Choices ~ Rabqa

Today we are going to be looking at choices & will continue to

do so for the next week or so.


Everything we do begins with a choice. You choose what to eat for breakfast, you chose your job, you chose your friends & even your spouse. But ultimately, you & I have a choice to either live for God or not. That is called free will, that means freedom to choose, which is an amazing gift from God which He gives to all of us.


Sometimes it's easy to forget just how wonderful the gift of free choice really is. If God wanted to force us to love Him, He could. If He wanted to make us choose right all the time, He most certainly could do that too. But He won't; God will never interfere with the freedom of choice. This is because it would go against everything He is—a Father motivated by love.


I would like to say that God's love is the dominant power in all activity & enterprise. So even though God never forces us to do the right thing, He's always there urging us to make decisions that would bless us & honour Him.


Deut 30:19 Here God is presenting a choice to the people of Israel He says, "I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live";


What God is saying, when He says "I have set before you life & death, blessings & curses", He is showing us that life goes with the blessing & death goes with the cursing. He is presenting us with the choice & leaves it up to us.


Then comes the word "therefore". That is where He tells us what we should choose. Remember that God doesn't make us choose life—He knows that life is all about choice. Now when we choose to seek His best, He is faithful to show us the right choice—the choice that brings His blessing not only to us, but also to our children, our children's children & our children's, children children!


If today you need to make a choice about something, maybe you have problems in your body, choose to believe that by Jesus stripes you are healed (Isa 53:5). If you are having financial problems, choose to believe that God will supply all you need (Phil 4:19). Whatever it may be choose life.


Matt 16:25 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.

Understand & accept that discipleship means forsaking all selfish & personal ambition. With Jesus, righteousness no longer consists in observance of an external code. Jesus defines it as an apprenticeship to Himself as Master & Teacher. through the Holy spirit.

Righteousness is now defined by the Person of Jesus & not by the law. This Person who is righteous requires our loyalty which is true discipleship & that means total commitment without distraction or compromise. What do you choose? the high life or the low life, which is God's kind of life or the worlds kind of life. You can't have it all, that is to say you can not have your cake & eat it, you have to choose.

Now you may try & put off that choice. You may try to hang on to the low life while reaching for the high life at the same time, so you can see if it is something you really want before you give up everything the world has to offer. But believe methat is not possible. You will never be able to sample the high life for yourself till you are willing to take God at His Word & trust Him to take care of you. You are probably wondering what will happen if you that. The answer is that you will start to live the life God wants you to live described in Paslm 1:3&4 They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither,& they shall prosper in all they do.

These verses promise prosperity to those who delight in God's law that is His precepts & instructions & all who meditate on His Word day & night. In other words those who give God & His Word first place. The stronger the winds blows, the more you will bend in the breeze. Depression & inflation will not be able to break you. When the rains stop coming & everyone else is withering away, you will just keep on thriving & bearing the fruit of the Spirit because you are drawing nourishment from the river bed!

That is what the high life is like & there is nothing the world has to offer that can even compare. I know this from experience, & so will you once you dare to let go & trust God.

The Word mediate in the Hebrew is hagah & it means to reflect, to moan, to mutter, to ponder, to make quiet such as sighing; to mediate contemplate something as one repeats the words. Hagah represents something quite unlike the English "meditation" which may be a mental exercise only. In Hebrew thought, to meditate upon the Scriptures is to quietly repeat them in a soft droning sound, while utterly abandoning all outside distractions.

From this tradition comes a specialised type of Jewish prayer called davening that is reciting texts, praying intense prayers or getting lost in communication with God while blowing or rocking back & forth. Evidently this dynamic form of meditation – prayer goes back to David's time.

We learn in Matthew 16: 13-20 that we can hear from God, that is our spirit is tuned in to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. These verses tell us in Caesarea Philippi, a stronghold of the ancient demon—gods of Syria, Greece & Rome, where Jesus deliberately set Himself against the background of the worlds religions' of error & confusion; & here He inquired of His disciples about His identity. Peter's answer "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God". (v16)Which is set apart from beyond human reason, as Jesus said that He had heard from God (v17)

 Jesus emphasised that His church would always lead based not on man's ability to reason things out but would need to be receptive to hear from God through revelation knowledge which means the things God unfolds to you by the work of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 16:19 says that we can have authority as believers to bring heaven's will to earth by acting in partnership with God. He is in heaven, & we are on earth. Because His Spirit is in us, & because we have His Word, we can know what His will is. We have authority on earth to bring heaven's will into action. What God binds or looses in heave is what He allows or disallows is all we can allow or disallow on earth.

Matt 18:16 But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established Jesus shows in verses 15-20 the proper
procedure for disciplining an erring brother. Three steps are specified (1) In private, (2) with witnesses & (3) before the church.

When another Christian wrongs or offends you, your first inclination maybe to run & tell someone about it or to let your anger or hurt build up inside of you, however Jesus teaches the correct & appropriate method for bring correction & reconciliation.

