Do we love or tolerate?

As I was reading Philemon, this scripture stood out to me.. Paul is writing,  “I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart. Philemon 1:12

In particular these 3 words.... ‘my VERY HEART!”

Here Paul is ‘appealing’ to Philemon, and the "him" refers to Onesimus who was formely Philemon’s servant who is believed to have stolen from him but upon encountering Paul and accepting God’s gift of salvation is a ‘new creation’.. or better put by Paul in verse 11. “Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me.”

I wonder if we are the kind of people who have bought into the religion of the day, i.e. "tolerance", or if we have the biblical understanding of "love." Now certainly the Bible teaches "tolerance" in certain instances, but far more than simply "tolerating" those with different beliefs we are to "love" them.

 If I merely tolerate you then you do not sense that I love you, desire the best for you, would be eager to help you in times of difficulty, etc., but rather that I merely don't wish you any harm and will "put up with" you while we have to be around each other.

Also, I wonder if we are the kind of people who love repenting sinners, or if we merely accept them as possibly being Christians, but somewhere down deep we feel that, because of their past, they are somehow second-class Christians.

We note the response of the prodigal son's older brother, when the prodigal came to his senses and turned away from his sinful living and came home. The older brother's response was one of toleration. He accepted his younger brother, barely, but certainly did not evidence love for him.

²⁵ "Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. ²⁶ And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. ²⁷ And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.' ²⁸ But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, ²⁹ but he answered his father, 'Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. ³⁰ But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!'" Luke 15:25-30

I notice that the older brother depicted his own life as that of obedience, in contrast to the younger brother's sin and rebellion.. He also made reference to the past of the younger brother, plus he refused to celebrate the return of the younger brother. These are all characteristics of those who are self-righteous and hypocritical.

We see this same attitude displayed in the Pharisee who was praying in the Temple:

¹¹ The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus:"God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get." Luke 18:11-12

Are we like that? Or are we like the Apostle Paul who, when seeing the work of God's grace in turning Onesimus away from his sin and rebellion, truly loved him from his heart. We see the display of Paul's love for Onesimus in his  willingness to write a letter of recommendation for him and his desire to repay the debt of Onesimus, and  the affection Paul used for Onesimus ("son", "beloved brother", "my very heart"). Paul did not merely "tolerate" Onesimus, nor did he half-way "accept" him; oh no, he dearly loved him and made his love quite open and known to others.

If we have "older brother syndrome" it is because we do not see the depravity of our own heart. Do we think, somehow, that we don't fit into verses like these:

¹⁰ as it is written:
"None is righteous, no, not one;
¹¹ no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
¹² All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one."
¹³ "Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive."
"The venom of asps is under their lips."
¹⁴ "Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness."
¹⁵ "Their feet are swift to shed blood;
¹⁶ in their paths are ruin and misery,
¹⁷ and the way of peace they have not known."
¹⁸ "There is no fear of God before their eyes." Romans 3:10-18

While some people have not chosen to be morally impure through sexual impurity, drunkenness, drug usage, etc., and there is indeed much value in that. However, when examining the flesh of all mankind we see that there are not two kinds of flesh. There is no such thing as "depraved flesh" and "good, kind, and upstanding flesh." All flesh is the same. The hearts of mankind are identical by birth - hard, uncaring, cold, and dead. You and I are identically like the prostitute, the drunkard, the drug addict and the gambler. Maybe we have not become ensnared in these sins, but our hearts are the same and our nature is the same unless God changes it by His amazing grace.

And if He does change our hearts, one way the change will evidence itself is in our loving others. When we see a sinner who turns away from his or her sin, we rejoice in our hearts and praise the God of grace Who likewise changed our own hearts. When we are around the one given grace, we delight in hearing his or her story of how God saved them from a life of sin, turned their hearts away from their rebellion, and brought them to the Lord Jesus. We don't even consider their pasts in a negative light, but instead we understand that God uses all things to bring glory to Himself and to do good to those who are chosen and called to Him (Romans 8:28).

We do not think ourselves better than anyone, we do not compare ourselves in a favourable light to anyone, nor do we at all remind them of their past (which can be so wounding to the sinner who is keenly aware of his error). No, instead we love them, embrace them, seek to encourage their growth in the Lord, accept them fully, and never bring up their past.

