Archive for the ‘atonement’ Category

Distractions from the Word of God The Love of Money is the Route of all evil.

Posted: August 31, 2020 in atonement, Battle Focus, Battle of the Mind, distractions, enticement, Money, Money Issue, Motivated, Uncategorized
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Distractions from the Word of God
The Love of Money is the Route of all evil.

When we have or get a lot of money, we think we do not need God or not has hungry for Him any longer and we tend to forget God. Nor is our hunger and thirst for his word is as important anymore. Be careful not to drift away. Satan will give unbelievers money to keep them right where they are at. He knows exactly how to keep people away from following Jesus, and money is a big distraction. If He cannot get you with addiction to Alcohol and drugs, money is the next best distraction to keep you from God. Riches lead to self-confidence and security, which cause a man to forget the LORD.
When the Lottery or Mega Million is ridiculously high, people run to those stores, some do not even have much money, but they will put this last on a chance in the Millions they are trying to win. Some people are so eager for money, that they broken off from following the Lord, and have turn to sinful acts to get rich. For believers, I am asking where is your trust? For the Bible says, For the LOVE of money is the root of all evil. We need to be content in all situations. Sometimes it might be God, who knows your heart, and knows that if you ran into a lot of money, that will be the end of you.

People get into their heads that Rich people should have no problem getting into heaven, they show up to Church with their fine clothes and fancy cars. Some look at them as if they were really blessed by God, so know doubt they are going straight into Heaven. Remember, they can only enter Heaven if God lets them in, not their wealth. There is not going to be an offering plate at the Gates of Heaven. God already gave the offering for that one.
Faith in Christ, not in self or riches, is what counts. On what are you counting for salvation?

Matthew 19:23
Jesus said to his disciples, I tell you the truth, It is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24 Again I tell you; it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.

1 Timothy 6:10
For the LOVE of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pieced themselves with many griefs.

Hebrews 13:5
Keep your lives free from the LOVE of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you,

Proverbs 30:07-09 “Two things I ask of you, O Lord; do not refuse me before I die: 8 Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. 9 Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.
Having too much money can be dangerous, but so can having to little. Being poor can, in fact, be hazardous to spiritual as well as physical health. On the other hand, being rich is not the answer. Both rich and poor people can be preoccupied with money. As Jesus pointed out, rich people have trouble getting into God’s Kingdom.

Proverbs 17:16 Why should fools have money in hand to buy wisdom, when they are not able to understand it.

We see here a person who is trying to buy himself an education. This is really a good example of our society today. Many people cost their parents an awful lot of money trying to get them a degree from college.

These same people will not put out any effort to learn and have no business going to college. It is a waste of time and money because they have no desire to learn, only to get the degree. Even wealth cannot buy wisdom for those who do not love it.
Luke 12:15-21
Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” 16 And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ 18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. 19 And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.” ‘ 20 “But God said to him,

‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ 21 “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”

Jesus says that in his kingdom the good life has nothing to do with being wealthy, so we should be on guard against every kind of greed (the desire for what we do not have). Society usually says the exact opposite. Advertisers spend millions of dollars to entice us to think that if we buy more and more of their products, we will be happier, more fulfilled, or more comfortable.

How do you respond to the constant pressure to have more? Learn to tune out the constant enticement to have more and concentrate instead on the only way to lasting satisfaction discovering great abundance in a relationship with God, who supplies blessings and fulfillment beyond our wildest expectations.

The rich man in Jesus’ story died before he could enjoy what was stored in his big barns. Planning for retirement—preparing for life before death—is wise but neglecting life after death is disastrous. If you accumulate wealth only to enrich yourself, with no concern for helping others, you will enter eternity empty-handed.

Bible Study by
Rob Henry

My Gratitude Determines My Altitude

Posted: August 19, 2020 in atonement, Battle Focus, Battle of the Mind, Bible Study, Eli, Uncategorized
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Rob Henry Notes on the Sermon Sunday. My notes do not do this message any justice. This is just a slice of the message that was dropped Sunday.

My Gratitude Determines My Altitude
Worship Life Center Church
Pastor Stanley Jay

You got to have an Attitude of Gratitude. If you are asking God for a breakthrough, you got to start thanking Him before the breakthrough. You must have an Attitude of Gratitude. There is no middle ground, either you are going to be hateful or Grateful. Gratitude moves the hand of God. Gratitude determines how high you go. Most of us do not mind doing for folks that appreciate us. But their others that you will not give the time of day for their ungratefulness. Sometime Gods form of elevation do not look like what we imagine. Gods answers at times does not look like our request, but we need to have faith that what God gave us is what we need. When we are not grateful, we open ourselves up to a demonic form of attitude and influence. Once you start to complain, the devil releases the demonic forces, and everything look at becomes a complaint. Busted and Disgusted. Gratitude will keep you elevating. An Attitude of Gratitude will transform your mind.

Ephesians 5:20 Always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father.

When it does not look right, we still must give thanks. Stop trying to make it happen and use the word of God to make it happen.

Four levels of living.
1. The lowest level: Folks constantly complain. Never Grateful, always finding wrong in everything.
Never giving thanks for nothing:
2. Do not do much complaining: Just do not give thanks. Take everything for granted.
3. The people who only thank God for the obvious blessing: They thank Him for things everyone can see. Not worry about giving God the glory, they are worried about being seen. They thank God only when things are going good.
4. Highest Level: Giving God thanks all the time: No matter what is going on they thank Him anyway. In all situations they give him the glory and thank Him. We understand that things could have been worse.