The next time you are hurt or wronged by another believer, remember what Jesus taught. You may have been there many times standing in the valley of decision perched somewhere between victory & defeat. On one side of you is the word of the world authored by satan that says for example "you are not going to be healed". On the other side of you is the Word of God saying "My Word is Yes & Amen & "by His stripes you are healed". Only you will determine how it will turn out.

You might meet some one who wants you to pray for him, so you say to him the Word of God says you are healed, but he interrupts & says "Yeah I know but I have this terrible pain here..." You look him in the eye & again say "By His
stripes you are healed". I know he answers but I have this terrible pain... You shake your head & say "Listen the Word says you are healed!" Now he turns as red as a beetroot & says I KNOW BUT I HAVE THIS... Finally he stops & stares at you. He didn't realise it, but he had allowed his physical symptoms to become his evidence. It was what he believed. No matter what the Word said, he believed the thing he could see & feel. You wait for him to calm down & become quite & tell him that he is wanting you to agree with him, but you wont, you tell him that he needs to agree with you & the Bible that he will be healed. Now he gets it, his eyes light up, oh WOW praise the Lord I see what mean, yes I will agree with what the Word of God says. So you lay hands on him expecting God for a miracle You must decide to get into agreement with God, you can receive your healing anywhere, in your bedroom, driving down the road, just anywhere.

Decide to believe in God's Word. When you pray not doubting in your in your heart but believing what you say will take place, it will be done for you (Mark 11:23) Rom 8:6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. When condemnation comes against you, be encouraged quote Romans 8:1 as a weapon which says There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. Remind satan & yourself that you do not walk after the flesh but after the Spirit. Walking after the flesh is depending on yourself; walking after the Spirit is depending on God. If you fail that does not mean that you are a failure. It simply means that you do not do everything right. We all have to except the fact that we have strength along with weakness.

Let Christ be strong in your weakness; let Him be your strength on your weak days. If you are waiting for victory in an area & you have not seen it, rather then feeling commended about it, be patient. Refuse to accept receive condemnation; walk in the Spirit. If you were given the choice between life & death which would you choose? The answer seems obvious. But in reality it is not. You see choosing death does not mean jumping of the nearest cliff. It is much more subtle then that. The Bible says death is being carnally minded, being entangled in this present worldly realm. The Bible also tells us what life is in Proverbs 4:20-22 My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart; For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh. To be worldly minded is death, to be Word minded is life.

In Luke 10 there is a story that illustrates this principal extremely well. It is the story of Martha & Mary. You will probably remember it was Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus listening to Him teach while Martha was busy in the kitchen cooking dinner for all of them. Finally Martha had had enough & said "Lord don't you care that my sister has left me to do all the work myself? Tell her to help me"! Jesus answered, "Martha, Martha you are worried & troubled about many things, But one thing is needed & Mary has chosen the good part Which will not be taken from her" (Lk 10:41-42).

Mary had set everything aside so she could hear the Word. But Martha had let the seemingly important business of living take priority over the Word. She had chosen death not life. you see how easy it is to slip in to. but you may say if I didn't spend all my time taking care of the business of living my life would fall apart. Martha probably thought that too. She probably thought that if she didn't cook dinner they would all go hungry. But they wouldn't have Jesus had miraculously fed multitudes before & He could have done it again in Martha's home. She too could have sat down at Jesus' feet & they could have had a banquet at God's expense. Don't make the mistake that Martha did.

Don't get so entangled in the business of living that you choose death by default. Decide to put the Word first & choose life. When the deceiver speaks to us, he cannot give peace. When we try to solve things with our own reasoning, we cannot find peace, because according to Romans 8:6, the mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Holy Spirit is life & peace. If you have to make a decision, lay it on the "peace scale" & do not proceed if peace cannot hold its weight against the guidance you have heard. You do not have to explain to others why you do not have peace about it; sometimes you will not know why yourself.

 You can simply say "It is not wise for me to do this because I don't have peace about it." Even when you believe God has spoken to you, you should wait to act until peace fills your soul before you do what He has instructed you to do. In this way you are sure that your timing is right. Let your emotions subside & then decide. Because if we wait for God's true peace, we will be obedient with faith. Peace is true confirmation that we are hearing from God. Romans 8:6-14 teaches us to understand the difference between following our fleshly desires & allowing God's Spirit to lead us. Any time our flesh wants to do one thing & the Spirit of God wants us do do something else, by choosing to follow the Spirit of God we need to know that our flesh will suffer.

We of course do not like that, but the Bible says that if we want share Christ's glory then we have to be willing to share His suffering. (1Peter 4:13) I would like to encourage those who are just beginning to walk with God that once the fleshly appetite is no longer in control, you will get to the point where it is easier to obey God.

Even if obedience is difficult you will get to a place where you actually enjoy doing it. So if you are new to the Christian faith be encouraged. Remember Even when you believe God has spoken to you, you should wait to act until peace fills your soul before you do what He has instructed you to do. In this way you are sure that your timing is right.

Acknowledgement Kenneth Copeland.

