When not engaged directly in ministry related activities, I function in the business world as a business owner. In that capacity I am exposed to many stories of entrepreneurs who have experienced quick and impressive success - particularly financially. Every once in a while, I find myself dealing with a twinge of what I can only call jealousy.

I hesitate to call it that, because I'm not really jealous, certainly not enough to even consider changing my focus to increase my own business activity in order to generate greater wealth.  I have no interest in changing my focus.  But a twinge usually assails me, a sense of what might be possible financially if I did change my focus.  Instead of focusing the bulk of my time, talent and efforts to being the best Christian witness for Christ that I can be.

One thing I remind myself of, is that I"m not in my 20's anymore, and my need for a higher income just isn't there.  My needs are met, I have a home, comfortable furnishings, my bills are paid on time and there's some left over for being generous toward the need of others I come in contact with.

Then again this morning I read an account of another young entrepreneur who went from huge student debt to multi-millionaire in less than a year.  "Clever soul" was my first thought, and what a pleasant surprise for me that instead of the usual twinge of jealousy, I thought "I wonder if they know Jesus as their Lord and Savior?"

Two thoughts piggy-backed that thought, and a third leaped into action as well.

1. Proof I'm still growing in Christian maturity, jealousy replaced by joy
2. How wonderful to be content with what God has blessed me with
3.  I should pray the gospel is preached to that person, because that's what they need most if they don't already know Him.  (Which is in itself proof of Christian maturity, so I'm thankful for that, too!)
   

 The Apostle Paul tells us that godliness with contentment is great gain.  1Timothy 6:6

I'm really seeing the full extent of truth in that statement.  What a sense of peace is mine when I am content with what I have and not coveting what someone else has.  What joy to experience maturity in Christ in action in my life; it inspires me to continue to grow, to renew my mind to the word of God and to yield myself to the work of the Holy Spirit in me.  What a wonderful gain to my own life and heart and the people around me, since they are affected by my actions, words and heart attitudes.

Wherever you may be in your walk with Christ; just beginning, experiencing a period of great growth or struggling to move forward allow me to encourage you to KEEP GOING!

There is so much to gain and nothing worth keeping to lose when you yield, obey and grow in the grace of God.  

Please be sure to fill out the prayer request form in the upper left of the home page and we will pray for you!  If you' aren't participating in a bible study group that is digging deep into the principle's of the bible and how to apply them to your everyday life, we encourage you to seek out such a group or get one started yourself!  Need help to get started?  Contact us: turnthetideministry@gmail.com

Grace and the Rules that Conquer all

GRACE

RULES

They both have 5 letters.  They both contain the letters R and E.  You cannot get “rules” from “grace” and conversely, you cannot get “grace” from “rules”.

Yet, these two work TOGETHER, not against each other, to provide a stable, balanced walk for a believer of Jesus Christ.

We are SAVED by Grace, but the Bible says to be led by the Spirit, to walk by FAITH and not by sight.  There has been a lot of talk over the years about “grace” versus “law” and even more talk and books written about grace setting us "free" from a great many things, like our own consciousness of sin in some cases.

Let’s be clear about something.  GRACE, Gods wondrous favor is a gift we are given.  However, we are set FREE by Jesus. “He whom the Son sets free is free indeed” John 8:36 and the Son sets us free through TRUTH John 8:32 “You shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.”

Grace is not a New Testament action, discovery or circumstance that came about with the death and resurrection of our Lord.

GRACE existed and was in operation in the Old Testament:

Genesis 6:8

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

Exodus 34:9

Then he said, “If now I have found grace in Your sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray, go among us, even though we are a stiff-necked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us as Your inheritance.”

Ezra 9:8

And now for a little while grace has been shown from the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a peg in His holy place, that our God may enlighten our eyes and give us a measure of revival in our bondage.

Make no mistake about it, as Paul so aptly pointed out in Romans, GRACE is not an excuse for sin, but a reason to walk in humble obedience!

Romans 6:1-2  What shall we say then?  Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not!  How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?

Romans 8:1  There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the SPIRIT.

The grace of God, like the LOVE of God and the mercy of God is extended to us by the Lord according to His will.  It is not an “entity” that stands on its own, nor can it support any of us on its own!

We must guard against falling into the trap of taking what God so freely gives and by the sinful flesh allowing it to be twisted into something it was never meant to be. It is NOT a “right” or a “privilege” of being born again!

