Tag Archives: Faith

Being Strong in the Power of His Might

Posted by D.L.Fuller on
footstool 2

Isaiah 66:1
Thus saith the Lord, “The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool…”

I was asked by a brother recently for help understanding the Apostle Paul’s thorn in the flesh, spoken of in 2 Corinthian’s 12:7-10. When looking at this block of scripture, I have found that conversation often looms around what the thorn was, however it is not as important as why the thorn was there. The “Why” is always more important than the “What”. We look at certain frailties as deficiencies but it is often those frailties that keep us safe. People often talk about the strength of trees like the oak but never mention the palm tree, however the palm tree can survive much stronger storms than the oak, because it bends and bows with the wind. Our frailties often cause us to bend and bow to GOD, who is the true source of our strength. Many people trusting in their own prowess have fallen because they wouldn’t bow to the principles of GOD.

GOD revealed to the Apostle Paul that His strength was perfected in weakness. Based on that revelation, we should reconsider how we view our weaknesses and what we consider perfect to be. Your Creator new what he was doing when he fashioned you, with your particular strengths and weaknesses. You are made perfectly for what you are called to do. In humility, we have to surrender both our strengths and weaknesses to GOD. GOD is greatest in our lives when we live surrendered to His ability through us, instead of leaning on our own limited abilities. We are in a better position to succeed when we stay in close proximity to Him, in acknowledgement of our weakness, than when we venture away from Him in self-confidence on account of our strengths.

If people had their way, they would all be like the fictional superman, but there is a reason GOD allows man’s thorns. The first reason is that learning to love one another and building godly character is more important than anything else, because NOTHING is sustainable without the principles of Love. We learn love best through understanding relationships. Virtuous interrelationship is the dynamic of life. Learning how to virtuously interact with one another through relationship teaches us the principles of Love. If it were not for frailties, pride in selfish ignorance would keep us divided and unfulfilled. This is why Yeshua taught that the rich seldom enter the Kingdom of Heaven, because they often believe their relationship to money is more important than any other.

The second reason is because GOD has to get all the glory, because He alone is the source of life. Our allegiance, devotion, focus has to remain with GOD, first and foremost. If we are to be of any real benefit to our loved ones or the world in general, it will come from our virtuous interrelation with GOD. If we put our trust in a person because we thought our lives hinged on them, the focus on them would hinder us from reflecting the light of GOD meant to lead others to Him. GOD commands us against idolatry for our own good, and everything exalted against GOD will be brought down.

When YAHWEH is your hero you don’t need your own super powers. Anytime you experience weakness in your life, embrace it as an opportunity to encounter the strength of your Creator in a new way. He wants to show you the strength derived from interrelation with Him, to establish greater intimacy with Him and greater fulfillment through Him. I believe this dynamic is what was behind the intrepid exploits of the Apostle Paul, and also the inspiration behind what he wrote in 2 Corinthians 12:10, “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.” So, do not shy away or be deterred when you find yourself faced with a situation which seems greater than you, see it as an opportunity to grow in your relationship with GOD, which will inevitably strengthen you and bring him glory.

 

Knowing the Right Direction Begins With Knowing Where You Are

Posted by D.L.Fuller on

U R Here

You cannot properly plan for your future or plot a correct course for your life, until you have your bearings on where you are. By “where you are,” I am referring to an understanding of your current strengths and weaknesses based on the standards of your Creator; Understanding your values in reference to the mandates of Love; and understanding what you can control and influence in the whole apparatus of your life. Without a grasp on these components of your life, you are ill-prepared to identify a destiny suitable for yourself. There is a plague of narcissism infecting society today which has people’s focus locked on what everyone else has done to impact them, with no sense of what they have done to impact others or themselves. This lack of self-awareness stunts personal growth for the individual, and blocks the development of empathy and unity in the community.

There is one missing element in a person’s life that makes them vulnerable to the state described above, the lack of an ongoing intimate exchange between a person’s soul and the Spirit of GOD. The Holy Spirit is the lamp of GOD in the soul, bringing true awareness to the conditions of the soul, and supplying the strength needed to commit to corrective actions by providing the soul direction, hope, and comfort.  What avails us this opportunity is the death blow to Leviathan by the cross. Leviathan is described in the bible as the King which rules over all of those held captive by pride.  Pride will not allow a person to surrender control of their life to anyone other than themselves. A person ruled by pride is  controlling and tormented by fears.