The Spirit & Communion ~ Ganeida

Last time we looked at the role the Holy Spirit plays in

our salvation but this is a communion week & so I want to discuss with you the role the Holy Spirit plays in communion.

The scripture I would like to start with is 1st Corinthians 11:26~ 30

For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.

So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.

That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honouring the body of Christ, you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself.

 That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died.

The bible has a lot to say about examining ourselves.  

Psalm 139 concludes with these verses:

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.
 Point out anything in me that offends you,
    and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

Many people consider that the only examining we need to do is from 1 John 1:9

But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness…

It is true that we are to examine our lives & eradicate all sin but our self-examination is to include much more than that.

2 Corinthians 13:5

Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you--unless indeed you fail the test?

And Galatians 6:4~

But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another.

So we have 3 areas wherein we are asked to examine ourselves:

·      To see if we harbour sin in our lives

·      To see if we are indeed in the Faith

·      Our own work

The first one is to examine ourselves to see if we are in the Faith.  It is impossible to examine the other 2 areas correctly if we get this one wrong.

Romans 8:16 informs us that the Holy Spirit will bear witness with our own Spirit that we are indeed God’s. The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God…

Those who are God’s have His Spirit as promised in John 14:17~

He is the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot receive Him. It does not see Him or know Him. You know Him because He lives with you and will be in you.

Then 1 Corinthians 3:16~17 expands on this:

 Don’t you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

This is a good translation as it highlights the use of the Greek plural for you ~ meaning the ecclesia is the body & when we come together as the Church the Holy Spirit abides with us.

It is important to recognise that the body Paul refers to in 1^st Corinthians has 2 aspects.  There is the remembrance of the body of Christ, broken for us, that our sin might be removed, beaten for us that we might be healed of our sicknesses.  Then there is the body of Christ, which is the body of believers when we come together.

There is to be unity in the body when we come together. Ephesians 4:3 Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. 2^nd Corinthians 13:14 calls this the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.

There is only one body, only one Spirit [Ephesians 4:4~6] & it is His fellowship we are to seek in, with, & through other believers because it is His primary job to magnify the Lord Jesus Christ to us.

Well, you say, how come there are so many different denominations?  How come there is not just one Church?

Because not everyone gives the Holy Spirit His place in their Lives & allows Him to do His work. It is the Holy Spirit who brings unity.  It is the Holy Spirit who brings fellowship.

Galatians 1 expresses it like this:

I am shocked that you are turning away so soon from God, who called you to himself through the loving mercy of Christ. You are following a different way that pretends to be the Good News but is not the Good News at all. You are being fooled by those who deliberately twist the truth concerning Christ. Let God's curse fall on anyone, including us or even an angel from heaven, who preaches a different kind of Good News than the one we preached to you.

And 2^nd Corinthians 11:4 says this:

You happily put up with whatever anyone tells you, even if they preach a different Jesus than the one we preach, or a different kind of Spirit than the one you received, or a different kind of gospel than the one you believed.

The only one who can guide you through this maze is the Holy Spirit.  He is called the Spirit of Truth & will lead you into all Truth.  John 16:13

So our self~examination considers firstly our relationship with God & secondly our relationship with our Church.  We are to examine both & get ourselves sorted out before we come to communion because, as Jesus Himself pointed out, there are just 2 commandments:  Love God, love your neighbour.  Everything else hangs on these 2 commandments.  I don’t have time or space to go into exactly what God means when He uses the word *love*; suffice to say it doesn’t mean what we generally think it means.

Our behaviour & our Faith is to be motivated from our relationship with Jesus.  If we only look at works it is easy to become trapped in legalism, meaning we do the *right* thing but we don’t really know & love the saviour.  Our whole relationship with Christ is based on Faith ~ a trust that what He has said concerning us is indeed true. Both love & faith come through the empowering of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 5:5 For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. & Romans 12:3 God has distributed to each of you a measure of faith.

If we have taken care of the first thing then we will have taken care of much of the sin in our lives because we will have aligned our lives up with the will of God.

In the same way Galatians 6:4 exhorts us to see if we are doing the very best we can.  This prevents comparisons with others.  Are we doing what God has asked us to do?  It does not matter what our neighbour is doing or what some other church is doing.  We have not been asked to do what they are doing so it is irrelevant to us.  We are to keep our focus on what the Holy Spirit is saying to us, how the Holy Spirit is leading us.

Jesus made this abundantly clear when Peter wanted to stick his nose in John’s business [John 21:22] ‘…what is that to you? You follow Me!”   

2 Thessalonians & 1 Timothy also stress minding our own business for how can we be about about what the Lord wants of us if we are meddling in someone else’s business.

Only having done this are we prepared to approach communion. Now you may have heard us say something like, if you are in need… of healing or restoration or the salvation of a loved one, bring it to the cross during communion & find that which you need.  You can only actually do that if you have relationship, faith & the fellowship of the Holy Spirit or it is going to seem like utter nonsense to you.

