The point of today’s Part 2 is to hear and seek to understand what the Word of God says about having a relationship with Jesus.  I want and need to understand how much of what I believe to know is true about a relationship, actually aligns with the Word of God – otherwise, it’s a worldly definition of mine and meaningless, as I believe you’d agree.  I’m wrong TOO MUCH in life – these are areas I don’t want to find out when it’s too late that I was wrong!!!  I’m sure you’re the same way.  On the other hand, and even MORE important is, if I’m wrong now – I don’t want to continue down the wrong path, for Christ’s sake, not mine.  It’s HIS WILL BE DONE, NOT, MY WILL BE DONE!!!!  I’ve lived my entire life with a mantra of MY WILL BE DONE – I’M NOT WILLING TO LIVE THAT LIFE OF SIN AND DEATH ANYMORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!       
I want to know what the Holy Spirit inspired these men to write regarding the need for a personal relationship with Christ, I want to hear what Christ Jesus said Himself about having a relationship with Him, and I want to know what God Himself breathed into these pages that are still alive today as they were over 2,000 years ago.  Don’t YOU?

From his April 6th devotional entitled, “The Collision of God and Sin”:

 

This is a portion of a verse take from the entire verse of 1 Peter 2:24 “…who Himself bore our sins in His Own body on the tree….”  

 

The Cross of Christ is the revealed truth of God’s judgment on sin.  Never associate the idea of martyrdom with the Cross of Christ.  It was the supreme triumph, and it shook the very foundations of hell.  There is nothing in time or eternity more absolutely certain and irrefutable that what Jesus Christ accomplished on the Cross – He made it possible for the entire human race to be brought back into a right-standing relationship with God.  He made redemption the foundation of human life; that is, He made a way for every person to have fellowship with God.

 

The Cross was not something that happened to Jesus – He came to die; the Cross was His purpose in coming.  He is “The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world”. (Revelation 13:8).  The incarnation of Christ would have no meaning without the Cross.  Beware of separating “God was manifested in the flesh…..”from….”He made Him…….to be sin for us….” (1 Timothy 3:16; 2 Corinthians 5:21).  The purpose of the incarnation was redemption.  God came in the flesh to take sin away, not to accomplish something for Himself.  The Cross is the central event in time and eternity, and the answer to all the problems of both..

The Cross is not the cross of a man, but the Cross of God, and it can never be full comprehended through human experience.  The Cross is God exhibiting His nature.  It is the gate through which any every individual can enter into oneness with God.  But it is not a gate we pass right through;  it is one where we abide int eh life that is found there.

The heart of salvation is the Cross of Christ.  The reason salvation is so easy to obtain is that it cost God so much.  The Cross was the place where God and sinful man merged with a tremendous collision and where the way to life was opened.  But all the cost and pain of the collision was absorbed by the heart of God.

 

WOW!!!!

 

Let me repeat a piece of that devotional that leads us into today’s message:
 
 

 

THERE IS YOUR REASON, YOUR EXPLANATION, YOUR MOTIVATION, YOUR PROOF, YOUR DEFINITION, AND YOUR CALLING TO HAVE A TRUE RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR GOD!!!!!

 

So, with that – let’s get more into the word and find out how to have a TRUE relationship with Jesus:

 

 

 

·     Luke 12:48   

·     But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone (repeat) to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.

o  Here’s another verse that shook me up, shook me awake.  Negligence is not an excuse.  So either way, there is punishment for doing wrong, whether or not you know it is and choose to ignore it, or whether you don’t realize it’s wrong, since it’s your obligation to know what is right, what is almost right, which is also defined as what is wrong.  The severity of punishment is dictated by both, but I don’t know about you, but I’d assume we’d like to have BOTH – KNOWING and OBEYING what is right, and avoiding punishment.  

o  The more I began to dive into the Word the more I realized and was convicted that I didn’t know what I should know, the things I thought I knew I was either wrong about or off the mark on, and the hunger inside me to know even more was like a raging fire I could not put out, nor did I want to.  My desire WAS the burning fire looking for more oxygen inside the Word to burn even more fiercely for Him and to seek out even more wisdom, knowledge, and love that pours out from Gods Word, the Bible.   Then it hits me – the part of the verse – EVERYONE to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.   So at that moment, I realize the more I receive, the more wisdom God and the Holy Spirit is giving me, the more I’m bound by it, willingly and happily, but the more I then seek, which entails the need to provide even more in return.  It’s cyclical – and that’s okay.  The reason I was not allowed to receive what I sought after when I was backslidden, was because I wouldn’t have been trusted to do the right thing with it – and that’s 100% true.  After surrendering all to Him, the more knowledge, the more blessings, the more grace He provides me – YOU – the more it becomes our duty, our responsibility, and our command from Him to provide the same back.  For what use is knowledge and wisdom gained by our Savior and Lord if kept to myself?  How much do I have to hate someone, NOT to share what God and the Holy Spirit have entrusted and instilled in me???   It’s the same as gaining the whole world, but losing my soul – no one wins.  The whole reason for this podcast is that the amount of knowledge and understanding and wisdom and direction God has given me, He’s asked me to pour out and serve Him, by serving YOU, HIS listeners – you’re not MY Listeners – you’re HIS LISTENERS!!!!!    And I find myself living out this verse because the more that’s downloaded into my heart, mind, and soul, the more I am on fire to get it out and share with the world!!!!!  Every day I witness the breath of God through His miracle called LIFE.                                                                                                                              

