Heart

THE BIBLE

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THE BIBLE

The title goes by several other names such as: Scripture, the Good Book, God’s word, the Word, the Scriptures, the Holy Scriptures, the Old Testament, the New Testament, the Torah, the Canon, the Testaments, Sacred History, the Writings of the Apostles and Prophets, Holy Writ, the Holy Bible, the Word of God, Testament, the Book.

Today, there are several translations to choose from for your own personal preference. The excuse that the Bible is hard to read is not valid since there are translations that a child can read and understand. Personally I prefer the King James Version because it is closer to the original manuscripts although I have several translation and use them all in preparations of my blogs. The Bible is comprised of 66 books. It is divided into the Old Testament which contains 39 books and the New Testament which contains 27 books.

The author of the Bible is the Holy Spirit who inspired men chosen by God to write God’s instructions for how we should live our lives here on earth. It is the starting point so every person can understand the will of God for their life. We need to understand that you have a free will that God has granted each one of us. In other words you make your choices in this life with or without God’s guidance. Every aspect of life is covered in the Bible and God’s desire is that you would follow his Book of Instruction, the Bible.

In order for you to understand what the Bible is saying, you need to realize a very important factor. Human beings were created by God with a body, soul, and spirit. Your body and soul are guided by the carnal senses of touch, smell, hearing, sight, and taste. I believe that a majority of people are under the influence of the senses and not under the influence of the Holy Spirit. All you have to do is look at the way the world is going.

The Bible is the divine revelations of God. In order for you to have an understanding of what the Bible is saying, your spirit must come under the guidance of the Holy Spirit since He is the author.

You also must understand that the Bible is alive and active. According to Hebrews 4:12 (NKJV) 12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart

There must be a transformation take place in your life in order for God to reveal His purpose for your life in Christ. One of the first steps a person must take is found in Romans 10:9 (NKJV) 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Also in Galatians 2:20 (NIV) I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Let’s look at a very important factor regarding God and His Way. God is Spirit. His method of communication is mainly through the Spirit. With that in mind you need to realize that is why He created you with a spirit so that He can communicate with you and you with Him. If you attempt to communicate with God through the 5 senses or what is referred to as the flesh, I believe that is why so many people become discouraged or fail to realize that the communication line is broken because God speaks through the Spirit.

Remember that the Bible was written by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. In order for you to get the full benefit of what the Bible says, you must activate your spirit to connect with the Holy Spirit in order to come to an understanding of what God is saying to you.

As stated before, the Bible is alive and active. Look at John 6:63 (NIV) The Spirit gives life, the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.  

Let’s look further at Jeremiah 29:13 (NIV) You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. The key word here is “all.” A lot of what a person is seeking from God is lost because they seek with a lack of knowledge of what God says in His Word they should do.

An example of this is found in Proverbs 4:20-22 (NKJV) 20 My son, give attention to my words, Incline your ear to my sayings. 21 Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart; 22 For they are life to those who find them, and health to all your flesh.

Also, look at what 2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV) says: Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

The majority of unanswered prayers, health situations, financial problems, marital problems, job problems or whatever the case may be is the result of not knowing what God’s life manual, the Bible, has instructed you to follow. The Bible is clear on the fact that when you receive Jesus Christ into your life as your Savior and then make Him Lord of your life, you become joint heirs with Jesus. Did you notice that there are two parts in the previous sentence for you to follow? The first one gets you into Heaven where the second one produces the benefits of God’s blessings, both spiritual and physical here on earth.

When the Bible is described as “living” it means that God is revealing His purpose and His vision to us as if He is speaking verbally to us. When you study the Bible, it brings about a supernatural change in a person. If you expect answers, you must read, study and memorize the Bible. According to Romans 10:17 (KJV) So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. If a Bible sits somewhere and is rarely opened, don’t expect much to change in your life because you will never get the message. You will continue to rely on your 5 senses for guidance in life. God expects you to apply His word to your life so you can live victorious.

In order to come to an understanding of what the Bible is teaching, you may need to enlist the help of a Concordance or Bible dictionary or some of the many books that are available. You will be amazed at the transformation that will come about when you dwell on God’s word. I am speaking from experience.

We need to realize that bad things don’t come from God. God is love and to prove it, He sacrificed His son so you may live and not die because of sin. If the devil is in your life in any way, you and you alone gave him access to your life. Remember God gave you a free will to choose your way in life. Look at what is said in Hosea 4:6 (NKJV) My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. The devil is out to destroy us and he will succeed because of our ignorance of God’s word. 1 Peter 5:8-9 (NKJV) Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith.