Communion is much more than simple remembrance or a religious ritual. We have said that when the Body of believers comes together the Holy Spirit is manifest.  Jesus said, For where two or three gather together as my followers, I am there among them."  Matthew 18:20 So, Jesus is present. The Holy Spirit is present.  Now listen carefully.

If you go the gospel of John & open it to chapters 14, 16,17 you will find John talking about the work of the Holy Spirit. It’s His job description.

15:26 says He testifies of Christ

“But I will send you the Advocate^{[ ~}the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me.

He glorifies Jesus.

16:16 He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me.

He helps us discern the Truth.

16:13  When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth.

He is our teacher.

14:26 But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.

God has made it very easy for us. The elements of Communion help us.  The bread is unleavened & striped & pierced; We recall : This is my body which is broken for you… because  he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.

We take the cup, the last cup of Passover, the cup of the kingdom & we remember this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many… & we look forward to the promise of His return because there is a celebration that will happen in heaven at the marriage feast of the lamb when all of the redeemed celebrate what Jesus has done for them & in them & on that day Jesus will celebrate with His glorified church. Until then He does not partake.

In every & all aspects of our Christian walk we need the empowering of the Holy Spirit.  Without His revelation a lot that is in the bible will not make a lot of sense to us & a lot of what we are asked to do will be impossible.  Faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ, that is represented in Communion, is His work also.  He will bring to vivid life the reality & the Truth ~ & reveal the glory of Christ to our darkened minds & hearts.

Guest Speaker ~ Missionary to Chile.

 Elizabeth is one of 3 missionaries we support as a church. She has worked in Chile for the past 5 years ministering to disadvantaged children who, for one reason or another, find themselves in the care of the State: the 5% taken out of poverty, the 18% suffering from parental neglect, the 32% at risk of physical or psychological abuse and the 45% who have been sexually abused. 

 The work includes getting access to the Children's Homes [Residencies of Protection] & implementing their RUBI program. RUBI is an acronym for Resturacion [restoration], Uncion [anointing], Brillar [shine], Identidad [identity] found in Jesus Christ.

Chile has a rigid class system.  Children in care are considered the least of the least.  They have little hope & few diversions.  The RUBI team works to help them understand Jesus is always there for them, loves them & wishes to help them in their trouble.  As part of their mission they build relationships through music, crafts, cooking, play & Prayer.

 We were blessed to hear Elizabeth speak passionately & eloquently about her work & to investigate the *Chile Station* she set up.  Many thanks Elizabeth.  It is an honour & a privilege to support your work.

The Holy Spirit & Salvation. ~ Ganeida

When Jesus was preparing to return to the Father, He made a promise to his disciples that He would not
 abandon them as orphans~ He would come to them. [John 14:18] That promise has been kept in the person of the Holy Spirit & it is of the Holy Spirit I wish to speak to you today.

The Holy Spirit is the identifying mark of the Christian.  Ephesians 4:30 says And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, by whom you are sealed unto the day of redemption.  It is a very comforting verse to many Christians.  We think it is about us.  It is not.  It is about Jesus. Here is why:

In 1 Corinthians 6:9 Paul tells us we are not our own ~ we have been bought with a price.  Sphragizō, is to seal, or to brand.  It is a mark of ownership. A seal was how you might mark those goods that belonged to you on a trading ship or authenticate a letter; a brand was how you marked your slaves.  The NLT puts it like this: And do not bring sorrow to God's Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.

So when Paul says we have been sealed it is his way of telling us it is Jesus way of marking His possessions ~ a bit like putting a name tag on a jacket. People read the tag & go, Oh, that belongs to so & so… Romans 8:9 makes it very clear: And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all… Jesus looks for the Holy Spirit in you because that is His mark of ownership.  No Holy Spirit, not His.

Jesus said: My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. [John 10:27]

Only those who have Christ’s Holy Spirit living in them belong to Him.  Only those who have the Holy Spirit are truly capable of hearing Christ’s voice & obeying His instructions.  It does not matter how often you go to church [though that is a good thing] or how many good things you do in this life, if you do not have God’s Spirit within you, you do not belong to Him & you are not saved.

If you have God’s Spirit you will do those things that He requires of you ~ & make no mistake; He requires plenty of us! But the doing is not a guarantee of salvation.

Without the Holy Spirit’s guidance & power it is actually impossible to be a Christian. Romans 8:5 tells us The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace,… It is the Holy Spirit who brings the New Life, the New Creation, the ability to understand spiritual truths, the ability & power to actually do those good works that God Himself has prepared for us to do.

Actually, it is impossible to even be saved without the Holy Spirit because one of His jobs is to convict the world of its sin: John 16:7/8 But I tell you the truth, it is for your benefit that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God's righteousness, and of the coming judgment.

 A person who is convinced they are not in error will not change unless convicted otherwise. The very first step for salvation is the convicting work of the Holy Spirit who convinces us that there is such a thing as sin & we live it! Only then can God move to bring us into a state of repentance & reconciliation.

 Have you ever heard someone say, Well, I’ve read the bible & it’s just been written by a bunch of old men… They don’t understand it.  They can’t.  The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.[ 1 Cor 2:14].  

