- Oct 13, 2009
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Dear saints, I trust that the Lord has been protecting and prospering you. Its indeed good to be back with you, and please know that Im always in prayer for all of you. Id be delighted to see all of you in heaven . We know that our Heavenly Father is omnipotent (Jeremiah 32: 27), but we may be offending Him by restricting the unleashing of His power in our lives (Colossians 1:29). Its one thing to know that God is all powerful but to actually believe Him to let His power work in our lives, and that too by faith (1 Peter 1:5) is something altogether different.
Id like for us to turn to the parable of the rich young ruler (Mark 10:17-27). All of us are familiar with this narrative, but today Id like to put a different spin on this parable. The Lord Jesus instructed the rich young man to sell everything he had and to become His disciple. We also know that the young ruler was unwilling to part with his wealth and left dejected. The Lord Jesus then commented as to how difficult it was for the rich to enter Gods kingdom. But had the young man abandoned everything he had to follow the Lord, would that have guaranteed his salvation? Does giving up our worldly wealth insure Gods love in our hearts? I doubt that because the Apostle Paul clearly mentioned that sacrifice isnt an indicator of agape love (1 Corinthians 13:3).
Whats more interesting is that the disciples understood this to mean that if rich people couldnt be saved, then no one would be saved. They seem to have unknowingly insulted God (the way we sometimes do) by interpreting salvation as something that needed to be earned. We need to understand that salvation is Gods idea and the gift of repentance also comes from God (2 Corinthians 7:10). Often when we say sorry we may not actually feel that remorse in our spirits. Thats one of the reasons why the Lord Jesus had to rebuke the Apostle Peter three times (John 21:15-17). It was only at the third rebuke that Peter was hurt. Peter was sorry the first two times, but he was penitent or hurt at the third rebuke.
The disciples ignorance was further displayed when they exclaimed who then can be saved? What they didnt realize was that God recreates or regenerates our hearts by His Holy Spirit (Ezekiel 36:26) during salvation. So its not just the rich that are impossible to be saved, every single of us needs a new heart from the Holy Spirit. Thats what the Lord indicated when he said, Whats impossible with man is possible with God?
Lets look at another example in the Bible where some of the Lords beloved disciples insulted Him by assuming that things had progressed even beyond His reach. Lets turn to John 11 which is the story of the Lord raising Lazarus from the dead. Mary had faith when she remarked that her brother wouldnt have died had the Lord been with them (John 11:32). But she couldnt visualize Gods grand scheme of demonstrating His power over death (John 11:41-44) by allowing Lazarus to die (as a by note, Lazarus had to later die of old age in the natural scheme of things). On the contrary, Martha displayed a total lack of faith (John 11:40) when the Lord commanded that the stone guarding the tombs entrance be rolled away (John 11:38). The Lord Jesus had to again remind her that nothing is beyond Gods control when He rebuked her (John 11:40).
A similar encounter is narrated in the Bible when the father of a boy seized by evil spirits approached the Lord Jesus for healing his son (Mark 9:14-27). In Mark 9:21 the boys father was reverent, but doubted the Lords ability when he remarked if you can do anything . The Lord had to rebuke him for his lack of faith (Mark 9:23). The fathers confession that followed is one of my favorite verses in the Bible I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief (Mark 9:24). We cant enhance our faith (Luke 17:5). Only the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:9) can impart to us the same faith that the Lord Jesus had in God the Father. Our jobs to walk in that faith without wavering (James 1:6-8).
To summarize friends, we may have been insulting God by limiting the working of His power in our lives. Often its easy for us to believe for the big things like healing or a job, but its the little things like going over to the next pew at church to introduce ourselves to a stranger that paralyze us with fear (Im quoting this from my own experience saints). Lets unshackle the Holy Spirit in us that He may be truly free to work Gods will and purpose for us and through us. Amen.
