July 2018 "Dearly Beloved" Articles
Dearly Beloved 7/31/18 "You Have It All"
You Have It All
Dearly beloved, we were called by God to acquire the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. He called us in Christ Jesus by His great grace. Now we stand in the grace of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. God is the one wanted us to have this standing and He provided it for us in Christ. Now we can walk in the grace that is ours in Christ Jesus our Lord. Dearly beloved, now we can minister this grace to those who will listen.
It's all about what God created us to be in Christ Jesus our Lord and his accomplishments; that’s what made us who we are.
We are His handiwork, created in Christ Jesus upon his good works, so that therein we may walk in them. It is Christ in you, dearly beloved of God; the hope of glory. That's certainly grace upon grace!
By the grace of God, we can do all things through Christ who empowers us. According to Christ Jesus our Lord, we can do the works that he did and even greater. Each and every one of us are able ministers by his spirit. We are complete in him.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/28/18 "Not Much Has Changed"
Not Much Has Changed
Dearly beloved of God, we live in challenging times. There are many today who are like the Athenians in Paul’s day that do not know the One True God, yet they were very religious; so religious that their city was full of idols.
The Apostle Paul reasoned in the synagogue with the Judeans and to the devout persons and daily in witnessed in the marketplace with whoever happened to be there. He even spoke to certain of the philosophers.
What was there response? Some called him a babbler, others said that he seemed to preach strange gods because he proclaimed the gospel concerning Jesus Christ and the resurrection. So, they took him to the Areopagus where they met on Mars hill and wanted to know what this new doctrine was that he spoke about. They thought what he spoke of was indeed strange.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/26/18 "You Are Everything to Him"
You Are Everything to Him
Dearly beloved, let’s start the day with the right perspective.
From the world’s perspective we may not think we are worth much, but in God’s eyes we are worth everything; we are worth all the wealth of the world to Him.
He knows how much He loves us, but that is not always the case with us. We must learn to think about ourselves as He does.
The adversary hits us with thoughts of unworthiness in an effort to undermine the truth that God loves us. The adversary wants you to see yourself through the lens of sin, guilt, and condemnation.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/25/18 "It's No Longer a Secret"
It's No Longer a Secret
Dearly beloved Jews and Gentiles, we made it! Thanks to the grace of God we are now members of the body of Christ! We are fellow citizens with the saints. We are one new man through Christ and we have access by one spirit unto the Father. We are God’s habitations.
We are fellow heirs, and of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus by the good news of God’s Word. Rejoice forevermore!
Had the so-called god of this world known this mystery, he would never have crucified the Lord of glory. Now we all have the spirit of Christ in us and we can do the works that Christ did and greater.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/23/18 "Did He Know What He Was Doing?"
Did He Know What He Was Doing?
Dearly beloved, just think; you are what God says you are in Christ, and you have what He says you have, and you can do what He says you can do. If you ever want to live these realities you must renew your mind to believe what God says in your day by day living. Get your thinking in sync with God’s Word concerning the new creation of Christ in you.
You are complete in Christ, filled to the full with everything he accomplished. You are complete in him, not incomplete. He completely filled you to the full. You are not lacking a thing spiritually. God the Father blessed you with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm in Christ.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/22/18 "The Plain Truth"
The Plain Truth
Dearly beloved, perhaps you know someone that blames God for the death of a loved one. They say, “Why would a loving God do this to them?” They are emotionally blinded by their loss and they do not know the truth that God reveals to us in His Word. Who is responsible for their loss?
“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He [Jesus Christ] also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.” Hebrews 2:14
The Word of God reveals that the devil has the power of death. He is labeled “the thief”, in John 10:10, and he comes, “…but for to steal, kill and destroy.” I John 3, reveals that God sent Jesus Christ to, “destroy the works of the devil.”
Jesus Christ said, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” God sent him to destroy the devil that had the power of death. He will. Death is the last enemy that will be destroyed.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/21/18 "What Are You Looking For?"
What Are You Looking For?
Dearly beloved, our hope in Christ will be the concluding event in this administration of the grace of God, the administration of the mystery.
All in Christ will be gathered together unto the Lord in the air whether they are alive at his coming or they have died previously. We will both be changed, transformed to be like the Lord. Together we will be caught up to meet the Lord Jesus Christ in the air and we will forever be with him.