With no Holy Spirit within them to make things clear & bring revelation real understanding eludes them because one of the names of the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth.  In this capacity He helps us discern what is true from what is false in Spiritual matters.  He helps us understand how spiritual things work.  He helps us discern heresy from sound doctrine. He helps us know if our government is righteous or leading the people into sin. John 14:26 says: But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and remind you of everything that I have told you.

You see there are 2 worlds.  There is this world that you can see all about you but there is the other, unseen world that seeks to overthrow the authority of God.  We are involved in a war & in any war it is necessary to know who is on which side, who your enemies are & to be on the lookout for spies who may have infiltrated your camp.  The Holy Spirit is how the Spiritual, the angel & demon forces, tell which side you are on.  They actually have a much better idea of our spiritual standing than we do!

1Cor 2:14

Nevertheless, God's firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: "The Lord knows those who are His," and, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord must turn away from iniquity."

I John 3:9 says it this way: No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. The Greek word used for sin here is hamartanō, meaning to miss the mark or be in error.  So those who are born of the Spirit do not continue in error.

The Spirit of God & the Word of God will always agree & this agreement is one way we can discern truth from error.  The word will never say one thing & God’s Spirit another. Jesus understood that a house divided against itself cannot stand [Mark 3:25] because there is a biblical principle that every matter must be established by two or three witnesses [2Corinthians 3:1] & [Deuteronomy 19:15].  So the Word & Spirit will be 2 witnesses in agreement.  This prevents *flaky Christianity*. You need never listen to someone who is running around saying… God said…if that something is not supported by scripture.

Salvation is easy. Romans 10:9~10 says  if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with your heart you believe and are justified, and with your mouth you confess and are saved.…

Salvation is through the shed blood Jesus Christ as atonement for our sin but sanctification is through the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Again the worth for believe is pisteuō ~ Faith in what one cannot see, a conviction that what is promised by scripture has been accomplished in your life.

The test of salvation is the manifestation of the work of the Holy Spirit in your life.  The Holy Spirit brings repentance.  He will convict you of sin.  You will have an aversion to the sinful things that once attracted you & you enjoyed because now the Holy Spirit of God lives in you & wants to lead you in holiness & righteousness that is pleasing unto God.  He does not condemn you.  That is the work of satan wanting to drag up your past & hold you in bondage to it. No!  The Holy Spirit sets you free from your past & wants to set you free to walk according to God’s law of love.

Then the Holy Spirit will manifest Himself to you in 2 ways. 1 Corinthians 12:4 ~6 says He gives gifts: ⁴ There are different kinds of gifts. But they are all given to believers by the same Spirit. ⁵ There are different ways to serve. But they all come from the same Lord. ⁶ There are different ways the Spirit works. But the same God is working in all these ways and in all people.

Then He will also produce fruit in your life: Galatians5:22/23~

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no Law.

However there is a warning;  Isaiah 57:16 says: For I will not fight against you forever; I will not always be angry. If I were, all people would pass away~all the souls I have made. There is a limit to the opportunity God provides.

1 John 2:17 tells us: The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. 

A day will come when there will be an end.  There will be no further opportunity given for coming into God’s kingdom. Some will die.  Some will be here when Christ returns.  Either way,  No further opportunity will be offered to know God the Father, His son, Jesus Christ, or to be sealed with the Holy Spirit. Jesus gives the strongest possible warning in Matthew 12:32:

Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the one to come.

The Holy Spirit’s primary job is to point to Jesus Christ & his work of salvation.  To slander Him is to attribute His work, His miracles, His person to the demonic.  It is to completely reject the atoning work of Christ that the Holy Spirit strives to draw men’s attention to. Broadly it is to consistently love evil in preference to good & to choose wickedness over righteousness. This is to put oneself beyond any possibility of salvation & it grieves the Holy Spirit.  It grieves him because God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. This is a well known & beloved verse ~ so well known & so loved we rarely move beyond it but Jesus said something more.

God loved us enough to sacrifice His son in the most terrible of ways just so we could fellowship with Him forever. Verse17 goes on to say: God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.

18 There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son.

There’s the crunch.  Rejection of Christ brings one under judgement & condemnation ~ the very thing Christ died to prevent & the Holy Spirit works to highlight.

 19And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. 20 All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. 21 But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.”

To love our sin more than God’s holiness is to reject all that the Holy Spirit offers us. Is fear of exposure keeping you from God? He already knows it all.  Is the Holy Spirit calling your name today?  Is He inviting you to get to know Him as the very Spirit of God eager to make you His sanctuary & show you how to be washed in the blood of Jesus & sealed unto the day of Redemption?

Hebrews 3:15

Remember what it says: "Today when you hear his voice, don't harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled."  Rather heed His call & enter into the Love of God where there is no more condemnation but the promise of full restoration for your spirit, body & mind.

The Authority of the Believer [Final] ~ Rabqa

Today brings us to the last in the series of the authority of the

believer, I am going to end this with mostly, which have helped me, but not only that they have changed my life.


