Hope is an indispensable value in life that we all need, but too often we fail to acquire it nor to strengthen the hope we have. Hope is the force that propels us to overcome obstacles in life and enables us to accomplish unimaginable things like discovering a medicine like penicillin that cures a multitude of sickness, or maybe building something that changes our life like cell phones. It use to be that those who had hope in God’s loving kindness were among the leading scientists who discovered cures and medicine that changed our lives for the better. Today greed and money seem to be the drivers for discovery, and there is often a big price tag for those of us on the receiving end.

Today, many preachers refer to the body of Christ as “Sinners” while Paul refers to believers as “Saints”. Is it because our loyalties are divided and we don’t seek to walk as saints or is it because we have been taught a lie about our new nature? Whatever the reason behind this bad teaching, it moves believers farther from Christ instead of closer to him.

I wonder how many believers communicate Christ’s love through their lives, or do we communicate legal truth as a hammer to hit people to condemn their sin? Paul spoke about imparting Christ to people around us by having his Holy Spirit imparted to our hearts. Our lives should change because our hearts are truly impacted, rather than just intellectually informed. Our changed lives should then impact those around us. From my observation much of Christianity either revolves around judging other people of different styles of faith, or being wrapped up in our own personal edification rather than caring how we affect others. Paul said we are called to be ambassadors not just spectators.

This heart change that Paul talks about was “MANIFESTED” in the early believers so people who did not know God could tangibly see the love of God by how his followers acted in public and private. Secular people saw the transformation that Paul talked about in 2 Cor 5:17 where he says that the old things have passed away and new things come when people are born again. He calls it “Transformation” because Paul wanted people to know that being born again is not just a mental enlightenment, but a total change in our core that captivates our hearts. Paul talked about salvation in terms of “Conversion” rather than from a philosophical or theoretical perspective.

2 Corinthians 5:17-18

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature (creation); the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.

The change that Paul talks about in this New Covenant is one in which we are reconciled to God. Our forgiveness is “Predicated” on the idea of reconciliation. Unless we are reconciled to God there is no forgiveness, regardless of any sinners prayer or declaration by us or others. In our modern church forgiveness has become such a cheap commodity that anyone can receive forgiveness, regardless of their relationship with God. This is something the scripture totally denies.

2 Corinthians 3:1-3

Are we beginning to commend ourselves again?  Or like some, do we need letters of commendation to you or from you? You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men; being manifested that you are a letter of Christ, cared for by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

When Paul uses the illustration of a “Letter” of Christ he is talking about a means of communication. Paul says this new covenant letter is possible by and through the power of the Holy Spirit in which life happens from the inside out. It is an impartation of God himself coming to live in harmony with us because we surrendered our selfishness and self- will which, in reality, was killing us. It is sad if we settle for a cheap form of grace that changes nothing other than our insecurity.

2 Corinthians 3:6

Who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

Paul goes further in this chapter and says if the Holy Spirit lives in our souls we will find liberty because Jesus has set us free from being controlled by our selfish passions. How foolish for people to speak about Jesus being in their souls while holding on to selfishness and self-interest above God. We all have seen and heard of people claiming to have Jesus Christ as the Lord of their lives yet are still in rebellion to God and his word. Confession doesn’t make their salvation real unless they are living a surrendered life. This kind of life won’t happen by our strength of will, but rather by surrendering our will daily to the Holy Spirit, who keeps us free. Our choices make a difference and should never be minimized, but if God did not offer us help, our will and choices would be irrelevant. Paul states very clearly that “IN” the Holy Spirit is true freedom and liberty.

2 Corinthians 3:17

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

Ask yourself this one most important question about this new covenant: Are you experiencing liberty to do what you want, or experiencing true liberty to do what God wants? The answer will either confirm who Christ is to you, or who he is not. My hope is that your confession will confirm the Lordship of Christ and declare to the world around you who your Lord is.

Additionally we need to understand that this transformation is not a one-time event or experience. Rather, it should be a daily journey as long as we continually yield our life to the Holy Spirit. My belief is that many who come to Christ for transformation get stuck in the initial encounter with Christ and are forever trying to live off that first experience. But, the fact is, we are called to experience Jesus in our lives freshly every day.

