THE CURE FOR WHAT ILLS YOU

These are portions of a letter I sent to a loved one who had been given a couple of bad reports from the Doctor. I am inclined to share it with everyone. It is the truth we know and rely upon that sets us free. Be blessed.
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Here is a little bit of wisdom for you from the Word of God. He wants you healed, and He provided that healing for you 2000 years ago on the cross. So the healing has already been provided by grace, what you need now is faith to receive it. The Bible says:

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6.

The good news is the faith He is looking for is not something you have to conjure up, it is a gift from God.

“…as God has dealt to every man the measure of faith.” Romans 12:3

 So you don't need more faith, you need less unbelief. People make the gospel too hard. It is really simple:

The world is fallen and so is everybody in it that doesn't know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. It's not a matter of being good or bad, everyone born since Adam has been born into sin. It's in the seed we inherited. Jesus came down in the form of a man, born of a woman so he could be like us and legally be our kinsman redeemer. But he was not born of Adam's seed; He is the Son of God. He lived a sinless life, took our place on the cross bearing our sins, rejection, illnesses, disease, poverty, and much more. He laid down his life, was buried, and on the third day was resurrected from the dead and lives today where he sits at the right hand of the Father in Heaven as our High Priest forever, making intercession for us. Now by simply believing on Him and asking Him to be Lord of our life, God imputes His righteousness unto us. Even the faith required to do this is a free gift from Him. See how much He loves you. He requires all the glory, so He does all the work. That way it excludes boasting on our part. No one is ever going to get to heaven and say it was by their own doing.

So now I want you to consider a few things.

1. Is Jesus the Lord of your life? If not, nothing else matters. No one gets to the Father without going through Him. So if He isn't... stop and ask Him to be right now... if you really want Him.

2. The Word, or the Bible, is real and it's alive. It is important to ask God to give you revelation of this fact in a way you can understand. The Bible is the way God chose to reveal Himself to His children, and we use it to renew our minds to think and love like Him. Without letting the Bible, quickened by the Holy Spirit, be our guide for life, we can never mature as Christians.

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16

“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.” John 1:14

“He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.” Psalm 107:20

3. This is a big one, but the most liberating yet. Fear is not of God. If you have been fearful, don’t let this condemn you. Whenever the word corrects you, see it as an opportunity to get in agreement with God and slam the door on the devil.

"For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." 2 Timothy 1:7

Try reading the Gospel of John, Chapter 15, and receive the Peace that Jesus gives as a gift. Just believe... like a little child.

The fear of man can stop physical healings from occurring in your body. Look at the blind man in Mark Ch.10. He cried out, "Jesus, Thou son of David, have mercy on me." The crowd around him told him to hold his peace (Mark 10:48), but he refused to fear the opposition of men around him and he received his miracle.

Don't let fear, or the opposition of man, stop you from receiving from God today. Come into His presence. Reach out toward Jesus. Ask Him to dispel every ounce of fear within you. Begin to thank Him for paying the price, making you an over-comer, and interceding for you before the Father. Jesus is alive. He longs for an intimate personal relationship with you.

4. He has a steady supply of grace (unmerited, unearned favor and blessing) for every area and need of your life; spiritual and natural. The grace of God has appeared to all men, but not all are saved, healed, prosperous, etc. Why? It is because we are saved by grace through faith. Grace is everything he has provided for us through Jesus. In Christ we have been given all things pertaining to life and godliness. So if this is true, and it is, then it is up to us to reach out by faith and acquire those things which have been provided by grace. 

 We do not live by sight, but by faith. He is the Alpha and Omega, which means He has the first and last word in everything concerning us. If a doctor report says you have an illness or disease, they are merely reporting what they can see with their natural eye, according to the training they have been given. We are thankful for them and many times they tell us the name of what to pray for.  Everything that has a name has to bow to the name of Jesus...everything. So if it is cancer, it must flee when commanded in the name of Jesus. If it is addiction, it also must go. Yes, kidney stones and heart disease as well. Do not go by your feelings or what you see. Just start saying what the word says about you, proclaiming the promises of God over your life and wait for the manifestation of your freedom to appear. Don't worry about being a man or woman of strong faith in an instant. The bible says "faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God", so get into the Word.

