War Against the Soul

"Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;" I Peter 2:11

I write unto you beloved of the Lord, those of you who are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. I would like to share with you some weapons of our warfare that you may stand in battle, and be more than conquerers through Jesus Christ who is the Captain of our salvation. "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." Ephesians 2:11 We read that there is a warfare and there is a battle, yet most of us will not take up the sword, most of us dare not enter into battle, most of us are cowardly and sit back and would rather be bystanders. Here are some reasons why you must not be a bystander and why you must take up the sword and enter into battle. 1. It is your duty. 2. It is for the kingdom. 3. It is to the glory of God. Lord, grant us that we may by thy Spirit come before thy throne. Clothe us with armor, give us the helmet of Salvation, and teach us to war with the sword, empower us to stand before our enemies and grace that we fall not. Let us be soldiers of the cross and carry the banner of faith upon every mountain and down every valley. We thank you for thy work upon the Cross let us also take up the cross and offer ourselves up as living sacrifices to thy honor and for thy glory. Amen.

1. It is your duty. "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Ecclesiastes 12:13,14 What is it to believe? Belief requires obedience and where there is no obedience there is no faith. This does not mean we are perfect or will not ever sin. This means that by faith we must confess Jesus Christ before others we must be a testimony unto others. "Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God: But he that denieth me before men shall be denied before the angels of God." Luke 12:8,9 "Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels" Mark 8:38 This warfare that we fight is a warfare against sin, Christ did not die on the cross in vain. Christ died upon the cross to save people from their sins!!! There is a threefold salvation from sin. We are save from sin by 1. forgiveness of sins (Christ forgives us of all our sins past, present, and future) "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." Isaiah 1:18 2. bondage of sins(Christ removes the bondage of sin by creating a new heart in us by being born again) "But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness." Romans 6:17,18 3. penalty of sin. (Christ gives us eternal life that we should not perish in hell). "And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life: and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." I John 5:11,12 This is your call of duty to serve the son. Who has ever heard of a soldier that did not obey the generals commands, or a soldier who did not know his weapons, or a soldier that would not stand against the enemy. We should not fear for the battle is ours, Christ shall descend at the sound of the trump. When we enter battle Christ goes on before us there is a sharp sword which proceeds out of his mouth and no enemy can stand before him in the battle. His eyes are as the flaming fire and if you be not found in his army then ye shall be destroyed with an everlasting destruction for all eternity suffering the torments of hell. Look at Hitler and think one day you may meet him in eternity with all the murderers and liars. "But the fearful and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." Revelation 21:8 Dear believer do not take your duty lightly the battlefield is filled with devils who purposefully and knowingly lie wait to decieve. Lay hold on the Word of God "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." Hebrews 4:12 Trust in the LORD "The mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein. Who can stand before his indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? his fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him. The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him." Nahum 1:5,6 Be thankful unto him "Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name." Psalms 100:4 Remember every time you open the word of God, God will speak to you and teach you and guide you. Every time you open the word of God it is a time to meet with God and God meeting with you.
To be continued... 2. It is for the kingdom.

Information Generation - Regeneration a New Creation

So many of us today are caught up in a web of available information. We can get directions, we can google anything, we can pull up the web and find the latest scores, we can get the weather, any kind of information can be found if we want to find it we just look it up. But what about God, where can you go to find information about God. The simple answer is we go to God, but how should we go to God? Well, just like you go to the doctor when your sick you have to realize that this is how you must go to God. Jesus says Matthew 9:12-13 "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." You must understand that you are a sinner in need of God and without God there would be nothing you could do. You need to go to God seeking forgiveness, asking God for mercy not thinking that you are somebody and that God owes you something or that you just snap your fingers and God is there. If that is how you think - you are deluding yourself and you are worshipping the god of your imagination. Matthew 7:21-23 "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." God is all powerful he created the heavens and the earth, we should not take God lightly nor his Word. No man can help you no matter who they think they are you cannot even do it yourself only God can save you and forgive you of your sins. So what is this Regeneration New Creation thing? Regeneration is a work of God, when a sinner seeks out God in truth and repentance and falls on his knees before God to plead before him Oh Lord I am a Sinner and I can do nothing without you I need you and only you in my life I need your Word to live day by day. The Spirit of God does the work of Regeneration upon you and makes you a New Creature you are born again. God gives you a new heart, your eyes become opened, you become free from the bondage of sin, the same power that raised up Christ from the dead has now made you alive - to live for Christ, to follow his ways. Your daily food is now the Word of God, the Word of God becomes your guide and to the Regenerated New Creation it becomes more to you than silver and gold. Dont be fooled the Word of God says "Except ye be born again, ye cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3 "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him." John 3:36 Dear sinner look unto God and be saved, every one that is born is a sinner but not every one that is born will seek out God for forgiveness of their sins. I know many of you will say you believe in Christ and many of you probably do. But, have you confessed your sins to Christ and asked him to forgive you. After all it was for our sins that Christ went to the Cross, God the Father sent his only begotten into the world, the Son came and died for our sins, the Spirit comes and gives you life. Do you know the God that I am speaking about? If not, Seek Him, Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word. Open up the Bible and read it listen to what Christ says abide in me, follow me, keep my commandments, repent. If you truly seek him you will not be disappointed, Go and drink from the wells of everlasting life found in His word. "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." John 6:37 If you go to Christ he will not turn you away, but he just might break you and make you one of his own!!!! If you are sincere and honest about seeking out the Lord I recommend reading the book of John pray to God to give you understanding, believe me you will know when God gets a hold of you - When he gets a hold of you he dont let go. "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they sall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one." John 10:27-30