Isaiah 63:1-6 says, "Who is this who comes from Edom, with garments of glowing colors from Bozrah, this One who is majestic in His apparel, marching in the greatness of His strength?  'It is I who speak in righteousness, mighty to save.'  Why is Your apparel red, and Your garments like the one who treads in the wine press?  'I have trodden the wine trough alone, and from the peoples there was no man with Me.  I also trod them in My anger and trampled them in My wrath; and their lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments, and I stained all My raiment.  For the day of vengeance was in My heart, and My year of redemption has come.  I looked, and there was no one to help, and I was astonished and there was no one to uphold; so My own arm brought salvation to Me, and My wrath upheld Me.  I trod down the peoples in My anger and made them drunk in My wrath, and I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.'" (NASB)

Now, I want to make something quite clear about this passage.  This passage is not for those who are in Christ Jesus; for those who have trusted in Jesus for there only hope of sins being forgiven then you have absolutely nothing to worry about.  This passage is specifically for those who continue to rebel against God.  Now, as believers, we need to take up every opportunitiy to take the gospel message out to those who continue to reject it; they must know what is going to happen to them if they continue the life they are living.

Isaiah paints a pretty grim picture of the wrath of God.  God is not joking around when He says that He will trample them in His wrath.  He will trample them like grapes being made ready for wine.  God is holy and just; He can't allow sin to go on forever.  He is only gracious and merciful to keep you (those who unbelieve) alive so that you may have more opportunities to learn more about Him.  This is where we, us Christians, come in; we are to witness and testify to the grace of Christ in our lives.  May we learn to do this with boldness and with the Spirit of Christ oozing out of every word we speak.  I urge you unbeliever to please turn to God; see your wickedness and see that Christ is the only hope for a perfect relationship with your Creator.  Don't continue to reject His grace and His love because one day it will end and the Judgment of God will be poured out upon you.  You will then be trampled in the wrath of God.

I hope that this is not what you want and I hope that this is not the reason for coming to Christ.  I hope that the reason you want to come to Christ is because you want to worship Him and serve Him.  Because Christ is the only one deserving of all of our praise and all of the glory we bring to Him.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask them I will be happy to answer them.  Please don't put this off, do this today for we don't know what will happen tomorrow.  I hope that today, tonight, will be your day of Salvation and I hope that today will be the day that believers in Jesus Christ will be bold in sharing the grace of Jesus to others.  God Bless!

Isaiah 62:1-5 says, "For Zion's sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not keep quiet, until her righteousness goes forth like brightness, and her salvation like a torch that is burning.  The nations will see your righteousness, and all kings your glory; and you will be called by a new name which the mouth of the LORD will designate.  You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.  It will no longer be said to you, 'Forsaken,' nor to your land will it any longer be said, 'Desolate'; but you will be called, 'My delight is in her,' and your land, 'Married'; for the LORD delights in you, and to Him your land will be married.  For as a young man marries a virgin, so your sons will marry you; and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so your God will rejoice over you." (NASB)

This portion of Scripture is Isaiah telling the Israelites that one day they will be favored above all other nations.  They will be no longer desolate and wasted but they will be a crown and diadem in the LORD's hand.  They will receive all the glorious blessings and riches of the nations when Christ reigns on earth.  Isaiah specifically meant this passage for the Israelites and God meant us to remember the Israelites in prayer.  To help them with prayer is the best thing we can do for them.  The most amazing about all of this is that in spite of all that they have done they are still favored and delighted by God.

In the NT, over and over, God has made it clear that we who are the Gentiles or the wild branch are grafted into the tree and that the natural branch has been cut off temporarily.  Right now, we have the opportunity to experience some of the same blessings as Israel.  Now, I believe that one day Israel will be grafted back in and that we will both share some of the same blessings forever.  Right now, we are both favored and delighted in.  What a great thing to think about!  Live for God because He delights in you and He rejoices over you.  He is so happy that we are His and that we have a relationship with Him.  This happiness is not there because He needs more happiness but because He has brought us from the dominion of darkness and into the Kingdom of His dear Son.

I hope this encourages us all who are in Christ; encourages us to live to the fullest.  Rejoice for He has graced us with so many blessings and pray for Israel that they may soon find the peace of God.

I was surfing through Xanga Blogrings and came across this link for a movie on God Tube.

Please view this movie, it has a very powerful message to each one of us about the marvelous grace and power of Jesus Christ.  Watch and continue to be amazed at our Wonderful Savior.  Remember it is only a dramatization, so it is done by humans.  But, it strikes to the very heart of the matter of life and death.  Watch and Worship our Lord Jesus Christ.

http://www.godtube.com/view_video?viewkey=ee73e63418003b47d7d5

Please leave comments on my site and tell me what you think!  I would like to know what everybody's opinion of it was!  I hope it uplifts you and challenges you to live more like Him!  God Bless!