I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart. Philemon 1:12

Onesimus was Paul's "very heart." In other words, Paul loved Onesimus. His heart beat with love for that man who had rebelled and repented, who had now become a beloved brother in the family of God, and who was now useful to all. May we love LIKE THAT. May we love LIKE PAUL. Paul, who pointed Onesimus to the forgiveness available in Jesus Christ, Paul who exhorted Onesimus to repent of his sin, Paul who went before Onesimus in preparing for Onesimus' return to his master, Paul who did not merely "tolerate" but who loved. THAT is how we are to love.

"Oh God, please send us someone today who has sinned against light and knowledge, who has spurned your grace and defied your sovereignty and Lordship, please send us that one who has so rebelled against you that he or she does not feel worthy to be called your son or daughter, nor does he or she fully understand all your grace for him or her. And then, oh Lord, please enable us to love him or her, with a godly love, with the same love Paul had for Onesimus, with the same love with which you have loved me and forgiven all my sins.

 In Yeshua’s Name, amen!"

God’s Love, His Word, His Holiness! His plan! it’s mind blowing!

God’s Love, His Word, His Holiness! His plan! it’s mind blowing! 

Some thoughts from the book of Deuteronomy..

The Book of Deuteronomy is the bridge between the first four books (outside the Land) and the next seven books (inside the Land). It contains the Sh’ma: the Great Commandment.

“Hear O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:

and thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with

all thy soul, and with all thy might.” Deuteronomy 6:4,5.

There are more quotes by Jesus from Deuteronomy than from any other book. Through Moses, God set such a high standard for the people that all subsequent prophets lived under his shadow, never attaining to it, until the coming of the Lord Yeshua, Jesus Christ.

So these  collections of Moses sermons was repetition of God’s law to the people before they entered the Promised Land!

So what did they have to do to enter the Promised Land?

Deuteronomy 30:20 “That thou mayest love YHWH  your God, and that you may obey His voice, and that you may cleave unto Him: for He is your life, and the length of your days: that you may dwell in the land which the LORD swore unto your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”

Over and over again Moses traced the work of salvation which God was accomplishing through him to the promises sworn unto Abraham (v.20). The apostle Paul, in speaking about salvation in New Testament terms, makes use of this appeal by Moses (Deuteronomy 30:10-20) in Romans 10:1-21, Jesus (John 3)!

So here Israel is faced  with a key decision - To love God so wholeheartedly that they will live in accordance with God’s revealed will as outlined in His written revelation, the Torah!

We are not under the law and THANK GOD and PRAISE Him for that! BUT we are called to the same wholeheartedness! God has given us far more blessings than He has enumerated on  the blessings side  in Mt. Gerizim.. (Deuteronomy 28).  Because all these things there were a shadow in a sense compared to all the blessings we enjoy here, the freedoms we have,  the love, the abundance, and the revealing of God’s Word.. They had the Torah, the book of Moses, we have much more, they could anticipate the Messiah only by faith, only as a dream on the Horizon! We can see the Messiah as something completed.. He did come, He was the son of David, He was born and raised in Nazareth  and He fulfilled over 100 specifications in His death alone! He died for our sins, He was buried,  He rose again  on the 3^rd day! The core achievement was the  crucifixion of Christ! This  was not a tragedy, it was an achievement by the ruler of the universe to demonstrate  His ultimate love.

 God knew  that  Israel would fail and provided for that failure.. God knew that we can’t perform and will also fail!  He knew if He left man alone that he would get himself in a  predicament that  nothing less than the death of God would prevail to extricate men from that predicament..

And He laid out His whole plan of redemption which involved God entering into His creation and fulfilling the requirement of His righteousness and paying the price so that He could extend His grace and mercy and forgiveness to us by our accepting what He has done on faith.. And that’s His only requirement that we trust Him. He finds a different way, every day probably, to asks us the question “Do you really trust Me?” .

He challenges us in blessings!  Do we keep our eyes on the source of the blessings? He challenges us in darkness, in  the valleys.. In fact those valleys are often a primary call to intimacy with Him.

But what He is looking for is not us following rules and regulations.. that’s not what Deuteronomy  is about.. It’s us having wholehearted devotion to Him and to walk moment by moment,  hand in hand  with Him.. Not asking Him to bless what we are doing, but for us to do what He is blessing..