5. Our words are powerful. God formed the heavens and the earth by speaking words, and He formed us in His image. Don't sabotage your life by your words. Speak life into every situation in agreement with the word of God. Choose faith and life, over fear and death.

Here are a few scriptures for you to meditate on for now. Say them out loud and personalize them with your name or the names of others, even under your breath is fine. Just give Jesus a chance, and see what happens. If it seems awkward, that's just the enemy trying to keep you from the Lord. He is faithful to try and do that, but he has no power over you...just resist him and he will flee from you.

 The bible says that the gospel is foolishness to them that are perishing. Don't be moved by unbelief. Trust God... If you seek Him with your whole heart, you will find Him.

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"Jesus was made in the likeness of men" Phil 2:7
"He took our infirmities, and bore our sickness" Matthew 8:18
"and with his stripes we are healed" Isaiah 53:5

Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits…
who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases. Psalm 103:2-3

"I will restore you to health and heal your wounds", declares the Lord....Jeremiah 30:17

"I know the plans I have for you, " declares the Lord,
"plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

http://livingwaterline.blogspot.com/
 http://graceonhislips.blogspot.com/
http://glorygarden.blogspot.com/
http://catchmelord.blogspot.com/

Life Is Precious

Precious Friends,

I just came from the funeral of a friend, Officer Kevin Will (HPD) 37. He used to come to the church, and I remember how I thought it was crazy when he decided to leave the banking industry, take a cut in pay, and be a Houston Police Officer a couple yrs. ago. I believed he would be a good preacher, though I never had the opportunity to tell him. During his training his parents, especially his dad, would come to my house a couple times a week. His Dad never stopped talking about Kevin, they are best friends. From the time I met Kevin, and his brother Todd, the Lord put a burden on me to pray for them. I remember joking with Kevin about getting him and his brother both to church on the same day, and how I always asked about them and would tell Donna, their Mother, that God had a plan for them. I just came from the funeral, and I don't think Kevin made a bad choice anymore. Our Lord Jesus Christ was honored by Kevin's life, and today I watched as through the story of his life and faith, Kevin indeed preached the message of the gospel... posthumously, to thousands. He served God, by serving His people. He loved people, and made them laugh. And as his mother said, "He Finished Strong". Please pray for Kevin's family. His wife is gonna have a Kevin Will, Jr. pretty soon.

Life is precious, and short. Love God. Love People. Tell everyone about Jesus.

Let's Get Real With God

Look more closely at the question- “Do I Really Know Him?"

Is Jesus your Lord...or are you with the millions of others who admire Jesus and like the idea of the Savior part, but can't seem to bring yourself to the place of surrender? I am not talking about just saying a prayer. I am asking if you have knowingly and willingly made a choice to surrender your life to Jesus Christ.

If you find yourself in that category with those who are "dipping their foot in the water" but can't bring yourself to take the "plunge" it might be because you think it is some sort of trick and that you will be giving up much more than you will get back...you know, selfishness. Don't worry, we were all born that way.  We didn't mind if someone did without when we were infants, as long as we were provided for. Unfortunately that still applies for many of us today. We are afraid God won't provide for us the way we are accustomed to, or as good as we do ourselves. It is good to be honest with ourselves and God regarding these things. Let's get real with God. The worst thing we can do is live in denial when it comes to the Lord.

Please consider this scripture:

“Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit.” Psalm 32:1-2 NIV

And again in the New Living Translation:

“Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty!” Psalm 32:1-2 NLT

What a great opportunity. By simply being open and honest with the God who already knows everything about us, we step into total forgiveness and blessing. Believe me he already knows it all. He is hurt by us, but not deceived. No, this is for our own benefit, just as everything he asks us to do is for our own good. He wants to bless us more than we are willing to receive. We just have to come to a place in our hearts where we admit we are sinful and in need of a savior.