Isaiah 60:18-20 says, "Violence will not be heard again in your land, nor devastation or destruction within your borders; but you will call your walls salvation, and your gates praise.  No longer will you have the sun for light by day, nor for brightness will the moon give you light; but you will have the LORD for an everlasting light, and your God for your glory.  Your sun will no longer set, nor will your moon wane; for you will have the LORD for an everlasting light, and the days of your mourning will be over. (NASB)

A Glorious Future!  What a marvelous thing to think about what we will see and experience in heaven!  If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, please take some time to bask and imagine what the new heaven and the new earth will be like.  We have a wonderful hope and future.  I pray that we will worship Him even more for all that He will give to us in the future.  Praise the Lord because the natural things of this world will be done away with; we won't need sun or moon to light our way because our Lord God will provide that.  Devastation and destruction will not occur anymore because there will be perfect peace in the Eternal State.  Rejoice for the precious gift that was so freely given to us at the cross and grave.  Christ provided redemption and reconciliation on the cross; Christ provided eternal life with Him through rising from the grave.

If you are struggling with life and need a refresher course, think about the new heaven and the new earth.  Rest in the fact that you will have perfect peace in every way in the next life.  Try to carry on and persevere through life's trials and He will see you through them and He will bring you to a peaceful life one day.  God is faithful to complete you until you are ready for the day of Christ.  You will be ready for the day of Christ because we are His children and He is a faithful Father.  Trust in Him and rejoice in the glorious future that we have.

Ephesians 4:11-16 says, "And He gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.  Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love." (ESV)

I've been studying this book for a couple of weeks now for my New Testament reading.  I'm still in Isaiah for my Old Testament reading and I will be blogging more about that book in the days to come.  I just want to stress a really important point about how we are growing in Christ.  My point is that we all, as Christians, need to be growing as a unit of believers; we need to act like a smoothly running body of Christ.  In our local churches and ministries, we need to cooperate with each other, without apostasy, to accomplish what Christ has called us to do.  As brothers and sisters in Christ, we should be 'joined and held together by every joint' so that we can truly demonstrate love to other parts of the body and to the world who are watching.  May we mature in our faith so that we are not tossed about by every wind of doctrine like a sail boat sailing in the raging seas.

I pray that those who are leaders of ministries and churches that you would be mature in the faith, and that you would be using the tools God has given you to equip us for the ministry.  Leaders and ministers of the faith should always have a goal to replace themselves with someone that God has called.  We all should be leading and guiding believers in Christ to be able to do the work of the ministry.

I pray that the rest of us, who are not leaders, will allow our hearts and minds be changed into what God wants us to be.  We should always be willing to change our direction in life if that is what God wants.  As laymen in ministries, we must train ourselves and strengthen ourselves, with the help of mentors, so that we may be able to do the work of the ministry.  I pray that we would learn about God in such a way that we are firmly planted upon the Rock of our salvation; so that when the storms of life comes we are ready and we will not be tossed about by obstacles and false doctrines.

Grow Up in the Knowledge of God Through His Word and Through His Ministry Leaders.  Become involved in What God Has for You to Do; Do What God Has Equipped and Gifted You to Do!  Serve Him!

Isaiah 59:1-8 says, "Behold, the LORD'S hand is not so short that it cannot save; nor is His ear so dull that it cannot hear.  But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.  For your hands are defiled with blood and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken falsehood, your tongue mutters wickedness.  No one sues righteously and no one pleads honestly they trust in confusion and speak lies; they conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity.  They hatch adders' eggs and weave the spider's web; he who eats of their eggs dies, and from that which is crushed a snake breaks forth.  Their webs will not become clothing, nor will they cover themselves with their works; their works are works of iniquity, and an act of violence is in their hands.  Their feet run to evil, and they hasten to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity, devastation and destruction are in their highways.  They do not know the way of peace, and there is no justice in their tracks; they have made their paths crooked, whoever treads on them does not know peace." (NASB)

In this passage, the prophet Isaiah is talking to the people of Israel about how they are living their lives.  He is frustrated with the life of sin that Isaiah's people (God's people) are following; Isaiah and God is tired of the people running to evil when they could just as easily run to their Deliverer.  God is tired of them having iniquity in every thought and destruction in every footstep.  He wants His people to forsake this life and forsake this way of iniquity; God wants them to live life in unison with His will.  Israel in this passage is exhorted to follow after the ways of God and to be at peace.  The only way for Israel to have a life of peace is to forsake their life of sin and live for the One who truly matters.  They need to live consistent lives in holiness.