The walk of a believing follower of Jesus is a walk of balance.  Though it is true that we are no longer under the law, we are do have structure.  We have the commands of the Lord Jesus which we hopefully will freely choose to obey, to LOVE one another!  God gives us the tools to succeed –

• the measure of FAITH
• His GRACE
• His LOVE
• The POWER of His Holy Spirit

All these together comprise the balanced, faithful, grace filled life of those SAVED and SANCTIFIED by Christ Jesus the Lord.   We cannot take one tool from the belt of this balanced life of a believer and build an entire religion around it. 

Think about it, meditate on this truth!  You are indeed saved by grace and not of works, it is the GIFT of God!  

Thankfully it is not the only gift our gracious Lord has given.  It is not even the most important gift He has given.  

All Gods gifts are great and powerful and all work together in the life of His obedient child.  He provides a full array of all we need to walk successfully before Him through Christ Jesus our Lord, where our strength resides, and without Whom, we can do NOTHING!

Now may the GRACE of God keep you according to His will, and may the mercy of God deliver you from all temptations, that you may walk worthy of the calling with which you have been called!  (Ephesians 4) 

Once a day, every day, all day long

My Dad used to say the sweetest things, to let me know he cared about me and was thinking of me.
He'd tell me he always thought of me once a day, every day, all day long.
I never doubted that he loved me.

Our decision to trust and obey God works like that.  We don't make it once, one time and it stays in place forever.  Our flesh is too fickle for such an easy way as that.

It is a decision we must make daily.

Once a day, every day, all day long; we need to choose to yield to the Holy Spirit.

Once a day, every day, all day long; we must decide we will obey the commands we were given.  To love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength.  And to love our neighbors as ourselves.

Many of us think we have the "Love God" part down really well, even if we do struggle with the "love the neighbors" part.

God says if we aren't loving the neighbors, we aren't loving Him.

1 John 4:20

If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?

Jesus put it clearly as well.  

John 14:21

He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.

To love is to forgive, show mercy, encourage and think the best of others.

Love God today.  You'll be amazed at the results.  He promises!

Kicking against the goads and overcoming SIN

Once upon a time, Paul the Apostle was Saul.  Saul was a devout Jew, who was born into the religious elite, grew up scholarly under the much hailed Gamaliel and was zealous, scripture tells us, for the religious laws of God as they had been taught and exampled to him.

ZEALOUS: fervent,   ardent,  fervid,   fanatical,   passionate,   impassioned,   devout,  devoted.  committed,   dedicated,   hard-core,   enthusiastic, eager,   keen,  avid,    card-carrying,   vigorous,   energetic,   intense,   fierce;

Personally, I really like that last one.  Fierce - ferocious aggressiveness.

That really describes who and what Saul was as he pursued what he thought he knew about the things of God.

Then he went up against Jesus.  Can you even IMAGINE trying to go up against GOD?

Job 9:4  God is wise in heart and mighty in strength.  Who has hardened himself against Him and prospered?

SHORT ANSWER:  NO  ONE !

Job 9 was part of our daily reading this week.  When you read that verse, did it give you reason to pause?  It did me.  I’ve been chewing on it, like Jack chews the bones I give him, all the rest of this week.  I found myself thinking “Now who would even try to go against God?” 

My own heart trusts and believes, so I cannot even conceive of one going against the Lord.

Then I thought of Lucifer, originally the angel of light.  He went against God and was cast out of heaven.  Now he is known as satan, the enemy of God, with a very bleak future, a very fiery eternity to look forward to.

And I thought of Saul who would later be renamed Paul.  He went against God, when he failed to recognize Jesus as the Messiah.  And then he began to persecute Gods people.  Jesus stopped him cold in his tracks when he was on his way to Damascus to kill more Christians.  Struck him blind – or rather, allowed Saul to experience in the flesh the blindness he already really had in the Spirit – and asked him plainly “why are you persecuting ME, Saul?  It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”  (you can look up what that means, it’s a great lesson in humility and discipline!)

I kept chewing, and then I REALLY answered the question of ‘who would go against God?’ 

The answer?  Me.  You.  All of us.  We all go against God each time we sin.  Sin is described as breaking Gods laws, or violating Gods will or missing the mark of the target He set for us, going outside the boundary or limits He gave us.  As Originator and Creator of all things He inherently has the right to set the standard.  So failing to meet that standard is sin.

And we surely do not prosper when that happens, do we?  

We do not reap joy or peace or righteousness.  Romans 14:17 (another of our daily readings this past week) tells us  for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 

I began to think about how easily we fall prey to the temptations of sin.  How easily we excuse our hearts when they covet, when they lust.  How quickly we excuse ourselves when we give in to sin. 

Romans 8:13  For if you live after the flesh you will die.  But if you through the spirit mortify the deeds of the body you shall live.

Colossians 3:5   Therefore mortify (put to death) your members which are upon the earth fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness which is idolatry.