“The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.” Psalm 51:17 NLT

“Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers.” 3 John 1:2 AKJV

 

We need to get to the point where we trust him enough to be completely honest with him and with ourselves. The void that every human being has on the inside of them that causes them to search and search for things to fulfill them, is really their longing for the one who created them; for God. That need to be loved, cared for, and encouraged can only be satisfied long-term by filling that void with the presence of God. No one can provide for us better than our heavenly father, who created us, and wants above all things, for us to be in good health and prosper even as our souls prosper? Not only does he want it, but he is the only one who can actually make it happen.

One thing about God's grace...it's available to everyone, but forced upon no one. 

The New Wine

Jesus is our Rock. It is all about Him. He is the Rock from which the living water comes forth, the New Wine of the Covenant of Grace, Truth, and Redemption. He is everything you will ever need, and without Him there is nothing good. He tells us quite bluntly on the night of his betrayal that we can do NOTHING apart from him.

“I am the vine, you are the branches: He that abides in me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for without me you can do nothing.” John 15:5

 Later we are encouraged to hear that the alternative to doing nothing, apart from Him, is we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13 

 In the old covenant we are always looking forward, toward the cross of Christ and what Jesus would eventually do for us, reading about Jesus in types and shadows, veiled, or concealed, but it is still all about him. Sometimes the author of the Bible (the Holy Spirit) let's us see how it is, or would be, without Jesus.

 The first miracle that Moses performed when he went to get God's children out of bondage in Egypt, was to turn the water of the Nile into blood, a picture of Judgment and symbolic of death. The first miracle Jesus performed when he began his ministry was to turn water into wine, symbolic of life, joy, and blessing.

 In this comparison we can see the difference in the two covenants. One, the Law of Moses, is designed to bring Judgment. It is designed to bring us to the end of ourselves, and to make us realize our need for a savior...for Jesus.

The other, the New Covenant through the blood of Jesus, brings life, grace, and peace.

 “Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord.” 2 Peter 1:2

Under the New Covenant we are no longer looking forward to the arrival of a savior. Instead, we are looking back at what our savior, Jesus, has already done. Now we can rest in His finished work, and wait confidently for his return.

Begin to SEEK God regarding the difference in the two covenants and how it applies to you and your life.

“Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself." Hebrews 3:3


Are you still trying to do good to get good, afraid of doing bad and getting beaten?

“For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.”  Hebrews 10:14


KNOCK on the door of God's kingdom...He will answer.

"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." Jeremiah 29:13

Ask Jesus to baptize you with the Holy Spirit (John 1:33) and with Fire (Luke 3:16).

Come to him and drink this living water (John 7:37), the new wine of the covenant of grace and peace. Instead of being in need and spiritually thirsty, become a source of all his goodness as you allow his love to flow through you (John 7:38). It is what you were created for.

Have you received the Holy Ghost since you believed? (Acts 19:2)

Revelation of Moses' Punishment

I was awakened one night a few years ago by the Lord. He drew me downstairs, where I sat staring into my bible...the book of Numbers. I had been reading Numbers and was intrigued by the "water from the rock." Not so much the miracle, but the method by which God dealt with Moses regarding a little fit of anger he displayed. I thought the punishment of not being able to enter the Promised Land was harsh against Moses. The thinking of my relatively un-renewed mind was that after all, God knew Moses...He had certainly committed worse sin before God ever decided to use him.

In Egypt, at the age of forty, he killed a man. Then he ran away to the desert where God left him another forty years before he was ready to use him. Time apparently needed to get Moses out of Moses. Now, at one hundred twenty years old, the end of his third forty year span, the end of his life, and his brilliant service to the Lord, he was not allowed to enter in to the Promised Land.