The same can be said for us Christians in 2007.  It is so easy for us to see sin as something pleasurable and become "trapped" in the pit of destruction.  It seems that we very easily dig ourselves a hole, a hole big enough we think we can never escape.  But we all know that Scripture tells us different, this pit and this hole are escapable.  We just need to remember that we are no longer bound to the flesh and that we don't have to do the things our flesh, the world, and the devil is telling us to do.  We are no longer bound to the sin we commit in the past, in the present, or in the future (Romans 6).  As Christians, we need to live in such a way that it is consisitent with what God wants.  He will only hear us and deliver us when our heart is right and we seek to do His will.  Our lives need to refrain from the temporary pleasures of this world.  We need to steer clear of evil and sin; our paths should not be characterized by 'running to evil'.  I pray that each one of us will live so that we are characterized as 'running with God'.

Let us strive to find what God wants out of our lives by reading His word and praying for His guidance in life.  We need to set up permanent disciplines to study what God wants and to do it.  Let us strive to keep our communion with God strong and vibrant; for when we sin that communion is weakened because God can't be with sin.  He want to help us and save us from wickedness but we need to do our part.  I'm again not talking about perfection because that is impossible for us alone to acheive; perfection only comes in heaven.  But we need to live in such a way that others see that we seek to obey God; we seek to serve Him with our whole lives.  Let us all work on keeping our lives consistent with God's Word and to obey whatever He commands us to do.

HOW ARE YOU LIVING YOUR LIFE?

For several blogs, I have dealt with a very easy topic to talk about; the grace of God, the mercy He shows to His people everyday.  This has been discussed because it is important to be aware of this free gift of grace; not only to be aware but to be grateful.  Isaiah for the past several weeks has been harping on this wonderful quality of God; but tonight I want to deal with something different something that I've been thinking about.

In a book of sermons by Jonathan Edwards, there is a sermon I've been reading for a couple of days.  This sermon is called The Justice of God in the Damnation of Sinners.  It is a very powerful sermon and it is a very fearful sermon.  This sermon brings fear to my heart because it speaks of what I once was and it speaks of the state I was in.  It speaks of the hopelessness of the sinner's life and it speaks of the terrible-ness of God's wrath.

Jonathan Edwards speaks very vividly about God; how it would be just and fair for Him to just cut us off and damn us for all eternity.  If we were left to ourselves, we would be in serious trouble; without the grace of God we are in a terrible state.  I want to make it clear that it is all of our doing and that we are enemies of God; we are the ones who rebelled against His sovereign rule over life.  We are also the ones who have brought judgment upon ourselves because of our actions.

I think that there is a quote in this sermon that applies to our lives everyday as believers in Jesus Christ.  For those who are unbelievers, I think it can't apply to you because you don't realize what you are doing; Satan is blinding you and keeping you from realizing your rebellion against God.  I don't think an unbeliever can realize the hurt his or her sin has on the Trinity.  On page 161 in the Sermons of Jonathan Edwards we read, "And there are wickednesses without number or measure.  There are breaches of every command, in thought, word, and deed: a life full of sin; days and nights filled up with sin; mercies abused and frowns despised; mercy and justice, and all the divine perfections, trampled on; and the honor of each person in the Trinity trod in the dirt."

The point of this blog is to help all of us to wake up to the fact that if we continue in sin, it only brings dishonor to each person of the Trinity; it is abusing the divine perfections and mercies that are so generously given to us.  May we, as Christians, live life that brings honor to the Trinity and not dishonor.  I'm not talking about a life of perfection, for that is not going to happen til we are in heaven, but we need to live a consistent life; truly seeking to do His will in every area of life.

I also want to send out a message to those who are not a part of the Family of God.  God is a righteous, just God and He will pour out His judgment upon those who continue to reject His perfect grace that is freely given.  Please don't live life thinking you are going to get away with what you are doing; BECAUSE YOU WON'T!  God sees what you are doing right now and wants you to come to Him; He wants to show you mercy and grace.  He wants to forgive you for what you have done.  He also wants your worship.  God is a jealous God and demands worship; come to worship Him for He is the only one worthy of all worship.  He is dishonored when we allow other things to take the place of Him, no matter how 'noble' it seems to our human minds.  Please don't waste time in the temporary pleasures of sin; come to God for He is the only place to find fulfilling and permanent pleasures.

If you have any questions about what I have written, please feel free to ask.  I would welcome them and welcome any constructive comments you have about this blog.  For the believer, I hope you grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  For the unbeliever, I hope that your eyes and heart will be opened, by the Holy Spirit, to the futility of your ways and the wisdom of having a personal relatiosnhip with an Almighty God.  God Bless!

Today, I would like to ask a very important question.  Who will you live your life for?  Will you live for yourself, for the world, or for God?  Anything other than God is futile and idol worship because anything that is more important, in life, than God it is an idol.  I don't care what that thing is it is an idol when it becomes more important than God.