Deuteronomy, a challenging book! It has shown me that the  Law itself is a mechanism by which we can demonstrate our love for Him.. That’s what it’s all about! It’s a love relationship!

Heavenly Father, Thank you Your Words! I thank You that You are a Holy God and a keeper of  Your promises and that  those promises take their climax in the person of JESUS CHRIST! And in His Person we have access to You .. In His person You can ascribe His righteousness to us..

Thank you for Your incredible plan of redemption that You executed on our behalf that we might have life, that we have the  law fulfilled in JESUS CHRIST,  that we have  His holiness ascribed to us and in His perfection we have fellowship with You!  How can we possibly comprehend what you’ve done for us..

Forgive us Lord and especially our ingratitude when we fail to acknowledge that every good thing comes from Your hand, blessings we can’t even number.. Forgive also our sins of presumption as we  continually seek our own way rather than discern  Your way..

Help us to  understand what you want us to do these days.. Help us to become a living sacrifice for Your Glory!  .. Help us Father to fulfil Your purpose in our lives rather than continue to follow our own design.

Thank You that You love us so  much  and You provided redemption to bring us here to this point in time.. Please continue to feed us and increase our appetite for Your word and to more fully comprehend the incredible blessings provided  in JESUS CHRIST..  We pray that through your Holy Spirit and Word we might be pleasing in Your sight and more fruitful stewards as we commit our life into Your hands once again!  In the Name of Yeshua! Amen!!! 

·         ❤=TO YESHUA WE LOVE YOU❤
(¯`v´¯)
`*.¸.*
¸.•´ ❤Amen
(✿◠‿◠) Hallelujah ♫♪♫♪

You have words of eternal life.

John 6:68  “Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life.”

Was pondering this ‘To whom shall we go’...  At the time when Peter said these words to Jesus we need to remember that the teachers around at that time were corrupt..

The Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the scribes were unable to guide them aright..

The Pharisees were the religious people. They would be considered the conservatives today.

 * They were extremely precise and minute in all matters pertaining to the law of Moses. * Their system of religion was a form and nothing more. *They were noted for their pride and self-righteousness.

*They are enemies of Jesus.

They didn't have a personal relationship with God.  It was all about outward behaviour not a heart transformation. 

Today this would represent someone who is also religious and or traditional.  Going to church each week, doing the right things which would include prayer and reading the bible, etc,  but has no personal relationship with Jesus.  Christianity without Christ or a form of Godliness without the Holy Spirit! *Trying to earn salvation rather than except the gift Jesus gave to us..Works!! etc!!

The Sadducees were the outcome of the influence of Grecian customs and philosophy during the Greek domination.

We would call them liberals today.

*They were called hypocrites by the Lord and also a wicked and adulterous generation * They ridiculed the doctrine of the resurrection, and denied the existence of angels.

I think today they would represent a people who deny the deity of Christ. * What we refer to as humanism today.. When we leave Jesus out of the way we are in danger of being sadd – u—cee!!!

 * when we don’t take the Word of God seriously or try to change it to suit our lifestyle!

Both of these religions   represent the state of our sad fleshly existence.

I do wonder if things have changed much today?

Do we still live by those words of Peter to Jesus?  "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life.” Or are we taken captive by every doctrine that passes our way.

What I conclude from this is that God’s invitation to us is one of love & communion with Him.. A walk in spirit & truth. What we see today however in most 'churches is a  false/corrupting doctrine. A “form of Christianity without Christ as the centre..”

Timothy & Peter warned us about this..

"The time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers having 'itching ears;' and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables." 2 Timothy 4:3,4.

"But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily (like hiding the Leaven in the meal) shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their 'Pernicious Ways,' by reason of whom the 'Way of Truth' SHALL BE EVIL SPOKEN OF." 2 Peter 2:1,2.

My prayer is that we come before our Father asking Him to reveal to us every false belief, attitude and sin we have and He promises us He will cleanse us..  and that we become like the Bereans spoken of in Acts 17:11  “ These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.”

ONLY JESUS HAS THE WORDS OF LIFE.. JESUS CHRIST is  THE SAME, YESTERDAY, TODAY AND FOREVER!!

Mary...  \o/

I am attaching below a commentary I found ~ I feel it really nails this.. Mathew 13:33 The parable of the leaven... "Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened."

