Does Jesus Know You

There are many people in the church that claim they know Jesus, but there is something that is far more important than knowing who Jesus is, or about Jesus.  What is more important is this, does Jesus know you?  We hear so many things about Jesus from so many sources, but many of the sources we hear from are not telling the truth about Him because they only know Him through what they hear.  The only way that anyone can know Jesus is by having a personal relationship with Him, not just hearing about Him.  Think of this, many people know some things about Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Ben Franklin and many other people that lived in the past, but they don’t know them personally.  You may have read or heard about these men, but if you have never met them you do not know them on a personal level.  That is the way it is with the Lord; but the difference is, He made a way that we could know Him in a personal way.  

Let me give you an example using Paul, for instance, and the seven sons of Sceva, a ruling priest, while they were trying to cast out demons.  Please read Acts 19:11-17, “Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, ‘We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.’ Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, ‘Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?’ Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.”

These demons knew Paul and they knew Jesus and they fled when they told them to leave, but these seven sons of Sceva they did not know and they ended up getting a beating.  It is so important to not just know about Jesus, but to have a personal relationship with Him.  And, like I said earlier in this Tidbit, God through His Son Jesus has made a way that we can have that kind of relationship with Him.  God sent his Son to be our advocate and through Him we can be justified with God the Father when we are cleansed with His blood and our sins are washed clean.  

Jesus said this in Revelations 3:20 to the churches that He was trying to correct, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.”

I believe this is a call to everyone that doesn’t know the Lord personally.  I believe a person needs to repent through the conviction of the Holy Spirit and make a personal decision to turn away from their sins and go in another direction and ask the Lord to come into their heart and life and to be their Lord and Savior!!  

We will all stand before the Lord someday to give an account of our life.  You don’t want to hear these words found in Matthew 7:21-23, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’”

If you are born-again you can be sure that Jesus knows you and you will not hear those words, “I never knew you!!”  Enough said I have given you something to think about.  May the good Lord bless you and yours and may you all have a super day!!

A New Heart

This is part of a song, if I remember it right, “Create in me a clean heart, oh God and renew a right spirit within me, create in me a clean heart oh God and renew a right spirit within me.  Cast me not away from thy presence oh Lord take not thy Holy Spirit from me, restore unto me the joy of thy salvation and renew a right spirit within me.”  This is exactly what the Lord wants to do for each of us, but sadly many will never receive it because they refuse to repent and humble themselves before the Lord.

Read what the Lord told the Israelites in their rebellious times through Ezekiel, in Ezekiel 36:24-33, “For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God. I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. I will call for the grain and multiply it, and bring no famine upon you. And I will multiply the fruit of your trees and the increase of your fields, so that you need never again bear the reproach of famine among the nations. Then you will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good; and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight, for your iniquities and your abominations. Not for your sake do I do this,” says the Lord God, “let it be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel!”

‘Thus says the Lord God: “On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will also enable you to dwell in the cities, and the ruins shall be rebuilt.”

Think of this, God didn’t do this but for this one reason, because He declared that He would because of His love, mercy and grace.  How many times did these people bring disgrace on themselves and on their God, but He was willing to forgive them, not for their sakes but because of who He is and what He is.

Now read Ezekiel 37:1-14, “The hand of the Lord came upon me and brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones. Then He caused me to pass by them all around, and behold, there were very many in the open valley; and indeed they were very dry. And He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” So I answered, “O Lord God, You know.” Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! Thus says the Lord God to these bones: “Surely I will cause breath to enter into you, and you shall live. I will put sinews on you and bring flesh upon you, cover you with skin and put breath in you; and you shall live. Then you shall know that I am the Lord.”’” So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and suddenly a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to bone. Indeed, as I looked, the sinews and the flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them over; but there was no breath in them. Also He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.”’” So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army. Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They indeed say, ‘Our bones are dry, our hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off!’ Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O My people, and brought you up from your graves. I will put My Spirit in you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken it and performed it,” says the Lord.’”