2 Corinthians 3:18

But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

Remember that scripture always refers to salvation from three perspectives: Salvation from our past, salvation over our current life issues and our salvation when Jesus comes back to earth to claim all who love him. To think of salvation as a one-time experience is totally contrary to how God presents it in his words, and is nothing more than the doctrine of man.

Real Christianity is about discovering the lover of our soul in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, who manifested the Father’s heart for humanity. It is in this revelation that we discover how to walk day by day.

May Jesus be the light that we manifest.

Questions:

1) Have you experienced the transformation Paul talked about in which the love of God changes you? This is what Jesus talked about in John 3 about being born again. Don’t be fooled by just embracing doctrines as if Christianity is just about theology.

2) Have you embraced the Holy spirit for empowerment in your personal life, or are you trying to live the Christian life by shear willpower? Many people live like orphans rather than children of God – read what Jesus said about not leaving us as orphans, but giving us the Holy Spirit in John Chapter 14.

May we enjoy the manifestation of the Holy Spirit daily,

Pastor Dale

I have no idea what 2025 holds for you.  It may be a year where you reach your goals.  If so, it will have more to do with your attitude than your circumstances.  Success in life is mostly about our perspective on what’s possible or impossible and what’s valuable to us.

Few Christians today talk about the soul, whereas in previous generations it was a prime topic to speak or write about. We have drifted from seeing the importance of the soul. I think much of that is because the church has turned over giving counsel to secular professionals, rather than pastors and shepherds of God’s people who understand the deep connection between the Word of God and a healthy soul.

People generally love things that are reliable and predictable but what if a lot of things in life aren’t that way? For Christians, the idea and expectation of a reliable life is heightened by the idea of God setting up our future so reliably that many have bought into the idea of their future being  “Predestined”, which believes our eternity as well as this life is both guaranteed and that no worry or concern is needed. But what if that teaching is an exaggeration of scripture and not biblical? What if life and eternity is only as sure as we continue to trust God rather than just trusting our own thoughts and intentions? What if life is far more unpredictable than we realize? For many, that idea is unsettling and can create fear and anxiety unless people are truly trusting God day by day.

This idea of predestination is really a concept that both secular and religious people wonder about. Many movies wrestle with the idea of our destiny being set or not.  There are many movies that have been made in the last twenty years relating to time travel and trying to figure out if people can change their past or not because people want to know if we are predestined or not.

Many Christians have been taught that God predestines our future so it is set before we are even born. This theology became strongly developed for many Christians because of the reformation and the shift in theology by people like John Calvin, Martin Luther and others in the 1500s. These church leaders were trying to figure out what theology was wrong in the Catholic Church doctrine and they came up with the idea of going back to Augustine in third century for a confirmation in which God predestines people. Much of this shift in my mind came from the hatred of many over the sale of indulgences to wipe away the past, unrepentant sins of those who were about to die or had already passed away.

The strange thing is that these writers and others base this major doctrine over five verses from the New Testament in which the apostle Paul wrote instead of looking at the overall bible context of both the Old and New Testament. The idea of God choosing people for his purpose, also known as “election”, was formulated mostly by Calvin to say that certain people are chosen by God to be saved for eternity and others are predestined to go to hell for eternity regardless of their choices or desire. Once a person was baptized they no longer needed to worry about salvation or their conduct.

Romans 8:28-29

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.

One of the problems of this doctrine is that it makes God out to be a liar when he says anyone can choose to follow him, and if we choose him, he will bless us both now and in eternity. Secondly, using Rom:28-29 to support this doctrine fails to look at the context. Paul is referring to people who are living according to God’s purpose, not our own, and they are predestined to be conformed to the image of Jesus. Our predestination is about our calling to become like Jesus “NOT” predestined about our future. It is easy to twist scripture when failing to look at the objective and context.

Another verse of scripture about predestination used by many to justify God choosing us before the foundation of the world comes from individuals having a calling before they were born. Unfortunately, they fail to read or acknowledge that the purpose God set before the foundation of the world was about “HOLINESS” to walk in a blameless way with God and thus our adoption is based on what John wrote about a person’s adoption as God’s children.