The Bible is very clear in its teachings. Sickness, death, poverty, sadness, hatred, strife, etc. are not in Heaven. All of the aforementioned and all bad stuff is an oppression of the devil. How can anyone believe that a God of love who is willing to give you His blessings believe otherwise? If you have let the devil come into your life in a small way, you become susceptible to his way. Neglecting God’s word is a prime target letting the devil to enter into your life. You are not able to fight him off with your human abilities because he is spirit. Read Ephesians 6:10-18 with regards to putting on the full armor of God. James 4:7 (NKJV) offers more advice; submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

You have a part to play in cooperating with God in order to see His will come to pass in your life here on earth. In order for your spiritual life to grow you must feed it just like you need to feed you physical life. The Bible is your spiritual food. If you neglect it just like your physical body, it will deteriorate. According to Matthew 4:4 (NKJV) But He answered and said, “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by the word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”

You can neglect God and His word and still exist. The problem is that you will not enjoy life the way God intended. The majority of your life will seem negative. The main excuse that people use is “ I don’t have time.” I cannot buy that excuse because of the technology that exist today. There are many ways you can enjoy God’s word if you want a renewed heart or you can live your life as it is.

There is so much to share on this subject. It is said that the Bible has over 4000 promises God wants to share with you. Jesus shares one in John 16:33 (NIV) I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

John 16:23 (NKJV) Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name, He will give you.

John 3:16 (NKJV) For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Ephesians 2:8 (NIV) For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God. You cannot earn salvation by working for it because it is a gift from God to those who believe on His Son.

I pray that the readers of this blog will turn their life over to Jesus and receive the blessings that God offers through His Word. Let the Bible guide your life and not let the world (devil) rob you of eternal life in God’s Kingdom.

Why? Because God loves you and so do I.

FOR IT IS WRITTEN

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FOR IT IS WRITTEN

I believe that the title words Jesus spoke to Satan when He was tempted are very important to us today. We must realize and come to know that if you are born again and belong to Christ, you have the same authority over the devil as Jesus did when He walked on this earth. Jesus gave us everything He has when He died for us. You just have to believe and claim them. I did and He has.

The Bible points out three times that the devil tempted Jesus, Jesus quoted scripture. Each time, Jesus began with, “IT IS WRITTEN.”

Satan takes advantage of our circumstances when tempting us. His temptations increase if we are poor, hungry and have a strong desire for worldly possessions. The devil feeds on our lusts and desires. If we tempt the devil to tempt us, we provoke God and God will leave us to battle Satan’s temptations on our own. Since Jesus did not have a corrupt nature, He was only tempted by the devil and not by His lusts or desires.

Satan wants you to believe that he is strong and mighty. Do you realize that the devil only has the power and authority you give to him. Satan is the great deceiver, liar and intimidator. Whatever attacks and temptations he comes to you with, he only succeeds if you yield to him. Remember, Jesus did not yield to him. Satan usually goes after Christians, especially born again believers. Non-Christians already belong to him, so he does not bother with them. If Satan is bold enough to approach Jesus who was God, he sure is not afraid of a human being who do not have the authority of Jesus Christ with them.

Let me ask you, what your defenses against the devil are if you do not know what God’s Word says to do. Oh, you may know a few verses, but are they what you need to encounter Satan. Do you realize that the devil knows the scriptures, probably better than most of us and will counter your defense? Have you ever thought about, why doesn’t God hear my prayers and answer them? You are at the mercy of Satan if you are not prepared. The only solution is to have Jesus Christ in control of your life. That only comes by your surrender of your life to Him. Jesus will protect you if you belong to Him.

Do you realize that the devil’s temptations are believable? He is so cunning that he can have you believing that you are doing well when in fact you are sinning against God. Most often, Satan will fill us with pride and vain self-conceit that we get so wrapped in ourselves we neglect God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit and fall into the sins of the devil. When the devil can get you to rely on your five senses to guide your life, he is winning. Our five senses lead to the opposite of what God wants because they are controlled by the flesh. Sin controls the flesh.

God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit reside in the spiritual realm. In order for us to communicate with them, it must be done in the spirit. That only happens when we enter into the spiritual realm by being born again. Then like our physical life, we must grow spiritually. We must study and learn what instructions God has for us so we will grow spiritually. Our study book is the Bible.

In order for us to meet the temptations of Satan, we must do as Jesus did with plain declarations of the Scriptures. We need to know what the Bible says so we can test the matter whether it is the right thing to do or whether we are going on what we feel. Remember feel is one of the five senses.

We need to understand that Jesus did not have the New Testament to rely on. His quotations came from the Old Testament. They are from Deuteronomy 8:3 and Deuteronomy 6:16.  In the New Testament, Matthew chapter 4 and Luke chapter 4 record the story of Jesus’ temptations.

During your lifetime, whatever time that is, Satan will come into your life many, many times. He will come with the power you give him to overcome you. There will be false teachers that can lead you astray. Satan can be so impressive and so powerful that you will be deceived by him and yield to the sins that tempt you. If you are not prepared, it will overtake you. All you have to do is look around you and see how bad it is and it is going to get worse according to the Bible. Satan’s temptations are so great because our lusts are taking control of our lives. Look at the cell phone epidemic, the internet, sexual immorality, drugs, alcohol, self-desires, etc.

Praise God because there is good news. If you have given yourself to Jesus, then according to 1 Corinthians 10:13 “there is no temptations taken you but such as is common to man: but God [is] faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able, but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may able to bear [it].”

