addressed false prophets and teachers. In this we also can look at ourselves, of what we produce as a result of our faith. Matthew 7:16-20 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them. Jesus told us as he ascended to Heaven, his departing words were to go and make disciples, go and tell everyone about me, go and be obedient to what I am showing you, lay down your life for me and let God use you to draw others to himself. You are not saved by your works, but your works are a product of your salvation. You cannot contain what you feel inside; the outside works, the testimony of God’s work within you, is how you proclaim outwardly to all he has prepared to witness. Be bold, share in word and deed the evidence of God in your life today.

Anew

John 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except one be born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God. (ASV)

When things aren’t going your way
You tend to say
A “do-over” I claim
Maybe I’ll win the game.

In life we tend
To wish to restart
Troubles create paths
From which we wish to depart.

We all make mistakes
And life says we must pay
But eternity also demands
An account we shall say.

We go through this life
Preparing for the next one
This life’s problems were solved
By God giving us his Son.

Jesus solved the problem
He died to conquer sin
He rose from the grave
And gave you power from within.

Grasping the power of the gospel
Through your heart understand
Let Jesus lead this life
Let him take your hand.
He said My Yoke is easy
My burden is light
The struggles that bind you
He will carry with his might.

Give your life to Jesus
Let your life become anew
Let your heart understand his gospel
It is that simple to do.

Turned to Look

Exodus 3:3-4 Then Moses said, “I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn.” 4 So when the Lord saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.”

Do we hear, do we listen, and do we obey? Some of that may seem redundant, but there is a difference is hearing and listening. We can go through life without hearing God. We can turn our backs on God and live for this world’s pleasure, and be condemned to Hell for our hearts focused on worldly pursuits of any sort. We can never hear God I believe after a supposed salvation, a simple act of accepting Jesus, but moving back to the same misguided worldly focus, that I will not judge where our eternity lies. We only hear God if he demands to be heard, or if we pursue him through prayer and his Word. In biblical truth, we are actually responding in those acts to a pursuit by God towards us first; John 6:65 And He said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.” He seeks you out first, not the other way around.

If we hear Him, do we listen or just move on? The listening requires a much more intimate relationship, an intimacy that grows in time together, and the acts of obedience. If we listen to him, we begin to understand it is God that is speaking to us, and he doesn’t waste any time or words. He doesn’t speak to hear himself talk, he desires you to be like Christ, and I promise you, that requires action on your part. When you listen, you will hear many things that sting, the pointing out of sin, the denial of your request for the better good, the tough ways God works through pain in our lives and around us, the truths of God do not agree with the world who lives for itself; God teaches selflessness and sacrifice love for others, listening requires change always.

If we hear, and begin to listen, we must act as Moses did. Obedience is the quickest and only way to draw near to God. Obedience is the act of making you a disciple of Jesus Christ, transforming you into his image, and the removal of sin one step at a time. Obedience declares war on Satan, and a true disciple will live a roller-coaster of highs and lows for the rest of their life as they dedicate this life to Christ, who gave his life for them. Obedience is a requirement and spine of every Christian’s life; if not, that is between you and God.

These scriptures are very personal to me. Without an exposition of the last ten years of my life, after feeling the call to preach, I have ridden that roller-coaster of a disciple. I have preached a short time, and stepped down from the pulpit. I have seen the ministries he gave me flourish and fade. I have seen the opportunity outside of church to proclaim the gospel to all that will hear. I have seen my testimony open new doors to proclaim in ways I couldn’t imagine. I thank God for reaching out to this wretched sinner, continually extending undeserved mercy, giving unmerited grace, and for a heart that seeks to listen and obey. I am so glad I turned to look. I pray that you will too.