John 1:11-12

He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:

Ephesians 1:4-5

Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,

Lastly, Paul writes in the book of Ephesians about being predestined according to God’s purpose, not being predestined to or for individuals desires. When Paul uses the word predestination it’s always in reference to God’s purpose, not according to some notion of election regardless of our choices. God, throughout the scripture from Genesis to Revelation, is calling man to choose rightly with the promise of blessing and if we choose wrongly the results are punishment and sorrow.

Ephesians 1:11

In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,

Starting with Adam and Eve, God creates mankind with the potential to make choices, either good or bad, either constructive or destructive. Adam and Eve chose poorly and they suffered for it.  You would think their children would take stock in their mistakes and learn to make right choices. Abel made the right choice and honored God and Cain did not, which resulted in him killing his brother. Here is what God says to Cain when he is so mad and ready to do something so stupid it will cost him for the rest of his life.

Genesis 4:5-7

God did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. So the LORD said to Cain,

“Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen?  “If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”

God posed to Cain that he was in charge of his future, either good or bad. He challenged him that if his feelings rule in his life he is in trouble and if he listens to God he will be blessed. Throughout scripture, God says the same thing. Our choices set our course, not some notion of being predestined outside of our choices.

God puts great value on our choices. He doesn’t make us choose, he lets us choose. Real love cannot be forced and thus God gave us the potential of choosing to love or hate. Don’t be fooled into thinking you can’t do anything about your future because God says otherwise. He says you have the power to make the future we want. Remember the enemies plan for us.

John 10:10

The thief ( Satan ) does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

Satan wants to steal our future and to kill any hope of redeeming it, thus destroying our faith in God for change. Remember Jeremiah’s prophetic words to rebellious Israel, who went into captivity because they chose poorly. These were the people of God and yet they did not inherit God’s blessing but his curse.

Jeremiah 29:11-13

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you and you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.

It is better to listen to God’s own words than to listen to theologians who don’t seem to read scripture as it was meant to be read and understood. Your choices mean a great deal to God and they should mean a great deal to us as well.

Questions:

1) Have you believed the lie that people are predestined to heaven and hell regardless of their choices? Study the word of God yourself and discover how important your choices are.

2) Have you bought into the lie that once you’re saved you can never get unsaved? Ask yourself what salvation is about. Is it about letting us live like fools or like Christ?

Loving God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength,

Pastor Dale

As you get older, hopefully you gain a different perspective on how life really works. When we are 18-20 we think we can do anything and that anything is possible, which is true but with a catch. What you don’t know is how much those ideas and potential dreams will cost you, or the challenge of what you will need to sacrifice in order for those dreams and ideas too manifest.

I witness too many Christians trying to live a life of faith in a lopsided way because they just learn more and more information about God without actually changing how they live. When I became a true believer, I knew I had to change my thinking as well as the life I was living.  Now, more than 50 years later, I am still in the same place…..learning and engaging in the changes that Christ compels me to make.

As a former master mechanic, I was taught about rebuilding transmissions, both automatic & manual. In fact, I started tearing apart four speed manual transmissions before I knew what I was doing because the used junker car I bought had problems. What I discovered was the previous owner must have tried to force the transmission into different gears wrongly because the gears were all torn up, not to mention that it had very little gear oil in it. As Christians, I think there are similarities.  As new believers, we try to change without being ready or instructed how to make changes.  Consequently, we stay in one gear all our lives, which is something we were never designed to do. We were designed to travel in all the gears available, not just one.  Consider the analogy of staying in first gear as a Christian. You’re moving forward, but everyone is passing you by, even the old people! You would be frustrated to say the least and might stop driving. Many a believer has been in such a place and abandoned their faith by thinking it doesn’t work, at least for them.