Only the perfect love of Christ is able dethrone Leviathan and break the power of pride. The love of Christ frees the heart of people from fears, enabling them to trust someone outside of themselves. They become open to accepting the rule of GOD in their lives. The rule of GOD establishes the standards which set a clear path for growth and fulfillment. Reliance on GOD is a firm foundation to building your view of yourself and the world as a whole. This is at the root of the proverb which says, “Commit your ways unto the Lord, and your thoughts will be established.” It is also evident in the proverb which says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding, and in all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path.” Through trusting the counsel of the Lord, you are able to make sound plans for your life which will bring deep fulfillment.

Don’t Get Lost in Space

Posted by D.L.Fuller on

the thinker 4

The act of thinking by itself is like a spacecraft with no navigational instruments. Just by thinking, one can end up lost in the vast dark regions between the left and right ear. When people hear the phrase “lost in space”, the mind immediately goes to the vast nebulas and voids of outer space, but the space between our ears is even more expansive. The space that people get lost in the most is the void of the mind. Scientist talk about the powerful gravity of black holes however it is what you think that has the biggest influence on which direction you move in. People spend far too much time searching the ether when what really is needed is some analysis of the area right where they are. Contrary to what a lot of people believe, you don’t have to travel around the world to find yourself. You are right where you are. The question is how much do you know about where you are and how you got there.

Your own thinking didn’t bring you into this world or give you life, so why do you put so much stock into what you think. Much greater than what you think is the Truth. The Truth has always been and governs everything that is. The Truth is the only light that lightens the mind. The Truth is what allows us to see ourselves and know where we are, where we have been, and where we are going. Thinking is the process of applying Truth to our lives. You can’t think until you know the Truth. Without Truth, you have nothing to reflect on or to regard. This is why the bible teaches that the Fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. You are not ready to receive knowledge until you humble yourself in acceptance of a Supreme being that created all things, irrespective of your thoughts and opinions.

People who say they do not “know”, have never heard from GOD. People who say they cannot “know” don’t believe they can hear from GOD. If you have heard from GOD, then you should “know” what you heard, and that the knowledge is Truth, and that Truth is Light. Once you have Light, then you can begin to see.

The Word of GOD is recorded in John 9:39 saying, “For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.”

The difference between the two is pride and humility. The prideful refuses to acknowledge their total dependency on GOD, and remain in darkness. The humble acknowledges that their being is the working of GOD and releases ownership of themselves, and their eyes are opened. Any person soberly looking at their beginning to life must understand that dependency on a greater power is the path of development. Not one human that has lived beyond infancy has developed without dependency on someone greater.  GOD shows us the end from the beginning. There are so many lessons to be learned from the Creator, through all He has made. However, one must first humbly accept that a Supreme being is responsible for creation and become subordinate.  This understanding is captured in Romans 1:20, “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:”.

There is a deep calling in man to know and understand where he fits in with everything, from the depths of the ocean, to the deepest parts of outer space. There is very little comfort in the theories his thinking has produced. In the end, all evidence leads to GOD. If a person is prideful and refuses to submit to Truth, there is nothing left for him but darkness. If a person is humble and is willing to submit to Truth, he is filled with Light. In the book of Matthew 5:6 GOD tells us, “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.”

Righteousness is submitting to Truth so that it can be expressed through your life. Wickedness is the work of ignoring and repressing Truth. If obedience to GOD is not the result of all your thinking, you are just lost in space. I would like to end here with Holy Scripture from John 1: 1-14;

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.  He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”

 

Be A Masterbuilder

Posted by D.L.Fuller on

most-photographed-church

In the Kingdom of GOD, everything is built of the same material. Everything consist of Faith, Love, and Obedience. All structures are put together by the spirit; not by might nor by power. These three make up the material that must be used for every weight-bearing structure in our lives. Every structure we plan to use as a support or shelter. This covers our belief systems and life philosophies. The Lord will build upon no other foundation. We are holy to GOD and our lives are an altar for Him.

“Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:5)

When you study the Old Testament, you find that YAHWEH was very particular when giving instructions on how He wanted His altar built.