Isaiah 57:11-13 makes it very clear what is most important and makes it clear that idolatry is not the way to go.  This passage says, "Of whom were you worried and fearful when you lied, and did not remember Me nor give Me a thought?  Was I not silent even for a long time so you do not fear Me?  I will declare your righteousness and your deeds, but they will not profit you.  When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you.  But the wind will carry all of them up, and a breath will take them away.  But he who takes refuge in Me will inherit the land and will possess My holy moutain." (NASB)

May I strongly urge you to reflect upon your life and decide where you are right now.  Take stock of yourself, are you living for self or other things other than God; please take steps to change this persepctive.  If you don't have a personal relationship with God, please turn to Him because everything else is futile and like the wind.  All things are easily destroyed by the mere force of a breath.  Rest in God as your refuge and He will provide and bless you beyond belief.  Live life obediently for Him; not so much to please Him but to glorify His name.  We can never earn His favor; that's why His grace is freely given to us.  We don't have to worry about pleasing or earning favor with Him.  We just need to remember that our lives are a reflection of His glory and we need to live life as a mirror reflecting to those who are in the dark.

Break away from the idols, break away from other things that seem more important than God.  These things never will last; but God lasts forever and wants us to live forever.  In the end, we are going to get what He wants; we will be able to dwell with Him forever and ever.  Rejoice with me in that today if you are a believer in Jesus Christ.  If you are not a believer of Jesus Christ, again I strongly urge you to come to Him and seek His forgiveness.  Find a church and a Bible that will help you to open your eyes to your need.  Once you have found that fulfillment in life, please continue on living for Him because He is totally worth it all.

IDOLS ARE FOOLISH! GOD IS WISE! SERVE HIM! ITS THE BETTER CHOICE!

Today, I have read passages in the Word that really have proclaimed the wonders of God's favor upon people who are not truly, naturally His chosen people.  The heathen, or Gentiles which so many of us who are not Jewish are, have so much to hope in; we have so much to praise the LORD for.

Isaiah 56:2-8 says, "How blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who takes hold of it; who keeps from profaning the sabbath, and keeps his hand from doing any evil.  Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the LORD say, 'The LORD will surely separate me from His people' nor let the eunuch say, 'Behold, I am a dry tree.'  For thus says the LORD, 'To the eunuchs who keep My sabbaths, and choose what pleases Me, and hold fast My covenant, to them I will give in My house and within My walls a memorial, and a name better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name which will not be cut off.  Also the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, to minister to Him, and to love the name of the LORD, to be His servants, every one who keeps from profaning the sabbath and holds fast My covenant; even those I will bring to My holy mountain and make them joyful in My house of prayer their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on My altar; for My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples.  The Lord GOD, who gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares, 'yet others I will gather to them, to those already gathered.'" (NASB)

This passage is so clear about our relationship with God and how it needs to be more and more in line with His holy standards.  We are given an everlasting name and God will make a memorial with us because He sees beyond the racial issues; He sees the deep-down.  God through His grace demonstrated His love to us through His Son; Jesus Christ sealed for us our inheritance that we will receive in heaven.  Rejoice in the greatness of our God and follow in His precepts.  Don't take His grace and love for granted; treat yourself and others like they are children of the King.  Pray for people; meet other people's needs.  Glorify God with your life; you may never repay for all He has done for you, but continue to live steadfastly for Him no matter what happens in your life.  Stay strong in what you know and in what God has given you.

I hope this passage in Ephesians will help make clear as to what I'm talking about.  Read with care:

I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might (Ephesians 1:16-19 ESV)

Isaiah 55:1-5 says, "Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money come, buy and eat.  Come buy wine and milk without money and without cost.  Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy?  Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in abundance.  Incline your ear and come to Me.  Listen, that you may live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, according to the faithful mercies shown to David.  Behold, I have made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples.  Behold, you will call a nation you do not know, and a nation which knows you not will run to you, because of the LORD your God, even the Holy One of Israel; for He has glorified you." (NASB)

Isaiah is so full of the wonderful grace of God; there are so many passages that affirm the everlasting mercy and compassion of God over His people and children.  This passage in the 55th chapter is no different; how amazing to know that we can come to God at anytime and He will take us into His arms to supply every need.  God will meet all the things we need when we humbly come to Him for our refuge.  The amazing thing too is that despite all of our rebellions against Him; He still seeks to glorify His people above all other creatures on earth.  God wants us to drop the rebellion and life of sin to turn to the one who will meet our needs.  In the future, when all life is over, we have an even greater hope of abundance with Him.  We will truly have life to full when we are living in the new heavens and the new earth.

Flee from your sin, flee from the futility of your ways, and come cling to the one who loves you.  The One who will show His everlasting grace and mercy to us.  He wants all who are thirsty and hungry to come and have your fill on what satisfies; not on things that are like sawdust in the mouth.

COME ALL WHO ARE WEARY AND THIRSTY AND BE SATISFIED WITH HIS MERCY AND GOODNESS!!!