God loved the Israelites and He also loves us.  He knows how rebellious we all have been and He knew we could never be right with Him on our own so just like He made a way for the Israelites, He has made a way for us to be right with Him through the death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ who willingly laid His life down for us; for without the shedding of blood there is no remittance, or forgiveness of sins.  All we can do is repent and forsake our sins, and that will only come from the Holy Spirit’s conviction, and ask Him to forgive us.  He has done the rest for us, praise the Lord!!   

I pray that you will taste and see that the Lord is good and He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.  I have given you something to think about, have a super day and may the good Lord bless you and yours!!

There Is Victory

Because of the Lord’s resurrection we can all have victory!! You might say what are you talking about, victory over what?  Well I am glad you asked, I believe there is nothing the Lord can’t or won’t deliver you of, if you sincerely believe and repent and trust in Him.  This takes more than just head knowledge, it takes heart knowledge. You can say many things from the head and hear many things and store them in the brain but until they get from the brain to the heart they will never change your life.  When the Lord draws you and the Holy Spirit convicts you of your sins and the Lord opens your eyes and your ears and removes the veil from your mind, then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free, if you will receive Him into your heart and life!!

Read this in Matthew 15:8, “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.”

What is going into your heart?  God’s Word says this in Luke 6:45, “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.”

God seeks the humble and contrite heart, that He will not despise.  When we repent God seeks godly sorrow, read 2 Corinthians 7:9-10, the Apostle Paul speaking, “Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.”

True repentance is talked about throughout the Word of God, even Jesus when He started His ministry spoke about repentance, I think it is very important and not something to lightly skip over!!  And think about this, when our sins are forgiven who will love more?

Read Luke 7:40-48, “And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on. There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most? Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged. And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head. Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet. My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little. And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.”

I believe their sorrow and remorse will be greater also, in the one that had been a real rebel.  Think of this, if you have lived a quote, “religious life,” trying to be good and basically trying to work your way to heaven, compared to a downright scoundrel; the first may find the Lord in a personal way, which is the only way you can be born-again, and feel that they haven’t been all that bad but the scoundrels, when they are born-again, knows how far they have fallen and it is hard to believe the transformation that takes place in many of their lives.  If a person has worldly sorrow they will try to cover up their sins or blame them on someone else, but when a person has godly sorrow they will take responsibly for their own actions and confess them and try not to repeat them again.

Enough said I have given you something to think about.  I hope this Tidbit was helpful and encouraging.  May the good Lord bless you and yours and may you all have a super day!!  And don’t forget to thank and praise the Lord for He is truly worthy!!      

It Is Amazing

Can you think of the most amazing thing that you have ever seen?  It may be a beautiful sunset or maybe a beautiful landscape.  It may be a child that has just been born or a flock of bald eagles in flight on a beautiful afternoon.  There are many things that people relate to as amazing, but none would compare to what Moses, Isaiah, Peter, James and John and others saw, and that was a peek at the Lord’s glory.  Any true born-again believer would love to see the glory of the Lord.

Read what Moses saw in Exodus 33:17-23, “So the Lord said to Moses, ‘I will also do this thing that you have spoken; for you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name.’ And he said, ‘Please, show me Your glory.’ Then He said, ‘I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.’ But He said, ‘You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.’ And the Lord said, ‘Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.’”   

It is hard to imagine that God would show a man His glory, it is also hard to imagine what Moses felt like, can you imagine how excited Moses must have been, probably overwhelmed, maybe ecstatic over such a sight.

Think about Isaiah when he said this in Isaiah 6:1-4, “In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!’ And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.”

What a sight, what an experience it must have been, so breathtakingly awesome because only the Lord is truly awesome although I have heard that word used for so many other things!!  When He got a glimpse of the Lord he knew he was undone, a man of unclean lips living among a people of unclean lips.  If we had that experience I am sure we would all relate to what Isaiah said.

Now let’s look at Peter, James and John and what they experienced in Matthew 17:1-9, “Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him. Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, ‘Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’ While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!’ And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid. But Jesus came and touched them and said, ‘Arise, and do not be afraid.’ When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only. Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, ‘Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead.’”