“An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.  And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.” (Exodus 20:24-25)

Often, YAHWEH gives us material to work with that seems impossible to create what is needed. Then He will follow it up with instructions that are counter intuitive…Humble yourself and you will be exalted, lose your life and you will find it, give it away and you will have more than you need. When we try to modify the material or instructions He gives us to work with, so that it makes since to us, the result is that we weaken the integrity of the structure. Only what YAHWEH builds can last forever and is strong enough to weather the storms of this life.

Let’s break down the divine building material of Faith, Love, and Obedience.

Love- Love is the expressed will of GOD. The beauty of love opens our hearts to possibilities by inspiring hope, particularly the hope of good things. Love plants the seeds that grow into faith.

Faith- There is so much in life we don’t understand. So many things that are beyond our control. So many things that can’t be seen with the eye or felt with the senses. With all these things that are indefinite to our physical awareness, we still have to live and carry on from day-to-day. Faith gives subsistence to things that are otherwise inconceivable. This enables us to see possibilities when others see no reason to hope.

Obedience- This is the readiness to carry out the actions inspired and motivated by love. It is submission to the governance of love.

These three are the material that make up the divine stones that the children of GOD build with. Many of the structures we see in the world today have been fabricated from far inferior material than Love, Faith, and Obedience. We see structures made from fear, lust, hate, and pride. On the outside, these structures can be just as beautiful and impressive as those made of the heavenly stones. The difference is when the storms of life come, these earthly fabricated structures crumble. They are also like homes built with asbestos and lead; the contaminants they are made of leak death. These earthly fabricated structures cannot sustain life.

“Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And everyone that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.” (Matt 7:24-27)

“For we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.”(1 Corinthians 3:9-14)

When you build based on the counsel and reasoning of man, this is inferior building material. Only the material made by YAHWEH is compliant with the building code of life. We must inspect all material we build with by the Word of YAHWEH. The bible says we are to try every spirit to see what sort it is; whether it be from GOD unto life, or from the deceiver unto death. We have to inspect ideas and counsel given to us to determine if it they can support life. We must see if they consist of the virtues of Love, and if they are founded in the faith and hope of GOD’s word. We must ask ourselves if the counsel or ideas violate obedience to GOD’s word. If the counsel or ideas fail this thorough inspection, we must reject it.

A key thing to remember is that your choice to obey surrenders your choice to choose what is good. What seems good does not equal the right thing to do. Remember, the just lives by faith, not by good reasoning. Therefore, we have to abide in the instruction of YAHWEH. “Trust in the Lord, with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways, acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path.” The paths of the Lord lead unto the way everlasting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Faith is not required of humanitarians, but it is for Christians.

Posted by D.L.Fuller on

humanitarian

I attended a bible study yesterday where we dug into the book of Galatians chapter 1. One of the issues that the Apostle Paul addresses in the chapter is the act of perverting of the Gospel of Christ. As we discussed that subject in the bible study and how it is still a problem today, someone asked, “Why do churches pervert the gospel?” This is an important question because to really embrace the solution you have to understand the problem. The problem stems from people interpreting the person of Christ and His gospel through their humanistic view point. Though YESHUA did things we consider humanitarian, His reasons and objectives went far deeper than just meeting basic human needs. Unfortunately, people’s humanistic orientation stops them from seeing the full person of YESHUA. It also stops them from grasping a full understanding of His gospel. The gospel of Christ will always create a healthy sense of hopelessness to the humanitarian or carnal viewpoint, as in Matthew 19:25, when His disciples ask, “Who then can be saved?” False doctrines come from men trying to humanize the gospel so that it fines wider acceptance. This does not minister the grace of GOD, it frustrates it. The grace of GOD comes in at that point of hopelessness and says, “with me, all things are possible”, which teaches us that we have to stop relying on ourselves and have faith in GOD. When was the last time you heard a sermon end with the words “go, and sin no more”?  Probably not ever, but it was how YESHUA closed ministry in the book of John chapters 5 and 8.

The enemy of doing what is right, is doing what we think is good. Doing what is right is a matter of faith and obedience, doing what is good is a matter of our own reasoning. Humanism is the enemy of righteousness. Humanism is focused on human values and secular concerns, while righteousness is focused on godly values and heavenly concerns. There is nothing humane about what was revealed in the book of Revelations, but it details a future we all need to be preparing for. Spend some time meditating in the book of Revelations and pay attention to the letters to the Churches. Our witness of YESHUA must reflect Him as Christ the King as well as the Lamb of GOD.