The gathering together of the Church, which is the body of Christ, is the departure. The Day of the Lord cannot begin before the departure takes place.
The members of the body of Christ will not participate in the wrath to come. God has not appointed us to wrath but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ. “Being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.”
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/20/18 "What Is Too Hard for Him?"
What Is Too Hard for Him?
Dearly beloved, there are no incurable diseases with our God, no circumstances from which He cannot deliver you, no situation in which He will ever leave you alone, no broken heart He cannot mend, no hurt from which He cannot heal, no financial pit from which He cannot rescue you.
Don't faint; go to Him with your whole heart. Find God's promise in His Word and stand on it with believing confidence. Lay it before His throne of grace and expect Him to fulfill it. He is not a liar; He is your Father, and He is faithful to His Word.
Nothing is too hard for Him and He is able and willing to perform His Word in your life; you are His dearly beloved.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/19/18 "Remember Who You Are Today"
Remember Who You Are Today
Dear beloved of God remember today that you are the child of the One True and Living God, His saint, redeemed, justified, made righteous, and sanctified by the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. You are His dearly beloved.
You have access to His throne of grace by the new birth spirit, and He encourages us to approach Him with boldness and confidence.
Dearly beloved, God’s grace and peace are yours in Christ.
The Father has blessed you with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm in Christ.
He chose you in Christ and you are holy and without blemish before Him. By the good pleasure of His will, He gave you sonship through Jesus Christ’s accomplishments.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/18/18 "Experiences or God's Word?"
Experiences or God’s Word?
Dearly beloved of God, we must be convinced by the Word of God if we are to be truly convinced of our hope in Christ and our gathering together unto him.
God provides us with revelation truth; it is not the result of any man’s thinking or his ideas, his theory, or his experiences – it is revelation knowledge that came from the mouth of the One True and Living God, which He revealed to holy men of God and had them record it. His Word is truth.
It seems that more and more people magnify their experiences over the revelation truth of God’s Word.
Experience is no guarantee for truth; experiences must always be weighed against the truth that God reveals in His Word. As a matter of fact, if we are led by experiences instead of God’s Word, we may be led down quite a different path. This experience is documented from Genesis 3 to this very day.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/17/18 "Forever with the Lord"
Forever with the Lord
Dearly beloved, every member of the body of Christ will be caught up to meet the Lord Christ Jesus in the air. The Lord’s coming will be announced with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God; our gathering together unto him will not be done in secrecy.
The dead in Christ will be raised first. Those who corrupted in the grave will be raised with incorruptible bodies like the Lord’s. Then we which are yet living will be changed; the mortal will put on immortality and our bodies will be transformed to be like the Lord’s. Together we will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord! From then on – forever - we will be with the Lord and nothing shall be able to separate us, beloved.
Sometime after the gathering together, the Lord will come to the earth as King of kings and Lord of lords. We will be with him when he comes. When he rules on the earth for a thousand years, we will be with him. When God makes all things new again in the third heaven and third earth, we will be with him. “And so shall we ever be with the Lord.” What a marvelous revelation!
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/16/18 "Time to Wake Up"
Time to Wake Up
Dearly beloved, it’s time to wake up! I’m talking about more than getting out of bed and washing your face this morning; it’s time to wake up to what God did in Christ.
“And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed [the salvation that will come when Christ returns to save us]. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.”
“But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ….” Beloved, what will you put on today? What will you clothe yourselves with? Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and what he accomplished; put it on in your thinking and living.
Think and walk as who you are in Christ. Be transformed by renewing your mind so you can prove the good pleasure of God’s will in your life. Think soberly; think of yourself and others in the body of Christ as God instructs us to think. Believe the gospel of God concerning Christ, which is the measure God gave us to believe. Believe who God says you are in Christ, dearly beloved.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/15/18 "Talk About Grace..."
Talk About Grace….
Dearly beloved, had God not shown us His Divine favor, no one could have been saved; no one, whether an Israelite or a Gentile.
God gave His righteous servant, the Lord Jesus Christ, “for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles.” Isaiah 42:6
God sent His servant as a representative of Israel, “To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.”
God elaborates on this truth from chapter 49 through chapter 53 of Isaiah. This is a brief summary of His servant's work revealed in these chapters.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/14/18 "Are You Kidding Me?"
Are You Kidding Me?