 

 

·     Hebrews 2:1 

·     Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.

o  Here’s guidance for you and I – I gather that people and information that we see value in, we hold tightly to.  Correct?  If we love and value and cherish someone and the words they speak have meaning to us, do we ignore and move on, or do we hold close to our hearts forever.  Why then, do we many times NOT do the same with Jesus?  I’m raising my hand here – I’m not above what I’m speaking here – I am to blame as well!!!  We pay attention to the Word and the voice of God because the cost of NOT, is that we fall away from it, and we can become backslidden.  It’s a constant battle not to fall and begin sliding back into the welcoming arms of the enemy – they’re always open ready to embrace us at every turn, no?

 

·     2 Corinthians 5:17   

·     Therefore, if anyone (repeat) is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

o  So, here’s guidance on how to live if you are TRULY IN CHRIST.  It’s right there in your Bible – the old you become no more and the new arrives and grows and flourishes.  How can you be made new if you’re clinging to the ‘old’ – you CAN’T.  Read another way, anyone who is NOT in Christ is NOT a new creation.  The old has NOT passed away; behold, the new has NOT come.  Therefore, what does this speak to you?  I’m not implying…..I’m ASKING – how to you measure up with this biblical and spiritual absolutely?

 

 

·     Matthew 6:24 

·     “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

o  Well, if you recall back to Episode 1 (on a side note – if any of you have NOT yet listened to my first episode, please listen to that!  It will put my life into perspective, as will this podcast, and most importantly, will give God the glory that He deserves for truly saving a wretch like me with his amazing grace!) so recalling back to episode 1, I felt this before I read this…..the Holy Spirits conviction that I could not explain provided this insight to me before I read these actual words from the Bible.  I absolutely, unequivocally, loved money.  When I didn’t have it, I stopped at nothing to get it.  When I had it, I spent it and wanted more of it.  My daily devotion was NOT to God, but to SELF – MY SELF!!!  I was a lover of SELF.  How do I know – because every moment of every day was about MY comfort, MY happiness, MY contentment, MY wants, MY needs, MY future, MY present, MY path in life, MY money, MY ‘things’, MY goals, MY desires, MY treasures on Earth, - I was serving myself as my master, and money second.  God was the furthest thing I was serving!  Did I “believe in Him”?  SURE!!!!  But, so does the devil and demons.  All of hell believes in him.  So, because all I did was simply believe in HIM – SO WHAT?  I wasn’t and didn’t serve him.  Another conviction and another path to hell God saved me from.   You know, the more I look at that passage, the more I realize how EASY it is not to know how GOD wants our relationship with Him, until we truly seek to understand His will for our lives and for our TRUE relationship with Him.  He wants us to know so badly, that He created what we know to be the Bible to instruct us on all things!  What good is knowing the business and entrepreneurial and self-help and other ‘books’ if we don’t absorb the one and ONLY Living Word of God?    It’s not the “GOOD BOOK,” it’s God’s instruction manual for our lives and our eternal destination!!!!!!!!  What we do with it, He leaves in OUR HANDS.  

 

 

·     1 John 2:3-6  

·     And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

o  It’s verses like this that leave me speechless.  To my knowledge, there’s only 3 ways to interpret scripture such as this.  1.) to read it and believe it as it is written, believing that what is written is true and correct.  2.) read it and make your own interpretation out of it, or twist or contort it to fit your life and it’s circumstances.  3.) Somehow, simply dismiss it as ‘back in the day’ and taken out of context, and believe it to be valid and true ‘back then’, but not applicable in today’s world.  Which of the 3 holds true for YOU?  “BY THIS WE MAY KNOW THAT WE ARE IN HIM:  WHOEVER SAYS HE ABIDES IN HIM OUT TO WALK IN THE SAME WAY IN WHICH HE WALKED.”  Does this describe you?  Once again, I’m not here to condemn or judge – I CANNOT and I know the punishment for those that do – we just went over this I in a recent episode.  I can only point out the words that have still left my jaw on the ground in utter amazement and realization that I need God WAAAAAAAY more than He needs me!!!!!!!!!  That’s an understatement, by the w

 

 

·     Hebrews 12:14 

·     Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord (repeat “without which no one will see the Lord).

o  Because we are His children, by faith, we have been permanently positioned in Christ, which has given us peace with God, the forgiveness of sins, and life everlasting. But now that we have been saved by grace through faith in Him, we are to strive to live in peace with all people and to pursue godly consecration and holiness of heart - without which we are told, no one will ever see the Lord.