The Church needs to get away from “Febreze” Christianity. Today, Christians want to spray the blood of Christ like “Febreze” over the mess of everyone’s lives so that the smell is not as awful as it really is. I think people forget it’s not the smell that kills, rather it is the rotten hearts and deeds. Salvation is the power to save lives through “Changing” lives. That is the message that has been lost. Everyone smells good in church but people are still getting divorced, still being abused, still addicted to pornography and living in sexual immorality, still in love with the world. What we tolerate tends to proliferate. There is no fear of the Lord. That is what is missing today. There is even a false doctrine for “The fear of the Lord”. The humanistic doctrine says, “It’s a reverential fear.”

The grace of GOD is nothing less than the precious and costly blood of His dear son. The Church needs to move away from the “Febreze” mentality. Here is what New Testament scripture says to debunk the false and humanistic doctrine of “reverential fear of GOD”. Hebrew 10:28-31:

“He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

Those same hands are also gentle, kind, patient, merciful, healing, and life giving. Proverbs 19:23 says, “The fear of the Lord tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil.” Yahweh promises that if we humble ourselves, His hands will lift us out of trouble.

Where are you in HisStory?

Posted by D.L.Fuller on

Crowns

History is defined as a record of significant events ordered in units of time (Merriam Webster). Time is the lab for an experiment put on by YAHWEH. According to Merriam Webster, an experiment is a procedure carried out under controlled conditions to illustrate a known law. During the time of your sojourn here on earth, YAHWEH is trying to teach you some important universal laws pertaining to life. There are precautions throughout the bible regarding time. We are encouraged not to be idle, and to make the most of every moment.

time capture

This experiment in time is built around one main character, and it is not you. It is Yeshua, The Word of YAHWEH. The Holy One that came down from heaven in the flesh, and was sacrificed, and raised again from the dead, and ascended on high with the power of life and death. The whole bible is a testimony of YAHWEH’s faithfulness and love, centered around the person of Yeshua. When I ask where are you in HisStory, I am really asking, where are you in your understanding and knowledge of who He is in relation to you. Just to be clear, your understanding of Yeshua has nothing to do with who He is, because He is self-existent, but it has everything to do with who you are and the life you live, both now and forever.

If you are reading this, you are in one of three places in HisStory. YAHWEH made it simple for us. He gives us important information repetitively, in different forms and formats. The three locations are repeated in different formats and are specifically related to our time here on Earth. We are either in Egypt, the Wilderness, or the Promised Land.

Egypt is the place where we are dominated by an Evil ruler, and our lives are spent fulfilling and expressing his dark and evil will. The physical example of the evil ruler is Pharaoh of Egypt, following the death of Joseph. The actual spiritual oppressor in the world is Satan, as indicated in 2 Corinthians 4:4, and Revelations 12:9. When in the bondage of Egypt, your life revolves around clay, the dust of the earth, symbolic of carnal living. You are a slave to sin.

hebrew-slaves

The wilderness is a place away from Egypt, and beyond the dominion of the wicked ruler. It is where the opportunity is placed before us to pursue the life YAHWEH intended for us to live. A life in communion with Him. On the other hand, it is where we could decide to build our own kingdom, and refuse to be under any authority, and forsake our heritage as the people of YAHWEH, and live as a ruin of Egypt, unwilling to be cleansed of its clay. The physical example of the wilderness is the vast Wilderness of Sin referred to in Exodus 16:1. The spiritual Wilderness of Sin is in our soul, consisting of our heart and mind. It is the place that produces our perception and our actions.

The Promised Land is the place that we enter after we have accepted the covenant to live as YAHWEH’s people. In the Promised Land, we go about with the help of Yeshua, transforming everything in our lives into the Kingdom of YAHWEH; battling and casting down everything that resist His will. The physical Promised Land is the land of Canaan, on the other side of Jordan, depicted throughout Exodus chapter 3 as in verse 17. The spiritual promised land is our redeemed soul, consisting of our transformed mind and renewed heart. The process of taking this Promised Land is illustrated in 2nd Corinthians 10:3-6. Yahweh captured the physical Promised Land by using Joshua. The name “Joshua” is an English translation of the Hebrew name “Yeshua” and it means, “YAHWEH-Saves”. Since the New Testament was first translated into Greek, “Joshua” was translated into the Greek name “Ieasous”. “Jesus” is the English form of “Ieasous”. I prefer to use “Yeshua” when referring to my Savior, because it is a phonetic translation of the Hebrew original and it is a clear indication that He comes in the name of “YAHWEH”. I went through that just to show the link between the role of Joshua and Yeshua in HisStory. When you know this truth, it reveals repetition in HisStory and the harmony of the gospel.