The title I am using in this article actually came from a book I am reading by Erwin MacManus called “Chasing Daylight”. It is an awesome book about pursuing your life of faith and developing to be the Christian that God intended. His point in the chapter I pulled this from stood out to me because of my mechanical background. How many Christian believers have resigned themselves to just learning about God and the world he has made for us but never really traveling that life of faith? The book of James, which was probably the first book written in the Bible, states the following:

James 2:18-20

But someone may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?

When James uses the topic of “Works” he is talking about “Action” and how it affects our belief. You see, when we just capitalize on learning without applying what we think it’s not faith at all. At best it’s just philosophy and at worst it is deception because God designed the human soul to function with both. To learn about God and his ways without engaging in action only breeds guilt and condemnation in our soul. Many Christians claim the verse which states there is no condemnation when we are Christians yet what it really says is for those who are in Christ. meaning abiding in that relationship. It requires real faith and action to be in Christ, not just religious thoughts or theology.

Before becoming true believers we had to learn about our rebellious ways in order to repent of them. That repentance should produce all kinds of pain in us, which should motivate us to surrender completely to Christ. Unfortunately, many never saw their rebellion, only the need to want God in their lives and thus they are what James calls, “Being Double Minded” by thinking one way and living another. But, when we act on the knowledge of our rebellion and embrace the love of Christ and His redemption, guilt disappears we start learning to live a life of faith.

As an early believer, Christianity showed my soul the path to life and resonated in me that this was truth. However, I also was in conflict because of the selfishness in my soul.  I refused to yield to the authority of Christ. The more I learned, the more I wanted to learn. The enemy of my soul used this hunger to confuse me and keep me bound to a life of darkness by telling me I needed more information. Now, you might ask why Satan would encourage me to read and study the truth of God’s word?  It is because Satan knew I was attracted to it so he leveraged it against me to keep me bound. One of the greatest tools Satan uses with us is to tell us to only learn and not apply. Why? In order to keep us bound in guilt and away from the Father’s love for transformation.

Now consider the Magi traveling from Babylon to Bethlehem.  These men didn’t have all the truth they desired, but they used what they knew to seek out the messiah. History says they were philosophers, scientists and astronomers. Some translations of the Bible say they were astrologers, which in our use of the word today is incorrect. These men were not waiting to discover, they were acting on the knowledge they had and that involved sacrifice.

Psalms 119:29-32

Remove the false way from me & graciously grant me Your law.

I have chosen the faithful way; I have placed Your ordinances before me. I cling to Your testimonies; O LORD, do not put me to shame!

I shall run the way of Your commandments, for You will enlarge my heart.

They were smart enough to realize it is not enough to get rid of false beliefs, they had to replace those false ways with the standard of God’s word if they hoped to change. They would then have the guidance of God to go deeper in their pursuit of Him.

The other day I was having a breakfast with a police officer and sharing my testimony of how I came to Christ from a life of rebellion. As I finished sharing, a woman approached our table with tears in her eyes and confessed she was listening to our conversation and said she needed a miracle in her life and asked if I would pray for her. She could have just received the information of my testimony and walked away, but instead she acted on it to the degree that she made herself vulnerable to a total stranger. She took information God gave her about miracles and acted on it and that’s what we all need to do.

Can you imagine the Magi studying the scripture in a foreign land and then studying the stars to discover the possible birth of a messiah? Consider that they had little to go on and yet they traveled many, many miles to see if what they learned and hoped for was real. They gambled their wealth and their reputations on a possibility and God blessed them with seeing Jesus in person. God shows in his word how delighted he is when we act as they did.

Matthew 2:1-2

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.”

The Holy Spirit is today giving humanity enough information to act on. That information doesn’t become faith until it is acted on, but when we do He blesses us in ways we least expect. The police officer and myself were so blessed that God used us to touch this woman in need. Maybe the Holy Spirit is giving you information so that you will act on the Father’s behalf today? Act on that information and see yourself grow in your faith and touch the world that desperately needs the message of Christ this Christmas.

Questions :

1) Are you just learning and not applying?  You can change that with one prayer asking God to give you the strength to apply.

2) Are your aware that broken people need what you know?  Only by offering your availability to God will that change.

