You have to humble yourself and come to a place of being called because you want Him, to chosen, because you want Him, and then faithful, because you want Him. That’s it. Without that you can’t enter the kingdom of God.
0 Comments
The biggest difference between Old Testament and New Testament is that the Old Testament was more corporate and the New Testament is more individual: your salvation. We meet to celebrate each other’s love of the Lord and that in itself is encouraging but not salvation. A lot of people think that it is. Just listen to the preacher and do what he says and hope we get there. There has to be more than that. There has to be the word of God in you that’s alive. Not just knowing the word of the Lord, but that it’s alive in you and that’s personal.
Predestined is probably one of the biggest stumbling blocks in the Bible. How most see predestined is that God already knows where we’re going to be, so what’s the use of trying to do anything. We are saved and whatever happens, it happens because God’s predestined us and we can’t change it and that’s just the way it is. Have you ever heard that? That’s not what Paul is talking about. We were predestined before the foundation of the world was set, to be a certain type of person that would have certain giftings that were needed in the body of Christ. When Jesus said depart from Me, ye workers of iniquity, I never knew you, it was because they never became who they were purposed to become from the foundations. Predestination is: each one of you were given a place to be in God to do a certain job.
...if you want to do your own thing and go and be whatever you are, grace is no longer there, because He doesn’t give you grace if you don’t want it. You have to ask and desire to be like His Son Jesus. If that takes place then He first comes and gives you truth which will set you free, but He also gives you grace to get there. What an awesome God we have.
My hope in Him is action. That’s righteousness. Non-action is religion. If there is any religion in you, you need to get rid of it because it isn’t going to do you any good. It doesn’t matter what somebody else thinks. But when they see the glory of God on you, they can’t come against it.
The righteousness of God gives us the power to become sons. That’s the seed that He released when He died and was crucified for us. The seed He had was not a human fleshly seed. It was the seed of eternity for you and me that if we receive it, righteousness will come on us and destroy our wickedness that we might have everlasting life.
When God’s people rise up in righteousness and have faith that they can come out of where they’re at then God can help them.
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Ouch. I had some of the world in me, but in the last six months the world really doesn’t mean much to me anymore. It’s futile. Yes, we need to make a living and there are certain things we need to do, but our hope is not in becoming wealthy on the earth. Our hope is in heaven. Above all things that’s where we are headed.
Many people today that think they are saved are just rotting because they never died that they might be quickened. They brought the world with them and they loved the world. It’s the poor in spirit that will get it because those that are poor in spirit hate what they have and want Christ in them. Then there is a sprout that comes and pushes out the world and in your being grows the righteousness of Christ. If that doesn’t happen you’re not saved. You have to be quickened. Jesus said few there be that make it. That’s why. If you don’t die you aren’t quickened to produce fruit. That which produces fruit has to die before it can be raised to bear your fruit: Christ in you.
We need to be born again. Some people think faith is all you need. Some people think that as long as they believe there is a God that is enough. But there is a whole lot more to it than that.
|