So, given these descriptions, and being completely honest with yourself, you should be able to place yourself definitively in one of these three spaces. Though these are high level views of the three phases of our journey through earth-time, they are sufficient to establish everyone’s location. If after your reflection, you can identify your location, I want to offer counsel respective to each residence.

Egypt: Life in the flesh, the clay pits of Egypt, maybe all you know, but you were meant for so much more. There is sweeter and more abundant life waiting beyond the wilderness. The path through the wilderness may seem impossible, but the Heavenly Father will be with you every step of the way, just like He was with the children of Israel when they marched from Egypt. Egypt faced the wrath of YAHWEH and fell. Just as Pharaoh and his armies were drowned in the Red Sea, the blood of Christ has defeated Satan and his hordes. Accept the tender mercies of YAHWEH through the blood of the Passover lamb, and leave Egypt, or face the eventual wrath of YAHWEH as all those who oppose His Kingdom.

sinai-wilderness

The Wilderness: Learning to walk with YAHWEH in the spirit is hard on the flesh. If you stay focused on carnal things, your life will be just like living in a desert, there will never be enough to drink or eat. The conditions around you will never be enough. However, if while in the wilderness, you stop and ponder all the miracles YAHWEH has performed to keep you alive, you will see His goodness. This awareness of the glory of YAHWEH around you, will change your heart from being bitter to being grateful. You will be in awe of how He walks with you in the day and in the night. You will be blessed by the daily provisions for life that come from seemingly impossible places. This is where we accept the new covenant to become the people of YAHWEH. You will be born again from an Egyptian slave, to a child of YAHWEH’s Kingdom. Yahweh will invite you into His presence, and write His laws upon your heart, so that you can know His will and have sweet fellowship with His spirit. The journey through the wilderness is the cross we all must bear, in order to reach the Promised Land. Read 1 Corinthians 10 to understand the importance of focusing on YAHWEH through the wilderness.

Canaan Land

The Promised Land: The place where abundant life is possible. When you understand the effects of drought and famine, you know for a land to flow with milk and honey, life has to be abundant. The promised land is the Kingdom of YAHWEH, where there is righteousness, peace, and joy. It is a land filled with crops and vineyards we didn’t have to plant, and wells we didn’t have to dig. It is ours for the taking, the gift of YAHWEH to the people of His covenant. This is exactly what the life of Yeshua is to us. We get the benefits of His righteous life. We get to enjoy the spoils of battles that He has won. As the children of Israel followed Joshua to inherit the promised land, so do we follow Yeshua. Yeshua has rendered the enemies of our souls powerless. All we must do is accept His assessment of who the enemies are, then engage in battle, and cast them down. In the physical, the enemies were Hittites, Jebusites, and Canaanites and so on. In the spiritual, they are lust, greed, envy, hate, pride and so on. As we cast down these enemies in our souls, in their places comes righteousness, peace, and joy!

This time is all about Yeshua, not because you are not significant, but because you are! He loves you immensely, and desires for you to have life in abundance. Yeshua is the way, the Truth, and the Life, and He is exalted that all may find Him. During this experiment in time, it has been shown repetitively how corruption and death ensues when men forsake the laws of YAHWEH, and refuse to submit to His dominion. The faithfulness and goodness of YAHWEH has been shown repeatedly throughout HisStory. My sincere hope and prayer is that you find your place in the Promised land.

False Doctrine Can Be Like Cholesterol in the Body of Christ

Posted by D.L.Fuller on

Blocked Artery

In His zeal for His Father’s house, Christ went into the temple and made a scourge of cords, then proceeded to drive out the money changers and those that were in the temple selling sacrifices to be offered to GOD. As the account goes, Christ turned over some tables and made quite a ruckus while ridding the temple of this perversion of a sacred practice. We need to have the same zeal today regarding a lot of the perversions that go on in the church; however, we can’t approach it the same way, as the temple and the perversions are dynamically different. We are now the temple of GOD. GOD no longer dwells in a temple built by the hands of man, but in a temple made of living stones, the body of believers in Christ.