1 Thes 5:23 Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes again.

You say: I am a spirit, I live in a body & I have a soul. (which is the area of the mind).


Many people do not understand that we are a tri-part being: spirit, soul & body. To go over what I have said before - we are a spirit, we have a soul composed of our mind will & emotions & we live in a body.


Our new birth begins in our spirit, it is carried out through our soul, & finally visible to other people through a demonstration of God's glory in our physical lives.

Many Christians make the mistake of thinking that God only cares about the spirit, but He wants us to be whole in body & soul too.


2Cor 4:16 That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day.

You say: Though my outward man is perishing, yet my inward man is being renewed day by day.


Do not loose heart because of faith in the future resurrection & because of the present experience of God's renewing power.

Rom 10:17 (one of my favourite verses) So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.


You say: My words are life & health to me because they are God's words, my words are faith & victory.


When the word is heard faith is imparted to hear it. Once we have heard the Word & believe it we should continue believing. God invites us to live from faith to faith. As believers one of our most important jobs is simply to believe. Jesus said, "Believe & rely on Me, & you will see the glory of God". (JN 11:40).

Phil 4:13 For I can do everything through Christ,
who gives me strength.


You say: I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.

This verse is frequently quoted, but often taken out of context. It does not mean that I can do anything I want to do, nor does it mean I can do anything that someone else does. But it means that I can do anything that God assigns me.


This understanding has helped me a great deal in my personal life to deal with difficulties & still remain positive, & it helps in my ministry it teaches me to do remain within the boundaries of what the Lord has called & equipped me to do & not to try to undertake things that are not within my God-given abilities & talents. This attitude takes the pressure off & will do the same for you.


Pro 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit


You say: I am bold, I am courageous, I am more than a conqueror & an overcomer.


This verse teaches us that words are containers for power; they carry either a life giving force or a
destruction force.


We have heard the phrase " you are going to have to eat your words". This proverb confirms this truth. The words we speak have power to influence our lives. In fact you may be eating your words right now, & that may be why you are not happy with your life. Your mouth may be getting you into trouble with yourself.


Rom 8:2 And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.


You say: I am free from the law of sin & death. Jesus has made me free.


The Holy Spirit carries out in our life the breaking of dominion of the old law or principle of sin & death.


Ps 91:16 I will reward them with a long life and give them my salvation.”


You say: I have long life & God's salvation.

Isa 26:3 You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you.

You say: My mind is stayed on the Word & is in perfect peace.

This verse promises that God will keep us in perfect & constant peace when our minds are fixed on Him. If you are anxious or worried today, then turn your thoughts to towards Him so you will experience His perfect peace.


1Corn 2:16 Who can know the LORD’s thoughts? Who knows enough to teach him? But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.


You say: I have the mind of Christ.


Recognise that the natural mind cannot understand or receive from the Holy spirit. Know that only the spiritual alive can discern spiritual wisdom.


Rom 12:2 Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.


You say: I am transformed by the renewing of my
mind.


This verse informs us that God has plan in mind for us. His will is good & acceptable & perfect, but we must completely renew our minds before we experience the good things that God has planned. We renew our minds, new attitudes & new ideals by studying God's Word. His Word is truth (Jn 17:7)


Phil 4:8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honourable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.


You say: I think on true things, pure things, holy things, things that are honourable, I think on God's Word. His promises are mine.


Do you ever think about what you are thinking about? If you are not careful your thought life can lead you into problems. It is important to think before you act. & if you think of things that are true, worthy of reverence & honourable, just, pure, lovely & admirable your actions will reflect god's heart.


Jn 1:12-13 But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God

You say: I am born of God.


The new birth does not come through physical descent, human effort or human volition, but by the power of God.


2 Corn 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.


You say: I am a new creation in Christ. My past is wiped out. It's gone. Jesus has taken it.


As a new creation, you do not have to allow the old things that happened to you in the past affect your new life in Christ. You are a new creature with a new life in Christ.


You can have your mind renewed according to the Word of God. Good things will happen to you. Rejoice! It's a new day.


1Jn 4:4 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.


You say He who is in me is greater than He who is in the world.

Be assured that victory is already yours in Christ.


Ps 103:3 Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.


You say: I satisfy my mouth with good things so that my youth is renewed like the eagle's.


Eagles have a long life they cast of their old feathers & receive new ones. We need to cast off our old habits & thoughts & receive anew from God's Word. The old will die & the new life will come.


Gal 2:20 My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.


You Say: It's not I that live, but Christ lives in me. He sees me as valuable & precious.


The believer is united by faith to Christ in His death, & has died to the old life & has risen to a new life.


Ps 46:1 God is our refuge and strength,
always ready to help in times of trouble.

You say: God you are an ever present help in the midst of trouble.


Present help means a help that has been found to be reliable, or proven to be a reliable stronghold in the past, so that any future calamity is no reason to fear.


Phil 4:19 And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

You say: My God shall supply all my needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.


Prov 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.

You say: I trust in the Lord with all & lean not on my own understanding.