The word mortify has several meanings.  To cause shame, humiliation or wounded pride.  To subdue, suppress, control.  It’s even been defined as to destroy, to blow up or blow apart.  King James translated it put to death.

Now let’s put this whole thing together and see where it leads us.  (isn’t bible study just the most fun, EVER?!?)

God created us, so we are subject to Him.  He gave us free will, so we can obey Him and reap all the wonderful benefits that come with that obedience.  Or we can disobey, do as we please and reap the consequences.

Even if we WANT to obey Him, this flesh trips us up and we sin anyway. (Consider Paul's plea to the Lord "who shall deliver me from the body of this death?  Romans 7:24) So God sent Jesus to pay the price of sin for us which we could NOT EVER have paid, and freed us from that burden giving us eternal life through Christ.  Yet we still have sin chasing us down and overcoming us, so how do we deal with it? 

I’m all for FEROCIOUS AGGRESSIVENESS -  both in receiving His forgiveness and in yielding to the Holy Spirit to controlling the flesh!  Who’s with me?

Living a life that honors God is not easy, but it is also not impossible.  Like Paul, we MUST forget the past which haunts us and press hard on to the future God has for us.  We cannot change what we've done, the sin we've committed, but having received Gods forgiveness we can submit to the work of the Holy Spirit and turn away from sin now and in the future.  If you have NOT ever asked God to forgive you of your sin and wash you clean as He has promised, RIGHT NOW is a perfect time to do so!  Repent  - turn away - from sin and ask God to cleanse you through the Blood of Jesus shed on a cross for YOU so long ago.  Believe that He has forgiven you and ask Him to live in your heart and guide you through this maze of life.  Prayer is our powerful weapon against all evil.  Lord,  I thank You that any and all who repent of sin, ask Your forgiveness and request the Holy Spirit to live in their hearts will RECEIVE what they ask and be transformed by Your spirit as they change their thinking and behavior to obey You.  I ask this in the Name of Jesus, Amen.

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The Apostles Doctrine

The book of Acts is exciting and full of new adventure.  It is the story of the first century church told in the first person by those who actually lived it.  It also lays out the pattern for Christianity.

In Acts 2:42 we read:
And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and in prayers.  
43: then fear came upon every soul and many signs and wonders were done through the apostles.

We need to stop right here and ask the question "what is the apostles doctrine?" In the verses preceding we are provided with that answer in Peters sermon.

Jesus is Lord, raised from the dead by God for our redemption
Repent of sin and be baptized as a symbol of new life
Receive the gift of the Holy Spirit

It all begins with an act of God (GOD, in the beginning created the Heavens and the earth)  which has direct consequences upon us, His creation.  We respond to this action, because God created us specifically for His pleasure and to respond to His actions (God said Let Us make man in Our image according to Our likeness, let THEM have dominion over...).  Dependent on our response there is then the receiving of Gods blessings (for by grace you've been saved, not of works lest any man should boast).

As you read through the bible you will find this pattern established and we are encouraged to follow it, for by doing so we reap the many blessings and benefits God intends for His creation, stolen by that serpent the devil, satan our enemy who because of PRIDE fell and pulled and continues to pull many down with him.

Awe and wonder of the Lord God opens the eyes of our hearts, allowing us to see the miracles of God.  It isn't that OUR faith brings about miracles - this has been an error taught too long in our churches.  As if healing or miracles would occur IF we believe enough, or have faith enough.  This makes God dependent upon us - not so!  The truth is that God is always moving, always blessing and caring for and tending to His sheep, but our eyes are darkened, unable to see those miracles and blessings and joys.

Receiving His gift of Eternal Life through Christ Jesus our Lord, by confessing the truth that Jesus is the Lord, responding to that truth by believing in our hearts that God raised Jesus from the dead after He gave Himself as the substitute sacrifice for OUR sins and by the GRACE of God being filled with the Holy Spirit gives us the sight to see those miracles, see those blessings and live in the JOY that God the Creator and Master of all the Heavens, Earth and Creatures He created intended us to live in.  Praise God from Whom ALL blessings flow!

I encourage you to pick up the Bible, open to the Book of Acts and begin to read.  I pray God will give you new insight and then the courage to LIVE as He intended you to live - VICTORIOUS through Christ Jesus our Lord!  Sure, you are weak and your flesh is selfish and sinful.  Certainly you don't have all the right thoughts and feelings all the time toward everyone.  None of us does.  BUT, as we submit to the Holy Spirit, somehow God grants the grace we need to overcome, to speak in ways that bless, to act in ways that honor Him and many wonders and signs will be done through His born again Sons and Daughters!