Biblical Principles that will keep you on the highest level of living

1. Know that your Gratitude is Biblical and its Proper. Everything good comes from God.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

2. Gratitude must be perpetual: It means never ending. If it were not for God on your side, it could have been worst. He blesses you daily, so we need to thank Him daily. He blesses us already before we even get up in the morning to face any situation. Psalm 68:19 Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.

3. Attitude of pervasiveness: Influence of a positive effect that spreads widely over a group of people. You got to have Gratitude so your positive influence will spread throughout the group. Gratitude is contagious.

Gratitude for all things good and bad. Everything works together for the good for those that love the Lord. Thanking God according to your faith and not your feelings.

Luke 17:11-19 While He was on the way to Jerusalem, He was passing between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As He entered a village, ten leprous men who stood at a distance met Him; 13 and they raised their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” 14 When He saw them, He said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they were going, they were cleansed. 15 Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, 16 and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan. 17 Then Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine-where are they? 18 Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” 19 And He said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has made you well.”

When you give God all the glory with an attitude of gratitude, that will determine your Altitude.

 

Spiritual Training 18 May 2015 (Leviticus)

Posted: May 18, 2015 in atonement, leviticus
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Under Gods Command (Book of Leviticus)
Eating Blood Forbidden

17:11-14For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life 12Therefore I say to the Israelites, “None of you may eat blood, nor may any foreigner residing among you eat blood.”
13“ ‘Any Israelite or any foreigner residing among you who hunts any animal or bird that may be eaten must drain out the blood and cover it with earth, 14because the life of every creature is its blood. That is why I have said to the Israelites, “You must not eat the blood of any creature, because the life of every creature is its blood; anyone who eats it must be cut off.”

(How does blood make atonement for sin? When offered with the right attitude, the sacrifice and the blood shed from it made forgiveness of sin possible. On the one hand, blood represented the sinner’s life, infected by his sin and headed for death. On the other hand, the blood represented the innocent life of the animal that was sacrificed in place of the guilty person making the offering. The death of the animal (of which the blood was proof) fulfilled the penalty of death. God therefore granted forgiveness to the sinner. It is God who forgives based on the faith of the person doing the sacrificing.)

(Why was eating or drinking blood prohibited? The prohibition against eating blood can be traced all the way back to Noah (Genesis 9:4). God prohibited eating or drinking blood for several reasons: (1) To discourage pagan practices. Israel was to be separate and distinct from the foreign nations around them. Eating blood was a common pagan practice. It was often done in hopes of gaining the characteristics of the slain animal (strength, speed, etc.). God’s people were to rely on him, not on ingested blood, for their strength. (2) To preserve the symbolism of the sacrifice. Blood symbolized the life of the animal that was sacrificed in the sinner’s place. To drink it would change the symbolism of the sacrificial penalty and destroy the evidence of the sacrifice. (3) To protect the people from infection because many deadly diseases are transmitted through the blood.)

Lets Bring it Home: The Jews took this prohibition seriously, and that is why Jesus’ hearers were so upset when Jesus told them to drink his blood (John 6:53-56). However, Jesus, as God himself and the last sacrifice ever needed for sins, was asking believers to identify with him completely. He wants us to take his life into us, and he wants to participate in our lives as well.

Spiritual Training 13 April 2015 (Leviticus)

Posted: April 13, 2015 in Acceptance, atonement, leviticus
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Under Gods Command (Book of Leviticus)

Leviticus 4 (The Sin Offering) 

1-3: The LORD said to Moses, 2“Say to the Israelites: ‘When anyone sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the LORD’s commands   

  3“ ‘If the anointed priest sins, bringing guilt on the people, he must bring to the LORD a young bull without defect as a sin offering for the sin he has committed

The sin offering was for those who: (1) committed a sin without realizing it or (2) committed a sin out of weakness or negligence as opposed to outright rebellion against God. Both individuals and groups could be guilty of unintentional sin. Different animals were sacrificed for the different kinds of sin. The death of Jesus Christ was the final sin offering in the Bible

13-14 “ ‘If the whole Israelite community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the LORD’s commands, even though the community is unaware of the matter, when they realize their guilt 14and the sin they committed becomes known, the assembly must bring a young bull as a sin offering and present it before the tent of meeting.

22-25“ ‘When a leader sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the commands of the LORD his God, when he realizes his guilt 23and the sin he has committed becomes known, he must bring as his offering a male goat without defect. 24He is to lay his hand on the goat’s head and slaughter it at the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered before the LORD. It is a sin offering. 

27-29 “ ‘If any member of the community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the LORD’s commands, when they realize their guilt 28and the sin they have committed becomes known, they must bring as their offering for the sin they committed a female goat without defect. 29They are to lay their hand on the head of the sin offering and slaughter it at the place of the burnt offering. 

In this way the priest will make atonement for the man’s sin, and he will be forgiven. (This statement is mention 4 times in Chapter 4 after each Offering). 

Have you ever done something wrong without realizing it until later? Although your sin was unintentional, it was still sin. God’s commands served to make the Israelites aware of their sins (even the unintentional ones) so they could be forgiven for them, and to keep the people from repeating those sins. Leviticus 4 and 5 mention some of these unintentional sins and the way the Israelites could be forgiven for them.

Lets Bring it Home: As you read more of God’s laws, keep in mind that they were meant to teach and guide the people. Let them help you become more aware of sin in your life.