Pastor Dale

In the book of Romans Paul links everything in the Christian faith back to Abraham, who was the father of the Jewish nation. Abraham set the tone for trusting God even when he couldn’t understand his future. Trusting God is often a very hard concept when you give your heart to God because, like Abraham, we may not understand what or why God is leading us to do something or go somewhere. Faith and trust are linked together and if a Christian wants to please God we have to put our faith and trust in what God says just as Abraham did so many years ago. The pathway to a healthy relationship with God starts and continues with trust, in spite of a lack of information or revelation.

Hebrews 11:6

And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.

At the foundation of faith and trust is the purpose He gives all believers to “Be a Blessing” to those around us. This idea of purposely being a blessing challenges us at the core of our self-centeredness and the Holy Spirit will work on this attitude all of our lives. Building our life around loving God and loving people are the two many principles Jesus talked tirelessly about. It often means giving up resentment and bitterness over offenses. Abraham understood that God was calling him to be like his Heavenly Father and we have the same calling.

Genesis 12:2-3

And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.

God blesses mankind so God expects and directs us to follow in his footsteps. I am reminded of the scripture in the book of Matthew where Jesus is talking about loving not only your neighbor but your enemies as well. I confess this is a hard value and principle to follow but it is incorporated within seeking the kingdom of God directive. God implies that since He is perfect in loving people, even the bad ones, we should strive to love as God loves, even the ones that seem difficult to bless because of their conduct. God knows we are broken because of sin in the world and yet He still loves us as John 3:16 declares. Every time it rains it does so on both the good and bad among us.

Matthew 5:45

So that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

Let’s go back to Abraham. God shows him that the calling in his life is to be a blessing to those around him and impact the world.  God also says that Abraham’s greatness will be tied to that purpose. Since Abraham is our father of faith, we should follow in his footsteps and be a blessing to those we encounter in life each and every day.  It is certainly not always easy to do yet God promises us we will be blessed if we act as he does. It may be easy to bless those who seem to desire it or who are kind and generous to us but what about those who are unfair or cruel to us? That’s why having faith in what God says is often difficult to do. We must trust, even though we can’t always see the why.

After being freed from slavery in Egypt, Abraham’s brother Aaron was given the responsibility and privilege to be the head priest over Israel. If you look at the character of Abraham’s brother, he was anything but a solid believer in God and yet God chose him to set the example for Israel by verbally blessing them. Likewise, we may have come out of the world with bad habits and flawed character yet, as born again believers, we are now to order our steps like Abraham and his brother Aaron.

Aaron was given the calling to “Bless” God’s people and that same purpose is our calling.

Numbers 6:24-26

The LORD bless you, and keep you; The LORD make His faceshine on you, and be gracious to you; The LORD lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace

There are over 500 direct verses that speak to the importance this practice of blessing and being a blessing. The disciples of Jesus, when going out to preach and heal, were instructed to have this same attitude of imparting a blessing and even to verbally bless those they encounter.

Matthew 10:12-13

As you enter the house, give it your greeting. If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace.

Blessing others may not always be received with open arms but, in the end, our attempt to be a blessing to people we meet will impact the world around us. Today could be that day the Holy Spirit puts in your path a person who desperately needs your blessing. Will you be obedient to the call of God and be the light of God through your actions or will you sit on your blessing and close your heart?

Questions:

1) Do you purposefully try to be a blessing to others? If we are not intentional regularly, we will most likely fall into the rut of thinking the world around us is for our benefit only.

2) How do you prepare to be a blessing to others? Look at your own talents and endeavor to naturally be a blessing to others with your gifts. Don’t just do what others do.

Pastor Dale

If there is anything I have learned from being a believer with a bad past and pastoring people who have a past of brokenness and bad decisions, it is that we often mistakenly carry our past failures and mistakes into our Christian experience. With the extra baggage our transformation slows to a crawl, or only lasts for a short time.

Now, to be sure, I believe Christ changes us from the inside out. But we tend, if not always, to take with us some of our brokenness into this new life, often without realizing it. I can’t tell you all the lives I have encountered that struggle with things of their past that they never really got over even though they are bible believing Christians who read scripture regularly.