Dearly beloved, while I was out running errands yesterday I listened to the radio for less than twenty minutes. In less than twenty minutes I heard ex-president Jimmy Carter say on the radio, “I think that Jesus would be in favor of homosexual marriage today because he loves people." Are you kidding me?
Does what “he thinks” have more authority for truth than what God had holy men of God write down for our believing obedience?
Within the same twenty minutes I heard a denominational minister say, “In my opinion, no one that voted for Donald Trump for president is a real Christian.” Are you kidding me?
What does his opinion have to do with the Lord Jesus Christ giving his life for us and God raising him from the dead so that we could be saved, born of his spirit, and have the inheritance of eternal life?
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/13/18 "A Good Morning Indeed"
A Good Morning Indeed
“Good morning Lord. What can I do for you today?” Dearly beloved, this should be a priority for us regardless of what other things we may do today.
As we open our eyes to a new day, we should also open our hearts to our Heavenly Father. He works in us to will and to do of His good pleasure by the gift of holy spirit we received in the new birth. He gave us the spirit of sonship. Prayer with the spirit is one way He works with us.
“Likewise, the spirit also jointly helps us with our weakness. Moreover, we do not know what we should pray for as necessary, but the spirit itself makes intercession with inexpressible groanings. He Who searches the hearts knows what the thinking of the spirit is, because it makes intercession for the holy [sanctified] ones in accordance with God.” “Copyright 2006 by Walter J. Cummins. All rights reserved.”
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/11/18 "World Wisdom Versus God's Wisdom"
World Wisdom Versus God's Wisdom
Dearly beloved, we are not of this world, so do not allow the world to influence your thinking and heart. We no longer walk in the course of this world under the direction of the prince of the power of the air, the old serpent who is the devil. We have been delivered from the power of darkness; we are now citizens in the kingdom of God’s beloved Son.
Why then would we think what those of this world think, or believe the lies by which they are taken prisoner? Why would we want to be led around as if we had a ring in our nose by the ideas that take them captive? We should not be taken in by this kind of thinking.
At times we may believe something because the person who said it is a “friend”, or because we may have known them for years, or we respect them. Perhaps we believe them because they are a family member, or because we are associated with the same organization as they are. Far too many believe something just because many people believe it.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/10/18 "Living Epistles of Love"
Living Epistles of Love
Dearly beloved, love never fails. God is love and He has given us all things that pertain unto life and godliness through the knowledge of him that has called us to his own glory and virtue; whereby He gave us exceeding great and precious promises so that by these we might be partakers of His divine nature. You are His love child.
The love of God ignites everything we received in the new birth – he poured it out in our hearts by the gift of holy spirit that was given to us.
Day after day the world tells us that we are worthless, our believing of God’s Word counts for nothing. Not so! You are worth all the wealth of the world to our Heavenly Father. You are His love child. His divine nature, his nature of love is born within you; you are filled with all the fullness of God. As we manifest His love to others it will change the world one life at a time.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/9/18 "We Certainly Are Highly Favored"
We Certainly Are Highly Favored
Dearly beloved of God, the Lord Jesus Christ sowed the Word of God and he demonstrated the power of God to the people of Israel. We should learn from his example.
“And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.” Matthew 4:23
He declared God; he made Him known by his words and his works. God is Spirit; Jesus Christ was a man. No one has ever seen God, but the people saw Jesus Christ do His Father’s will and they heard the words that his Father gave him to speak.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/8/18 "Walk on Resurrection Ground"
Walk on Resurrection Ground
Let’s talk about identification, dearly beloved. The first man, Adam, was the head of the human race and by nature we were identified with him. We identified with Adam in his one sin and in his condemnation of death. All “in Adam” come under the reign of sin and death; we were born in sin.
By the grace of God, God provided a new head, Christ. He is the head of the race of redeemed men that he reconciled to God by his one righteous act.
As all in Adam were sold under sin by him, all in the last Adam, Christ, were justified from sin by his one righteous act. In Christ we are righteous before God.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/7/18 "The Breakfast of Champions"
The Breakfast of Champions
Good morning, dearly beloved. For breakfast this morning, let’s have some of the breakfast of champions; some Ephesians truths.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:” Ephesians 1:3
How did God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ bless us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realm? He did it in Christ.