I am sure that was an experience that they never forgot.  Peter was so overwhelmed he didn’t even know what he was saying.  And when they heard the voice of God the disciples hit the ground terrified.  It is sad to say but if the church had more of this kind of fear, things would look much different than they do today.  I think many would realize how sinful they really are and stop patting themselves on the back, thinking about how good they are!!  Let’s all praise the good Lord for His grace and mercy shown to us and the reconciliation that Jesus accomplished when He allowed Himself to be crucified and to shed His blood for the sins of all mankind, praise be to God!!

Enough said I hope this has been an encouragement and a help to you.  May the good Lord bless you and yours and may you have a super day!!  And don’t forget to thank and praise the Lord, for He is worthy!!

The Mystery

God’s grace and mercy are revealed through Jesus Christ, God’s beloved Son.  It is a shame that many people will never know the truth that could ultimately set them free.  On the other hand, there are many that have heard the truth but have completely rebelled against it trading the truth for a lie; they worship the created things instead of the Creator of all things who is to be ever praised, amen!!  Many people have hardened their hearts to the truth.  

Think of the people that have been taken away early in life because of their drug of choice, trying to escape reality, seeking a way to cope with life if only they would have gotten a hold of the truth and got it from their head to their heart, that truth would have set them free.  Jesus Christ is the way, the truth and the life, read John 14:6, only in Him can we be complete.  The thief comes only to steal, kill and destroy but Jesus came that we might have life and have it more abundantly.  What people hope to gain from all their addictions is to escape life and all of its problems and party so they will feel good, but it is only a temporary escape which only turns out in the end to be misery and pain, and far too many times, death.  

With Jesus you can have a real party plus you can have everlasting life, peace, love and joy.  I don’t say this lightly and I pray quite often for those that are in addiction because I have been there, being what I considered a total freak for the enemy who stands against all that is good; he is the father of all lies and the great deceiver.  For many years I bowed at his feet and did just what he wanted me to do - drugs, alcohol, partying, living in my car for a short period of time, riding chopper motorcycles, a freak that is what I considered myself.  I was also into sexual immorality, porn, bitterness and hatred and all the other things that go along with this kind of lifestyle, like a terrible mouth and a terrible temper which left me only more miserable.  Thinking back I remember one time I rolled my van over on its side while driving; I also went down twice while riding my chopper motorcycles.  At the time my motorcycles and partying were my lifestyle and consumed me, but there were always the times when I had to come down off any high I was on and then reality would strike and I couldn’t wait for my next chance to get high on something, while at times I would even tell myself I will never do it again.  These additions were like idols and I bowed at their feet daily; that is what these things become in people’s lives, gods or idols that we call additions!!

Some people are in programs trying to escape, by what they call their higher power, whatever that might be.  The difference between me and an alcoholic was I didn’t go to the meetings; I went right to the one that could and did deliver me.  I call him the Son of God, the righteous holy one, Jesus Christ the only one that can set you free.  The Word says when the Son sets you free you are free indeed.  There are people that go to meetings for years where they tell them once they are an addict they will always be an addict and without a relationship with the Lord that may be true, but when you choose to truly repent and turn from your sins and ask the Lord to forgive you and be your Lord and Savior and you are born again, you are set free, and when the Son of God sets you free you are free indeed!!

Check out 1 Corinthians 6:8-11, “No, you yourselves do wrong and cheat, and you do these things to your brethren! Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.”

Paul said that is what some of you were-- but you were washed, you were made holy, you were made right in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God!!  

Now read 2 Corinthians 5:17-21, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”            

If you want to be set free and not live in bondage, try Jesus, taste and see that He is good and that He is able to set you completely free, praise the Lord!!  You won’t have to count the days or weeks or months or years that you have been set free, the Lord can take the desires of the drug of your choice from you and you will be free indeed!!

Enough said I hope this has been a help and an encouragement to you and may you have a super day!!  May the good Lord bless you and yours and don’t forget to thank and praise the Lord, for He is worthy!!