Study God's Word & listen to the Holy Spirit. Believe God's prophets. Understand that theses are true sources of godly knowledge.


1Pet 5:7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

You say: I cast all my care upon Him for He cares for me.

When you cast all your care upon the Lord, you do not have to worry about anything because staying peaceful is actually proof that you have humbled yourself & that you trust God to do what needs to be done.


James 1:22 But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.

You say: I am a doer of the word, not a hearer only.


Salvation leads to service. It is self-deception to believers that God's goal for church attendance is merely to hear the Word, instead of experiencing a transformation of life that results in ministry.

Prov 4:22 For they [God's words] are life to those who find them, And healing and health to all their flesh.

The Word of God is life to me & health to all my flesh.

Remember that God is your healer He said in Exodus 15:26 I am the Lord God who heals you. He never changes He is the same yesterday today & forever.

Psalm 107: 20 He sent out his word and healed them, snatching them from the door of death.

You Say He sent His Word & healed me, & delivered me from deaths door healing belongs to me. Don't forget to thank Him that you are healed, for Your word says I am healed.

This verse implies that if we call upon the Lord with a contrite heart crying for deliverance to be healed both spiritually & physically.

Isa 55:5 But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.


You say: He was wounded for my rebellion, He was crushed for my sins, He was beaten so I could be whole, by His stripes I am healed.


Choose to believe that God's word is the most powerful word in the universe & act accordingly.


Matt 8:17 “He took our sicknesses and removed our diseases.”

You say: He took my sicknesses. Jesus took my sickness 2000 years ago for me to walk in divine health.



This fulfilled the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah,

Mk 11:23 (Another favourite) For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he
says.


You say: Sickness is the mountain. call it by name-flue, cancer, growth, back trouble or whatever it is & tell it to be removed in Jesus name!


A mountain is a symbolic problem, hindrance, or insurmountable problem. Faith is the key that releases the resources of heaven into your situation.


1Pet 2:24 ...By his wounds you are healed


You say: Sickness, you have no place in my body. The life of God is in me,His healing power is flowing through me. God's word says I am healed, so I am healed.


Peter is quoting Isaiah 53:5 to show that personal wholeness, mental psychological, spiritual & physical are yours in Jesus name.


These verses are a great help in various situations, the have helped me & countless others, & they will help you too. There are many more verses of Scripture I encourage you to seek & find them for yourself.

Speaking to Our Mountains ~ Ganeida

Many people read their bible & are no wiser

than before they started. They do not understand what they read.  This is true of Christians & non~Christians alike.  One reason for this is that Christianity has been the dominant religion of the Western world for many centuries leading many people to believe that the bible is a western book.  It is not.  It is a middle~eastern manuscript written with a middle~eastern mindset.  This should be obvious but mostly it is not.

In the same manner people will say things like:  You should only read the KJV bible. This mindset is dangerous because it leads to error.  What needs to be done is what the Bereans did: study. Why?  Because often the original language does not say what our translations say ~ regardless of which translation you use.  This is not the translators fault.  They are attempting to convey the whole meaning of the text as clearly & concisely as possible so that the whole remains readable. Then we misunderstand passages because we think like westerners.  This is not our fault.  We are what we are.  It is our fault if we are too lazy to do some basic research & correct our errors.

This is our starting point for today’s study on Speaking to our Mountains.

Our text is Mark 11:23 which says: I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, 'May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,' and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart.

Our theme is still healing though the scriptural principles can be applied to other areas of our lives.

Firstly we need to put this short passage into context.  Mark was writing to the Romans, a gentile people with little understanding of Jewish religion but a military mindset. Thus one of the consistent themes in Mark is Jesus authority & Rabqa has given us a scriptural overview of Christ’s authority & how that has been imparted to us through belief in Jesus.

 Now Jesus has come into Jerusalem for the Passover.  He has cursed a fig tree & cleansed the temple & shortly He will be arrested & crucified for the sins of the world. As they pass by the fig tree the next morning Peter comments on the fact it has indeed withered just as Jesus said.

Now watch how Jesus responds.  His first words are, “Have faith in God.”

Here is where study becomes so important.  The Greek word Jesus’ uses for faith is pisteuō. This is the exact same word Paul uses when he defines faith for us in Hebrews 11:1  Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.  

Jesus knows that the disciples are going have to believe in something they don’t understand & can’t see until the moment the Holy Spirit is imparted unto them bringing revelation. In fact Jesus reinforces the importance of that belief. The word He uses for Truth in V 23 is Amen.  We are familiar with this word as an ending to our prayers but it literally means, So be it. Faith is our So be it.

If you say to this mountain… now Jesus cannot be talking about literal mountains here because if we all went around casting mountains into the sea because they inconvenienced us we would create untold havoc: tsunamis, earthquakes, death & destruction.  In the immediate sense Jesus may have been referring to the Temple Mount, specifically the Temple itself & certainly within 70 years that Temple was no more, cast down as if it had never been. 