 

o  We are called to be holy and set apart unto Him... for God is holy, but this cannot be achieved by our own efforts. We are commanded to be holy and consecrated unto the Lord in body, soul, and spirit, but we can't do this in our own strength. We are instructed to be holy in all our words and in all our ways – we are directed to be holy and blameless in His sight, and to pursue after peace and holiness - in love. It is only through the empowering of the Holy Spirit that we can, "Pursue peace with all, and holiness, without which no one shall see the Lord."

 

o  There are many perils and dangers for the one that fails to pursue peace and rejects Christ's call to holiness. Unless we are saved by faith, we cannot have peace with God and unless we are walking in spirit and truth, we will not know the peace of God. When we choose to walk in fleshly disobedience and carnal disbelief, when we take hold the privileges of the New Covenant in contempt, or when we fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, the consequences of sin will result in irrevocable loss, 'saved - yet as though by fire'.

 

o  We are holy unto the Lord because we are set aside by God and positioned in heavenly places in Christ... and we are to be holy because the Lord our God is Holy. We are to be holy by setting ourselves apart for Him, as a living sacrifice, "holy and acceptable unto the Lord," surrendering to Him in every corner of our lives and every attitude of our being – surrendered to Him for His praise and glory – through time and into eternity.

 

 

 

·     Hebrews 11:6 

·     And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

o  If you believe that whoever would draw near to God and believe He exists and that he rewards those who seek him – how are we to draw near to Him?  How are we to seek Him?  He tells us how – Jesus told us that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your souls and to love others as yourself.  We seek him by prayer and praise and worship and we seek to know him and to have an intimate relationship with our Father by reading His living, breathing Word.  We draw need to him by our love for others and by our obedience. We should seek to have, and then achieve, the greatest relationship we’ve ever know to the Greatest One who deserves our faithful and daily communion with Him – for who deserves better than HE?  YOU OR ME????  CERTAINLY NOT!  

o  Matthew 25 describes another way we please Him – this is another revelation to me that Shook me Awake that I cannot deny or keep from you all.  Perhaps there’s one of you listening that have never heard these words, so this is especially for your ears – for those that have ears should listen:  Matthew 25:31-46

o  Side note here – I always grew up wishing one day we could acquire a ‘crystal ball’ that would tell us our future!  How about you all?   It wasn’t until 2 years ago that this whole time, we actually DO – and it’s called the Bible.  Here’s one proof of it:

o  Entitled, “The Final Judgment”

·     Matthew 25:31 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats (backslidden and those that thought they were saved!!!!!!  Another revelation and perhaps for another, future podcast) at his left.

·     34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. 36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

·     37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink?38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

·     40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’

·     41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’

·     44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’

·     45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’

·     46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”

o  THERE IS NOTHING LEFT TO INTERPRETATION HERE.  THERE IS ONLY DIRECTION GIVEN BY GOD ON HOW TO LIVE IN ONE ASPECT OF YOUR LIFE.  It’s undeniable and it’s powerful.  

 

 

·     Colossians 3:1-3 

·     If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

 

Galatians 1:10 

For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.

o  Who do we try to please on Earth determines who we serve.  Am I misinterpreting this here?  No, of course not.  But we don’t hear this enough – yet there it lies, directed by God’s breath.

o   

 

 

So before we end today’s show, I want to end with a powerful warning from the Bible, coupled with hope to overcome.

 

·     1 Corinthians 6:9-11 

·     Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

 

 

·     Romans 8:1 

·     There is therefore now no condemnation (repeat) for those who are in Christ Jesus.

o  Don’t miss the blessing AND the curse/warning of this verse.  The blessing is there is no condemnation…..the curse/warning is, for those that are NOT IN CHRIST JESUS (we’ve just spent two episodes giving just a few examples from the Bible on how we’re defined as being in Christ Jesus from those that are NOT in Christ Jesus and for those – THERE IS CONDEMNATION.  

 

THERE’S A POINT IN TIME WHERE WE SEEK TO BELIEVE, BECOME SAVED, OBEY AND LOVE HIM BECAUSE HEAVEN IS MUCH BETTER THAN HELLM RIGHT?   BUT THEN, THERE IS A TURNING POINT WHEN WE SEEK HIM THAT ALLOWS US TO FALL IN LOVE WITH JESUS CHRIST AND DWELL IN HIM AND HE IN US.  That, my friends, is the definition and proof of a TRUE RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS.

 

Guys – What kind of TRUE Relationship do you actually HAVE RIGHT THIS VERY MOMENT WITH JESUS?