Saints, m[FONT="]y intention in this writing was only to illustrate some concepts and not incriminate anybody in anyway. I apologize if some or all of this content offended you in anyway, as my intention was quite the opposite.[/FONT]
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[FONT="]Dear friends, Im quite certain that all of you are sanctified, Holy Ghost baptized saints. Should there be any amongst you that dont know the Lord yet, I pray that the Lord of the Universe will set you free from sin and disobedience into His glorious light and freedom. Amen.[/FONT]
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[FONT="]PS: Thanks for taking the time to read my scribble saints. If you find a lot of similarities between this writing and those of Rev. Oswald Chambers, thats because the late Rev. Chambers is my mentor. Dear friends, please forgive me if I dont respond to your mails and debates. Im a full time college professor and havent the time to debate (that and Im not very good at it.) All things are possible for him who believes . (Mark 9:23). Amen.[/FONT]
Id like for us to turn to the parable of the rich young ruler (Mark 10:17-27). All of us are familiar with this narrative, but today Id like to put a different spin on this parable. The Lord Jesus instructed the rich young man to sell everything he had and to become His disciple. We also know that the young ruler was unwilling to part with his wealth and left dejected. The Lord Jesus then commented as to how difficult it was for the rich to enter Gods kingdom. But had the young man abandoned everything he had to follow the Lord, would that have guaranteed his salvation? Does giving up our worldly wealth insure Gods love in our hearts? I doubt that because the Apostle Paul clearly mentioned that sacrifice isnt an indicator of agape love (1 Corinthians 13:3).
Whats more interesting is that the disciples understood this to mean that if rich people couldnt be saved, then no one would be saved. They seem to have unknowingly insulted God (the way we sometimes do) by interpreting salvation as something that needed to be earned. We need to understand that salvation is Gods idea and the gift of repentance also comes from God (2 Corinthians 7:10). Often when we say sorry we may not actually feel that remorse in our spirits. Thats one of the reasons why the Lord Jesus had to rebuke the Apostle Peter three times (John 21:15-17). It was only at the third rebuke that Peter was hurt. Peter was sorry the first two times, but he was penitent or hurt at the third rebuke.
The disciples ignorance was further displayed when they exclaimed who then can be saved? What they didnt realize was that God recreates or regenerates our hearts by His Holy Spirit (Ezekiel 36:26) during salvation. So its not just the rich that are impossible to be saved, every single of us needs a new heart from the Holy Spirit. Thats what the Lord indicated when he said, Whats impossible with man is possible with God?
Lets look at another example in the Bible where some of the Lords beloved disciples insulted Him by assuming that things had progressed even beyond His reach. Lets turn to John 11 which is the story of the Lord raising Lazarus from the dead. Mary had faith when she remarked that her brother wouldnt have died had the Lord been with them (John 11:32). But she couldnt visualize Gods grand scheme of demonstrating His power over death (John 11:41-44) by allowing Lazarus to die (as a by note, Lazarus had to later die of old age in the natural scheme of things). On the contrary, Martha displayed a total lack of faith (John 11:40) when the Lord commanded that the stone guarding the tombs entrance be rolled away (John 11:38). The Lord Jesus had to again remind her that nothing is beyond Gods control when He rebuked her (John 11:40).
A similar encounter is narrated in the Bible when the father of a boy seized by evil spirits approached the Lord Jesus for healing his son (Mark 9:14-27). In Mark 9:21 the boys father was reverent, but doubted the Lords ability when he remarked if you can do anything . The Lord had to rebuke him for his lack of faith (Mark 9:23). The fathers confession that followed is one of my favorite verses in the Bible I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief (Mark 9:24). We cant enhance our faith (Luke 17:5). Only the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:9) can impart to us the same faith that the Lord Jesus had in God the Father. Our jobs to walk in that faith without wavering (James 1:6-8).
To summarize friends, we may have been insulting God by limiting the working of His power in our lives. Often its easy for us to believe for the big things like healing or a job, but its the little things like going over to the next pew at church to introduce ourselves to a stranger that paralyze us with fear (Im quoting this from my own experience saints). Lets unshackle the Holy Spirit in us that He may be truly free to work Gods will and purpose for us and through us. Amen.
Saints, m[FONT="]y intention in this writing was only to illustrate some concepts and not incriminate anybody in anyway. I apologize if some or all of this content offended you in anyway, as my intention was quite the opposite.[/FONT]
[FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Dear friends, Im quite certain that all of you are sanctified, Holy Ghost baptized saints. Should there be any amongst you that dont know the Lord yet, I pray that the Lord of the Universe will set you free from sin and disobedience into His glorious light and freedom. Amen.[/FONT]
[FONT="]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]PS: Thanks for taking the time to read my scribble saints. If you find a lot of similarities between this writing and those of Rev. Oswald Chambers, thats because the late Rev. Chambers is my mentor. Dear friends, please forgive me if I dont respond to your mails and debates. Im a full time college professor and havent the time to debate (that and Im not very good at it.) All things are possible for him who believes . (Mark 9:23). Amen.[/FONT]