In the prophetic, ongoing sense, it is referring to the mountains in our lives.  None of us are immune to these mountains.  Jesus warned that in this world we would have trouble [John 16:33] As believers we have been given specific tasks to overcome that are incredibly difficult: to crucify our flesh; to deny ourselves; to take up our cross & follow Christ. These are indeed mountains for most of us & a daily exercise in putting our faith in God & the inward working of His Holy Spirit to help us move those mountains from in our    lives.

However there are other mountains most of us face on a daily basis:  money troubles; relationship difficulties; sickness. Jesus tells us in this passage to *lift them up & cast them into the sea.*

The first principle is to have faith in God but you cannot have faith unless you actually know God; know His character; know His attitude towards you; know how He thinks & acts.  How do we get this faith? Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. The bible tells us everything we need to know about God & Jesus was the Word of God made flesh in order to reveal the nature of God to us.

The 2nd principle is we are to speak but what are we to speak?  We are to speak the word of God because these are some of the things God says about his word:

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.

Psalm138:2 I bow before your holy Temple as I worship. I praise your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness; for your promises are backed by all the honour of your name.

Jeremiah 1:12 Then Yahweh said to me, "You have seen well; for I watch over my word to perform it."

Isaiah 55:11 It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.

You see God & His word are one.  When you line up the words of your mouth with God’s words you know you are praying out God’s perfect will & He will honour His word because He says He will & God is not a man that He should lie! There are promises in scripture that all believers can claim.  They belong to us.  They were given for us. 

Now don’t get muddled up.  You cannot go around declaring that it is God’s will for you to be a millionaire.  Nowhere in scripture are you going to find such nonsense. What you will find is a third principle:

Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you.

Before you can access the promises of God you must belong to Him even though in His lovingkindness & mercy He causes the rain to fall alike on the just & the unjust ~ meaning simply that there are certain blessings that are imparted indiscriminately just because God is God & He is a good God.  

Well, you might say, if God is good He wouldn’t allow…

& these days people have got lots of horrible things to choose from: paedophilia in the church, tsunamis, hurricanes, earthquakes, child abuse, domestic violence, car crashes, terrorism…. On & on it goes but I will be really clear.  God is not responsible for any of it! When people first chose to go their own way they abnegated their responsibility as guardians & protectors of God’s world & gave the rulership of this world to satan & scripture says it is satan who is the ruler of this world [John 12:31] & it is he who brings death, destruction, theft John 10:10 The thief comes only that he might steal and might kill and might destroy.  Wherever you see death & destruction you see the work of satan. 

Our world is no longer functioning in the perfect orderly way that God created it to function & you & I, each one of us both individually & corporately, bear some responsibility for that.  You cannot blame the whole shemozzle on Adam & Eve because the very first thing God gave human beings was free will. You are free to choose.  You can choose God or you can choose to believe satan’s lies & blame God for the whole sorry mess. What’s more that brings you into agreement with satan.

Which brings us to a third principle: the reign of God is within you.' Luke 17:21

Some people put their faith in Jesus to save them but they do not allow Him to reign as King in their lives. They do not understand that to continue to be as they once were is to actually be a disobedient servant rather than a son or daughter of the living God.  Sons & daughters walk by the Spirit of God. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. Romans 8:14

The Holy Spirit has a number of different functions

·       He seals us unto the day of redemption.  His presence in us is the one sure way that we are identified spiritually as belonging to Jesus Christ.  Romans 8:9 says And remember that those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to Him at all.

·      1 Corinthians 2:10 But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God's deep secrets. We need the Holy Spirit to lead us into all Truth [John 16:13] It is the Holy Spirit who empowers us to deal with our mountains, whether they are to pick up our cross, crucify our flesh, renew our minds, or walk in faith.

Now when it comes to healing we have to understand that God is our healer.  We have to have faith that not only is He able to heal but that He is willing to heal; that He actually desires to heal us.

Exodus 15:26 He said, "If you will listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in his sight, obeying his commands and keeping all his decrees, then I will not make you suffer any of the diseases I sent on the Egyptians; for I am the LORD who heals you."

When Jesus came into the world He declared that:

Luke 4:8 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free.. As you read through the gospels you see 3 things consistently.  Jesus teaches.  He preaches. He Heals

And later He says that His followers will do likewise.

John 14:12 "I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.

Lastly it is not difficult to ask God for healing. In Acts 3:6 we see how it works. Peter passes a lame man begging for alms & says simply:, "I don't have any silver or gold for you. But I'll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, get up and walk!"

Now Peter didn’t heal this man.  It was the power of the Holy Spirit working in him & that same Spirit works in every believer but notice 2 things.  Peter was very specific in his prayer. He commanded that the man walk ~ & he invoked the name of Jesus.  There is power in the name of Jesus but there is also the promise that whatever we ask for in His name will be given to us.

Perhaps you have need for Jesus’ healing power in your   life today but you don’t know Him.  I invite you to speak to someone here & we will pray for you but I am also going to pray now for those who are too shy to come forward because Jesus always honours His word & His word brings life to those who find them, and healing to their whole body. Proverbs 4:22