2 Peter 1:3 “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.”

John 3:6 “In reply, Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again.”

2 Corinthians 5:21 “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

1 Peter 1:22-23″Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart. 23 For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but to imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.”

Where does true change in us come from? Some would say it is simply an act of one’s will to do or be better. We can think positively, and our actions will change. Most of the time, it does not last. Some manage long-term changes in behavior, but for the most part, a person will eventually fall back into their old ways. I think people call this. “The Power of Positive Thinking.” Many assume by just being good they will automatically gain access to heaven and the Kingdom of God. Sorry to be the one to burst your bubble and tell you this, but that is a lie from the enemy of your soul; Satan is speaking lies into you making you think you are okay, that God is not serious about the way to heaven.

The word of God however tells us exactly how we can achieve true change, and access to the Kingdom of God. We must be born again, we must repent of our sins, (turn away from, go a different direction), and we must ask the Lord Jesus Christ into our hearts and allow him to be the Lord of our lives. There is NO OTHER WAY! And the power to change does not come from within us, it comes from the fountain of God’s own glory and goodness, as we read in the passage above (2 Peter 1:3).

We do not have the resources to be truly Godly, but God allows us to “participate in His divine nature.” Participating in His divine nature can keep us from sin and help us live for him in a world that says otherwise and is constantly trying to pull us away. God by His Spirit empowers us with His own goodness. Did you hear that? God imparts to us “His Goodness” and He is truly good in all ways and at all times!

In John 3:6 Jesus clearly stated that “No one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again.” So, there is no “positive thinking, no self-change, no self-improvement” that can get you into heaven. Our best efforts fall eternally short outside of Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:21 tells us that God made Jesus who knew no sin to be sin for us. Jesus took our penalty on the cross, bled, and died for us, so that when we come to him in repentance, ask him into our hearts, and are born again, then and only then do we “become the righteousness of God.”

1 Peter 1:22-23 tells us that once we have purified ourselves by obeying the truth we are free to have sincere love for others a love that comes from a heart made pure by the power of God. The Holy Spirit changes us and grows us daily. True change occurs from within when we are born again.

Don’t allow Satan to trick you into thinking you can be good enough on your own. You cannot. Romans 7:18 “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.” Without Christ’s help, sin is stronger than we are. We need the power of the Holy Spirit in us to stand against the attacks of the enemy and the sin that so easily besets us.

I pray today that as you come into this New Year, your hearts will be made new by the power of God. That you who do not yet know Christ as Savior and Lord will come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, repent of your sins, and surrender your will to His. And for those of us who do may you lean ever closer into the Lord and allow him to use you to be a light in a dark world, to truly love others, deny yourself, and take up your cross daily for the cause of Christ. Let us each desire to live more fully for the Lord!

May the world see Jesus in us in all we do and say!

Hebrews 9:28 “So, Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him, He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.”

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.”

Revelation 1:7 “Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.”

2 Peter 3:10 “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.”

As Christians, we are to be eagerly awaiting Christ’s return, not linking arms with the world and its beliefs. Jesus has saved us from our sins if we have called on the name of Christ and believe that He is who He says He is, and have repented of our sins and been born-again into His kingdom.

When we spend more time in the world and are caught up in the lies it tells us, then we have lost our focus. As His children, we are to constantly be aware that at any time Christ could return. It tells us He will come as a thief in the night. No warning, one minute we will be doing life as we always do, and the next, He will come. There will be no time to make things right! This is not going to be something that happens without the knowledge of every person. He says He will come with a shout of the archangel and a trumpet of God, and that EVERY EYE WILL SEE HIM!
We are not just going to disappear and the world be left wondering what happened to us, they will know that it is too late for them, they missed it.

He will first gather those who have died in Christ, those sleeping in their graves will rise first, and then those of us still living will suddenly be with him in the air. Isn’t that the most wonderful thing you have ever heard? We will suddenly have our faith made sight!

This earth is going to pass away, it will be burned up. Knowing all this shouldn’t we as His children be eagerly awaiting our returning King? Shouldn’t we spend our time living right, shaking off the dust of this dead and dying world? We walk in faith. And what is faith? Hebrews 11:1-3 tells us this: “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was framed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.” Assurance and anticipation are what faith is. There is a secure beginning and a sure end.

We have read in God’s word how he formed all that we know and see. We have read how he bled and died for sinners such as you and me. We have heard how he ascended to heaven to sit at the Father’s right hand, and just as surely as He ascended He will also descend again, to take His children with Him to rule and reign forever and ever.

If you are too mesmerized by the world, its politics, and passions, then it is time to refocus. As His child, you need to read and pray and search your heart and mind often, asking God to forgive you and give you a heart that desires Him above all else. Be sure that you are saved, one day you will not get another chance. Today is the day of salvation!

Get your heart right before God, let your relationship with Him be the drumbeat of this life so that you can spend the next with him!

Look up, your redemption draweth near!

Psalm 139:7-10 “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”

God is omnipresent-which means he is present everywhere at all times. There is not a second that goes by on this earth that God is not in it. Because this is so, you can never be lost to his Spirit. What good news this is to believers. No matter where we go or what we do, we can never be far from God’s comforting presence.

In Romans 8:35-39 we read: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: “For your sake, we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

In the past Christians were persecuted and even killed in horrible ways, Paul’s hypothetical situations would be turned into painful realities. Even today Christians are experiencing different types of persecution. The more the devil controls people in the world, the less Christianity is looked upon favorably. We are becoming the hated group. These passages reaffirm God’s love for His people. No matter what happens to us, or where we may go, God is present and holding us. We can’t be abandoned by God. We have already read in Psalm 139 that God is omnipresent. Wherever we are, He is in the midst of it all. These passages bring us so much peace, knowing we are never left to face illness, death, persecution, or any other thing in this life by ourselves. We are not even alone in our sin. Whatever sin we find ourselves in as God’s children, he is present with us. What a thought, and reminder.

God sees and knows everything you do, even your thoughts and the intent of your heart. I find this both comforting and scary. It makes me want to take a good long look at myself and rid myself of anything that displeases my Lord and Savior. I want to be pleasing to God in all I do, say, and think. People want to think that they can engage in secret sins; but not true, those around you may not know, but not only does God know, but he was there with you. What a sobering thought, what a scary thought. Even in those moments, God is holding you, calling you back to repentance.

The next time you think some random bad thing has happened, or you read a news story that unsettles you, remember this, God is Sovereign and in control. There is NOTHING that happens without first being filtered through his loving hands. God allows evil, hurt, death, illness, persecution, trials, and tests of every kind to fulfill His purposes and to make us ready for His soon return. He is refining us in the fire, ridding us of all those earthly things that must fall away from us. We need to hate what God hates and love what God loves. What are these things? Read your Bible and you will know.

Time is growing short my friends, it is time to get serious about your relationship with the Lord. Every word in the Bible is true, it tells us what we must do to be saved; it tells us how to conduct ourselves once we are saved; it tells us of God’s faithfulness and mercy, his keeping power, his Sovereignty over ALL THINGS. Whatever question you have, HIS WORD IS THE ANSWER!

I pray we each will read and pray more. That we each will examine our hearts and lives for anything that displeases God, and that we each as His children will be found living our lives obeying His will and way, ready at any moment for His return.

Remember- you cannot hide from God, there is no place he is not; and no matter what you face, you are not alone, He is with you!

Blessings!