Yes, I understand that God told him to speak to the rock, but he hit it instead. He and Aaron also took credit for the miracle God performed. He was also God's appointed leader which carries a great deal of responsibility. But, you do realize that those people...those people Moses had the job of leading were not exactly nice.

I find it a little amusing that at one point, at Mount Sinai, neither Moses nor the Lord seemed to want to claim them. The Lord called them Moses' people, and Moses called them the Lord's (Ex.32). By the time they arrived, for the second time, at the waters of Meribah they had grumbled, complained, and rebelled against Moses and God. Moses sister had just passed away, and here they were again at a place where thirty- seven years earlier the same thing had happened. The Israelites seemed to forget that their wanderings and sufferings were a result of their own sin, and that of their relatives. They blamed it all on Moses.

This is not uncommon even for people today. We like to complain and blame others for the situations we get ourselves into. According to Psalm 78, the children of Israel limited God in the wilderness by their complaining and unbelief of His goodness. Unfortunately, we do not often learn from others mistakes.

That's why they are written there you know...the mistakes and shortcomings of bible folks. The Holy Spirit lets us see faults of every writer in the bible, so that we could learn from them. Oh well, another message for another time. Where was I? Why was God so hard on Moses? This is the man whom God called the meekest in the world! But He pronounced this judgment on him, and later when Moses would ask Him about going into the Promised Land, the Lord would tell him not to even ask Him about it again. (Deut.3:25-26)

 In other words, it was final!

Well there I was, staring into the bible, in the wee hours of the morning. Then the Lord showed me something. He told Moses, "because you did not trust me enough to demonstrate my holiness to the people of Israel, you will not lead them into the land I am giving them."(Num.20:12). That is the only reason He gave...and it was sufficient. He was justified. God only needs one good reason and He used Moses' disobedience.

But...He had other reasons as well.

God had given Moses a reason, and as far as anyone ever has the right to say, He was justified. But it goes deeper. The Lord showed me two more reasons that changed me forever. First, that day Moses broke one of the types that God had placed in the bible for us, when he struck that rock. If you recall some thirty-seven years prior, in Exodus 17:6, they had been at that same location, with the same problem… no water. God had instructed Moses to take the staff, and STRIKE the rock. Yes strike. He did, and water came forth. Well this time God told him to simply SPEAK to the rock for the same desired result. He did not. He struck it, not once, but twice.

 Then God, out of love for the people, in His great mercy even though Moses had disobeyed, brought forth water from the rock. Moses had no way of knowing, but God knew that the first time that rock (or should I say The Rock) was struck would be the only time. See that striking of the rock in Exodus was symbolic. It was a type and shadow of things to come. It was a picture of our Lord Jesus Christ, our Rock, being struck down on Calvary (although He was not actually struck down because He freely gave up His life for you and me). So the next time was to be a type also. God wanted Moses to show us a picture of a beautiful promise which would come through the Messiah.

God told him to simply speak to the rock and the water would come forth. This was a picture of what is available to us today that ever since He allowed them to strike Him down for the sin of the entire world, all we have to do is speak. Just ask, and the grace that has been provided for all men can be ours. Just by that simple act of faith, asking...He will come into our hearts. And not only that, but by asking Him, we can receive that living water. Just as Jesus said that day when He stood up and proclaimed that any man that thirsts could come to Him and drink, and out of his belly would flow rivers of living water. That living water is symbolic of the Word of God, quickened by the Holy Spirit, and Jesus is the only one who baptizes us with the Holy Spirit. 

 

“John answered them all, "I baptize you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” ” Luke 3:16 NIV

“I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, 'The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.”  John 1:33 NIV

So you see when Moses hit the rock again, not once but twice, it was like crucifying Jesus all over again. And that will never happen.

“It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.” Hebrews 6:4-6

 His sacrifice was perfect and when it was accomplished He sat down at the right hand of the Father. There will never be a need for another sacrifice. He is overpayment for any debt we could ever have.