“That in the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:” Ephesians 1:10
In the fullness of times administration, how will God gather all things together in heaven and earth under one head? He will do it in Christ.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/6/18 "Make a Diligent Effort"
Make a Diligent Effort
Dearly beloved, Ephesians 4:3 instructs us to make a diligent effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
What is this unity? It is the unity that God made when He gave every member of the body of Christ the spirit of sonship.
The “unity of the spirit” is in the Genitive Case in the Greek. The Genitive Case expresses a variety of classes. Reading the context is the best way to determine the sense it conveys. Here, it expresses the sense of origin, which would be “unity from the spirit.” The verses that follow reveal the points of this unity.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/5/18 "His Mighty Power to Perform His Word"
His Mighty Power to Perform His Word
Dearly beloved of God, listen to what God told Israel in Isaiah’s day.
“The Lord of hosts hath sworn, saying, ‘Surely as I have purposed, so shall it stand”; “For the Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? And His hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?’”
“Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:”
Further in Isaiah He said, “Thus saith the Lord the King of Israel, and his Redeemer the Lord of hosts; ‘I am the first, and I am the last; and beside Me there is no God. And Who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for Me, since I appointed the ancient People? And the things that are coming, and shall come, let them show unto them. Fear not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? Ye are even My witnesses. Is there a God beside Me? Yea, there is no God; I know not any.”
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/4/18 "What Day Is It?"
What Day is It?
Dearly beloved, today is the day that man does the judging, but there is another day coming when the Lord Jesus Christ will do the judging according to God’s Word. The Father committed all judgment unto His Son.
Today we enjoy the effect of his work of redemption, but his work is not yet finished. He has accomplished the work of justifying us from sin’s reign over us. He freed us from the guilt and condemnation of sin by his work, and on the day of Christ he will return to execute the authority His Father gave him and deliver us from the presence of sin.
The Lord Jesus Christ will transform our mortal bodies to be like his glorious body by the energizing power by which he is able to subdue all things to himself. He will transform both those who are living and those who have died to have bodies like his glorious body.
Jesus Christ was the first to claim the victory over death. Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory over death through our Lord Jesus Christ!
As the Father has life in Himself so He has given the Son to have life in himself. The first man Adam was made a living soul. The last Adam, Jesus Christ, became a life-giving spirit.
The Lord Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him That sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”
The Father has given him the authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man. The Father judges no man, but He has committed all judgment unto the Son.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/3/18 "The Truth Will Make You Free"
The Truth Will Make You Free
Dearly beloved, I remember the day I first heard the Word of truth; it was unlike anything else I had ever heard; furthermore it worked.
I was taking a class on comparative religion in college at the time, taught by a professor who was a Dr. of Philosophy, and a Baptist minister that had converted to Hinduism. I left the class every day frustrated, confused, and wondering if there was any such thing as truth that was absolute and certain; if there was anything I could count on and that did not change from one class to the next.
During this same period, someone shared God’s Word with me and ministered healing to me. I was miraculously healed as I was told to act on the promise of God shared with me. For the first time in my life I knew what the truth was; it sparked a fire inside me.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/2/18 "Independence Day"
Independence Day
Dearly beloved, Independence Day is just around the corner. Although we celebrate July the fourth as Independence Day, the Continental Congress voted on July 2 and declared that the thirteen colonies were the United States of America and signed the Declaration of our independence from the British Empire.
When you study history or travel around the world you will come to truly appreciate the freedoms we enjoy every day in our nation. Sadly, history is being revised and removed from our educational institutions. You will not find another nation that enjoys the freedoms we take for granted.
Despite this, dearly beloved, in Christ we are much more free than that of any earthly citizenship. We are free from the reign of sin and death and the bondage of the law given under the Old Covenant. We were freed from the tyrant that ruled over us. We must stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ made us free.
Read more ...Dearly Beloved 7/1/18 "The Place of Mercy"
The Place of Mercy
Dearly beloved, God made righteousness available through Jesus Christ and his accomplishments.
Romans 3:21-24
But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by the faith [pistis: believing] of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For there is no difference [between Judean and Gentile]: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
God justified us from the sin of Adam and its condemnation freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Jesus Christ accomplished our redemption by his believing; by his believing to fulfill all that was written regarding him as the Savior and Redeemer.
What does “justify” mean? It means to set forth as righteous, to justify by a judicial act according to His standard for justice. God established His standard for justice and Jesus Christ fulfilled it.
Read more ...