Now what is meant by the "three measures of meal?" Where do we get meal? Not from Tares. They would not yield fine wholesome flour. Meal comes from corn. Hence the "Meal" cannot represent the "unregenerate mass of humanity," but the pure seed of the Word of God. It is a striking coincidence that the professing Church is divided today into three great parts, the Roman Catholic, the Greek, and the Protestant churches, which may represent the "three measures" into the "Meal" of which has been placed the false and corrupting doctrines of "Baptismal Regeneration," "Prayers for the Dead," "Image Worship," the "Sacrifice of the Mass" and other false doctrines.

What are you high on!!!

I was just listening to Paul talk about all the godly kings in Judah’s history who received a good testimony for loving God and following His ways but who almost always fell just one step short of total revival. 

As he was sharing, the penny dropped as to what has been really been going on in my life and stirring my heart of late!

The Lord wants us to be close to Him.. to worship Him alone and only Him.. He wants us to make Him the centre of everything!  Why? Because we have created to have Him and only Him as our one and only focus of worship.. Everything else must come second..

Jeronimo!!

It’s interesting how most of the godly kings received the following sort of testimony from God  “And Jehoshophat walked in all the ways of his father Asa.  He did not turn aside from them, doing that which was right in the eyes of the LORD.  Nevertheless the high places were not taken away, for the people offered sacrifices and burnt incense on the high places”. 1Kings 22:43

I am no bible scholar but to me, the high places where people sacrificed to idols in the old testament represents the places in our heart where we have affection and devotion for things (even good things such as family, careers, churches etc) close to, or even exceeding, our devotion to God.

As far as I know, there was only one king who went all the way and had the courage and conviction to tear down the high places.  I want a testimony like king Hezekiah:- “And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father did.  He removed the high places, and broke the images, and cut down the sacred pillars, and broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for until those days the children of Israel burned incense to it and called it Nehushtan.  He trusted in the LORD God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor who were before him.   For he held fast to the LORD, and did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD had commanded Moses.   And the LORD was with him; and he prospered wherever he went”.  2 Kings 18:3-6

This is very challenging.  No, this is impossible.  We can’t pull down the high places or strongholds in our life in our own strength or determination.  It is only by the Spirit that we die to self.   

<3 J msf

“...present  your bodies as living sacrifices . . . to God” (Rom 12:1).

Beauty for Ashes \o/

Beauty for Ashes

God will raise up a people of Jesus – those in whom Christ dwells by the Spirit of the Lord to repair the old ruins and heal the people of captivity (Isaiah 58:12).

Isaiah 61:1-4: "The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the broken hearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified. And they shall rebuild the old ruins, They shall raise up the former desolations, And they shall repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many generations."

As we were worshiping our Lord this morning this scripture was just burning in my heart.. and I sense the Lord wanting us to be reminded of it..

We (Paul and I) were also reminded of the pure love of God.. It is most humbling the reality and the intensity of the power of His love.. It overwhelms me and fills my heart with tears of gratitude..and love for Him..

When I experience this level of intimacy with our Father, the world and the value I have placed in my natural human understanding and strength become so meaningless..His love gets me undone, I feel broken.. and in this state I remember one of the most important things I believe that He has spoken to us..

Go! Go into all the world and preach the gospel! Sharing My love and Good news with all, and make DISCIPLES! Teaching them how to obey my commandments!!

And oh His promise in Isaiah 57:15 "For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: "I dwell in the high and holy place, With him who has a contrite and humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones."

To know by experience the pure love of God is the most humbling reality of life. The intensity of the power of His love overwhelms us and instantly fills our hearts with tears of gratitude and reflective love for Him. A moment in His love can transform our minds. The pride of this world and the value we have placed on our natural human understanding and strengths become meaningless to us. To know His love is to be broken. 

Through our brokenness, the way for the humble is opened into kingdom wisdom from the throne of heaven. A single burst of direct impartation from God can fill our being with wisdom and understanding of God that is far superior and supersedes all of our human precept upon precept accumulation of knowledge.

Romans 12:16: "Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion."

James 4:6: … "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble."

James 4:10: "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up."

1 Peter 5:6: "Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.."

Collosians 3:1-2: "If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth."