 Lastly that night, God showed me a beautiful example of grace. He showed me that He never intended to allow Moses to lead the children of Israel into the Promised Land.

That's right. Moses was never supposed to lead them all the way in. Instead, God chose Joshua (another type), whose name means the same as Jeshua, or Jesus. Moses is God's representative of the law. So for Moses to lead the children of Israel (who are a type of the church) into the Promised Land, it would have sent us the message that we could get there on our own, under the law, by self-effort, or good works. No way. Many are still trying to earn their way to heaven, but it is impossible.

 God could not allow His servant Moses to take them in because it would have sent the wrong picture to all believers in the future. God wanted to make sure we knew the only way to get across that proverbial "Jordan River" into the promised land of our salvation is a bridge made of an old rugged cross.  Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. No one gets to the Father, except by (or through) Him.

Out of Religion...Into Relationship

1 John 1:6-7 “So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his son, cleanses us from all sin.” 

I have found that most of us will gladly say we accept Jesus as our Savior, but reject Him as our Lord. In other words "the forgiveness part sounds good, but I can't let Him tell me what to do, it's my life". Friends this does not work. To say we know God, but to continue living for ourselves is hypocrisy and God will eventually expose it and judge it.

“Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?

Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!”

Matthew 7:22-23 NIV

See we tend to create a God of our imagination. One that will accept us based upon the good we have done. And we will justify those beliefs by comparing ourselves with the world around us. The problem is the world is fallen and God says to compare our self to Him only, by looking into the righteous mirror of His Word, looking at the life of Jesus.

When we understand that His standard is total perfection in our attitudes and relationships, even our thoughts, we will see and acknowledge our need for a savior. In other words, we must be perfect, and be willing to rely upon that total perfection to hold up under God’s holy scrutiny, or we must believe in and rely upon a savior who is perfect. His name is Jesus, and His work is completed. He has already provided forgiveness for every sin you have or ever will commit. He has provided healing for every sickness or disease that will ever try to come upon you. He has anticipated every single need you will every have; spiritual, physical, financial, emotional, and relational. He loves you and desires for you to call upon Him to be your Lord and Savior. Then He wants to teach you, through His Word, to cooperate in agreement with Him; so that you may live, by the power of His Holy Spirit, the abundant life of an overcomer that He has already provided for you.

The real goal here is to do exactly what God called me to do. Bring His people out of religion (self-effort, performance based acceptance) and into relationship with Him. This is the meaning of life.

John 17:3 “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” KJV

If it makes you a little uncomfortable that's ok. God wants you to stop listening to your fleshy mind and instead surrender to the Mind of Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:17 “...if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” KJV

So having accepted this gift from God - I have (out of a grateful and loving heart of gratitude) accepted the task that comes with the gift: to reconcile people to Him.

“All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation” 2 Corinthians 5:18 NIV

“My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.” Galatians 2:20 NLT

Therefore as a Christian, I do not leave Jesus at church when I leave the service on Sunday. The very name Christian implies that Christ is in me, so he goes where ever I go, and He is first and foremost in my life. He cannot be excluded from any aspect of my life. He can never be asked to take a back seat, or to be quiet, or to be politically correct. That is as absurd as the painting telling the painter to be still and be quiet.

 When God created man, He made him perfect. However, when corruption entered in through lust (sin), it poisoned us and brought enmity between us and God. There was nothing we could do to help ourselves. Then God, in His mercy and by His grace, sent His son to redeem us, to restore us, to heal us. Glory to God!

The goal here is to challenge you to call upon God for some real answers about your condition. Allow His light to shine into all the dark places of your soul. Allow the Word of God to tear down any religious mindsets that cause you to judge anything other than your own personal relationship with the one many of you already call your Lord.

Is He?

THIS IS YOUR LIVING WATER LINE - 1ST ENTRY (Rev)

And Jesus said to them,

John 6:63-64 "The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But some of you do not believe me..." NLT