The question is: why would we contaminate our new lives in Christ with our past mistakes and woundedness? Let me say at the outset that many of these broken things in our lives are because we are ignorant of God’s truth about them, and because we refuse to identify them and own up to our need for change. A case in point is how many Christians have you met who believe in horoscopes and follow them, even after becoming a believer? How many Christians can’t seem to break their addictions they brought into their Christianity? There are so many cases in which people genuinely believe in Christ and yet stumble with their refusal to give up baggage from the past, and they think they can keep these things hidden from those around then when in fact people see the baggage of brokenness in us, they just don’t bring them up to us personally.

There is a story in the book of Acts that defines such a person who carried wrong motives and baggage that were logged in his heart even though he accepted Christ and was baptized. Some will try to make this man out as not being truly born again, but if we read scripture honestly without coloring it for our own comfort we will see the truth that he was born again but still brought the baggage of pride and witchcraft with him.

Acts 8:9 & 12-13

Now there was a man named Simon, who formerly was practicing magic in the city and astonishing the people of Samaria, claiming to be someone great;

But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike. Even Simon himself believed; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip, and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed.

The problem with Simon was that he was captivated by the adulation and praise of people. His baggage was pride and praise mixed with his addiction to witchcraft, and he brought these addictions into his relationship with Christ. None of us come to Christ without some hindrances towards transformation. It takes time and humility to expose and overcome these hundrances.

Acts 8:9-10

Now there was a man named Simon, who formerly was practicing magic in the city and astonishing the people of Samaria, claiming to be someone great; and they all, from smallest to greatest, were giving attention to him, saying, This man is what is called the Great Power of God.

God has designed victory for everyone who accepts Christ, along with the power of three major elements to overcome the baggage we bring into our life in Christ. Here is the catch: it doesn’t happen automatically. They must be applied regularly and together. They are Scripture, Discipleship and the Holy Spirit. If any one of these, or all of them, are not applied regularly we most likely will become imprisoned and trapped in the addictions of our past again. Too often these assets of victory are underutilized because of the lack of sound teaching in the local church.

In Simon’s case he was so consumed with the tools of his former life that he could not get past the addiction to them. Christ does not reject us because of our baggage, but the road to recovery and wholeness will be harder, if not impossible, when we cling to such baggage. Simon just couldn’t resist his old ways and tried to bribe Peter for the power he had.

Acts 8:18-20

Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles hands, he offered them money, saying, “Give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!”

Getting saved and growing in Christ takes having the formula of real God-inspired discipleship, regular reading of the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit to work properly. Not giving up our old baggage often cripples us, even though we have experienced Christ’s love and forgiveness.

In Psalms 119:105 it states that God’s word is a lamp or light to our path but if we are not letting the revelation of God’s word reveal the path before us we stumble.

Jesus said in Matthew 28:19 that we are to go into the world and make disciples. He didn’t say build church buildings and teach sermons. We so often replace real one-on-one discipleship for sermons. Is there any wonder, then, that the average Christian has a spiritually stunted growth in God?

Jesus said in John 14:26 the Holy Spirit will teach us and remind us of what Jesus said. Without this help we are forced to figure out this Christian life on our own and we all have seen how that turns out.

God will expose the baggage we are either ignorant of or unwilling to give up simply because he loves us and wants the best for us. One of the ways he does this is by equipping the body of Christ so that through the gifts of the Holy Spirit these things can be revealed: like a word of knowledge, a word of wisdom or prophetic utterance. But if we, and those around us, are not led by and inspired by the Holy Spirit we walk in the dark, even though we have God’s word.

My advice is to bring your baggage, no matter how small or large, to the Lord and let him deliver you. Forcing God to confront us is far more painful. Let the love of God through the Word, discipleship and the Holy Spirit set you free from the past and keep you free.

Questions:

1) As you grow in God and his word are you being disciple? If not, why not? Don’t be like Simon who got saved and was still bound to his past.

2) Have you approached a person who is more mature than you are to ask them to disciple you? Make yourself vulnerable and be honest with a brother or sister who has demonstrated maturity, and ask them for help.

Pastor Dale