Father, we come to you to humble ourselves before you and ask for your mercy and grace. We repent from our pride and arrogance of seeking to live life and solve the problems of the people of the world with our natural human understanding. We choose to turn from all of our foolish ways of sin. Cleanse us, Father, with the precious blood of Yeshua ,Jesus our Lord and Saviour. Cleanse us from every residue of sin and religious ways. We come to you again emptying ourselves and laying our everything upon Your heavenly alter. Father, receive our contrite and humble spirit; revive our spirits and hearts with Your life.

Father, as we look up to You, we see the open doors to our prison of earthbound thinking. We lift our faces, our hands and our hearts to You. We set our hearts and minds on Your heavenly reality, and with all our hearts and souls we call upon Your Holy Name; lift us into heavenly places and fill us with Your love that we may be pleasing in your sight. Cast us not away, oh Lord, for we are consumed with Your love and cannot - will not - live without You. You alone are worthy and glorious above all. Look not upon our lack, but complete us with Your sufficiency. Purify us in Your holy love to become one with You forever. Father, make us carriers of Your love!!!
In Your Precious Name, Yeshua, our Lord Jesus, Amen xxx

Been thinking about LOVE :)

The word ‘love’ has been on my heart lately! A lot!

I am being reminded of WHAT IS IT?!!

We use it all the time! I ‘love’ this day, I ‘love’ this food! Even, I ‘love’ you!

The bible talks about 3 Human Loves -

1.      Storge  love: our natural, emotional love

-          Can become a suffocating love, if not returned

2.      Eros love: our natural, sexual, “falling in love” love

-          Can lose our rationality if not careful

3.      Phili0 love: our natural, friendship love. A sharing of common interest. Seeing eye to eye.

And then there is Agape, God’s love!

It’s different from human love.  It’s supernatural and comes directly from God.. We cannot produce this ‘love’ as it requires a new spirit.

Having and passing on Agape is what makes Christianity different from all the other religions of the world.

So this is what it looks like!

Definition of God’s Love

Agape is very patient and kind, never jealous or envious, never boastful or proud, never haughty or selfish or rude. [It] does not demand its own way. It is not irritable or touchy. It does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do it wrong.  It is never glad about injustices, but rejoices whenever truth wins out.  If you love someone you will be faithful to him no matter what the cost.  You will always believe in him, always expect the best of him, and always stand your ground in defending him.  Agape never fails.  (1Corinthians 13)

Agape love is not dependent upon our understanding, our feelings or our desires or upon how the other person responds  and it’s not dependent upon the circumstances we are in!

In other words it’s unconditional, it is one-sided, it is a ‘freeing’ love and is centred on reaching the other person!

Agape involves a simple choice – to co-operate with the Divine lover of our soul.  It is not based on human emotion but on God alone.  It is God Himself loving through us as we learn to say  "I choose to set myself aside and allow God to love through me".

Our ‘self’ (ie. our emotions and desires) are by nature opposed to such a love  because there is nothing in it for us. Our self is somehow more comfortable with holding on to the fears, hurts and all the “justified” offences that quench the flow of God’s love in and through our hearts

By God’s grace however, we can choose to yield these things to Him so that we can be His vessel and ambassador.

Are you willing to Love like this?

Can we tear up that long list of “justified hurts” and choose to forgive?

John 12v24 tells us...”Verily, verily I say onto you, Except a grain of wheat fall  into the ground and die, it abideth alone; but if it dies it’s going to bring forth much fruit (Gods Love).”

So why is Agape so Important?

It is the whole meaning and purpose of or lives (1 Timothy 1v5)

It's the only way others will know we are Christians ( John 13v35)

It proves we are abiding in God ( John 15v4)

It shows we are filled with fullness of God (Ephesians 3v19)

It is proof that we love (agapao) God (John 14v21)

It is the perfect bond of union, not only between God and us, but between others and us. 

AGAPE is impossible to manufacture and even to copy because its source is God alone.  But we who are filled with His agape love are able to be agents of this supernatural love wherever we go, for with GOD ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!

LORD, help me to daily put my ‘self’ aside and make these faith choices to honour You.. Help me to understand that I cannot do this in my own strength but only as I trust, abide and yield to You..

I pray in the Name of Yeshua!

Amen! J

With much  'agape' :)