Christ promised that if any man would love Him, then He and His Father would come and make their home inside him. Christ still has the same zeal for His Father’s house, whom we are. He cleanses us by filling us with His Holy Word, and by delivering us from unclean principalities and powers. Christ comes into our souls with the light of truth, and topples belief systems built on foundations of lies, and drives out unclean spirits of lust, pride, greed, violence, and dumbness. One of the most damaging lies polluting the temple of GOD today is the belief that the Fathers children are all sinners. This lie has been received, with such wide-spread acceptance in the body of believers, that it is has become a major blocker of the arteries of the body. This lie is hindering the life of Christ from flowing into all areas of the body, hindering healing and growth. If as a born again believer, you bow down to the false principle that you are just a forgiven sinner, you leave the door open for sin to rule in your life. If you believe you are a sinner, then you will sin. GOD made us in such a way that our bodies conform to our belief. You may have heard it stated this way before, “Mind over matter”. If you accept that lie, you will always be vulnerable to the powers of lust and pride. You will remain a slave to sin. Though Pharaoh has been defeated, and his kingdom fallen, you will remain in Egypt, shackled to much of your old life.

Now for the GOODNEWS! Let us allow Truth to tear down the lie. During the early church, when the revealed gospel of Christ was first being preached, many of the Jews of that day didn’t see the superiority of the New Covenant in the blood of Christ. They were reluctant to let go of the old law of “sin and death” under Moses, to enter the new law of “spirit and life” under Christ. The law of sin and death was put in place to facilitate a life of sin, because at the time, no other life was available. However, now that the life of Christ has been made available to all that have faith in His resurrection power, there is a way to escape the life of sin in the blood line of Adam. We have to suffocate and bury the old man who was in the image of Adam, through the baptism of repentance. Then we have to take up our cross daily to make way for the resurrection life of Christ.

Everything made in creation came through the Word of GOD. When you abandon your old life in surrender to Christ, this same power calls you a new creation of GOD, made in His likeness. This same Word has created a new you, but you have to receive it. The Word of GOD is powerful, but you have to believe, so that your mind can be renewed and your transformation can take place. This part of the Gospel of Christ has been oppressed by the powers of darkness, and it is time for it to be spread throughout the body of Christ. The acceptance of this Truth can unblock the arteries in the body of Christ, so that the fullness of His life can quicken every part of the body. This will cause the glorious light of the risen Christ to break forth in the earth through His body, the church.

Here are a few scriptures people use in the wrong context to support the lie that the born again in Christ are still sinners, ruled by sin.

Romans 3:23

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”

True context: Paul is declaring there is no distinction between Jews or gentiles when it comes to the need for salvation through Christ, because all “have” sinned and need redemption through the blood of Christ; whether you have been practicing Judaism, paganism, or whatever in your past, you have sinned. Pay attention to the context of past sin as he says, “all have sinned”. This is frequently used in the context of equalizing all believers as present sinners. Paul even refers to Christ in this block of scripture as the propitiation for “past” sin.

Romans 3:11

“As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one”

True context: Paul is quoting scripture from the book of Isaiah in the old testament, regarding mankind before the workings of Christ. This old testament prophecy was never meant to describe the state of the resurrected church of Christ. In the same scripture it goes on to say,” there is none that understand and there is none that seek the Lord”. If the first part applies, then the second part has to be true for the church today as well…thank the Lord that it doesn’t.

Read the entire chapter of Romans 3.

1 John 1:8

“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”

True context: We are all in the process of being healed and cleansed from the rudiments of this world. If we say we have no traces of Adam left in us, we don’t understand how far man has fallen into darkness, nor do we realize how righteous and pure GOD is, in whose image we are made. Having sin is different from sin having you. The bible says in Romans 6, “Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.” Just because you are inclined to do something doesn’t mean you have to yield to it. Confess the inclination to your Father GOD and He will cleanse you of it.

I have cited a few of the most popular verses, used out of context, to support the false belief that the salvation of Christ is in effect forgiveness without deliverance from the condition that causes sin. He who the soon makes free is free indeed. The thief comes only to kill, steal, and destroy. Let nothing or no one rob you of the victorious life promised you by Christ.