The Lord’s ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts (Isa. 55:8). The foolishness of God is wiser than the wisdom of men and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Cor. 1:25). If God is speaking to you today, Please listen to what He is telling you to do.

EPHESIANS 6:17 NKJ  and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

The sword, or weapon, of the spirit is not the Bible laying on a shelf, but God’s Word being spoken by a believer.

You must take it. Your spiritual weapon is speaking the Word of God. You must take the Word and speak it — just like Jesus did (Matthew 4:4).

Our battle is with an evil spiritual force. That means we are required to use spiritual weapons. Those weapons are speaking the Word of God. 1 Peter 5:8 says that Satan will devour those that don’t know the authority of Jesus Christ. God loves you so much He has given us authority over the devil through His Son Jesus Christ. I want you to realize the truth because I love you. Study the Bible to show thyself approved.

Jesus Is The Way.

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THINGS THAT WON’T GET YOU INTO HEAVEN:

Good Works, Baptism, Church, Religion, Sunday School, Charity, Money, Mass, Communion, Parents, Political Affiliation, Denomination, Friends, Positive Thinking, and Just Being A Good Person.

THINGS THAT WILL GET YOU INTO HEAVEN:

JESUS CHRIST

Do you know Jesus? Have you fully trusted Him and only Him for your Salvation?

Here are a few Bible verses that confirm the above statement. You can believe or just ignore them. God’s Word does not lie.

John 3:3 (KJV) 3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

John 14:6 (KJV) Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 3:16 (KJV) 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Acts 4:12 (KJV) 12 neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

Acts 16:31 (KJV) 31 and they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

Romans 10:9 (KJV) 9 that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

1 John 5:11-12 (KJV) 11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

According to the Bible, Jesus is the only way to spend eternity in God’s Kingdom. I pray that you will consider His invitation. God loves you and I love you.

OUR WILL OR GOD’S WILL?

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OUR WILL OR GOD’S WILL?

Do you have difficulty choosing between the affairs of the world, family and what God has commanded in the Bible? More often than not, we must choose. I know from experience that I have put God second and later regretted it beyond words.

We must come to understand that in order for things to go right in our lives, we must put our priorities in the right order. You may say that is easier said than done. No, it is not. God has made it very simple if you just follow His instructions. What needs to happen is that you realize that you are to die to self (your desires). Your fleshly desires come from Satan. Satan wants you ignore God and do your own thing. It is called yielding to temptation or the desires of your heart. Because God did not want to force HIS will on you, He gave you a free will to make your own choices. You are in charge of your own destiny and the consequences that come with the choices you make.

Let us look at what the Bible has to say: First, in the Old Testament, Deuteronomy 6:5,  “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” All of one’s heart, soul, and strength is to be committed to loving God, making Him the first priority. By the word “all,” the instructions are very clear.

(Exodus 20:2-3). “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me”

God does not want us to place anything before Him. His desire is that we worship Him and Him alone. He must come first in our lives.

Now, look at what is said in the New Testament: Matthew 6:33 (NKJV) But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. What things? All the good things that God has promised in the Scriptures, around 4000 0f them. They are yours if you turn your life over to Jesus.

Matthew 7:7-8 (KJV) Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; and it shall opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

This means everything that God has is yours and God has everything. When you get your priority backward — putting other things first — you miss God’s plan.

The most important command is to love God with all your being. As with all His commands, God does not give this for His benefit, but for your benefit. Putting God first will bless you, improving your life and well-being. Leaving God out of our planning is unwise. This includes every aspect of your life down to the finest detail. If you are determined to follow Jesus and obey Him, don’t allow anything other than Jesus Christ to be your highest priority.

Overcoming our selfish nature and replacing it with God’s character should be uppermost in our minds. As Christ taught: “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).

If you want to love people and help people then love God and His love will flow through you and result in a love that cannot come from you alone. The biblical balance is allowing God to empower us to meet all of our priorities.

I pray that all who read this realize that there is no room in God’s world for neutrality. If God is God, then follow Him. If there are other gods in your life, follow them. Look at the words that Jesus spoke as written in the last book of the Bible. Revelation 3:15-16 (NASB) I know your deeds, that you are neither cold or hot; I would that you were cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm and neither hot or cold, I will spit you out of my mouth

What are your thoughts when you read these verse?

God loves you so much that He gave His Son to die for your sins. All God want from you is for you to love Him. I do and I love all of you.

DO YOU KNOW JESUS WITH YOUR MIND OR WITH YOUR HEART?

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DO YOU KNOW JESUS WITH YOUR MIND OR WITH YOUR HEART?

The first thing I have to say about this blog is that it is not about the vital organ that pumps blood through our bodies nor does it refer to romantic, philosophical, or literary definitions.

I must ask, who is this Jesus to you? When you hear the name Jesus, what does it mean to you? With today’s technology, almost everyone has heard His name. Sadly, it may have been used in vain.

Would you say you know Jesus in your mind or in your heart? Many people look towards God with a self-salvation through good works and moral behavior. If they were honest, they are miserable most of the time. They are never sure they are good enough or compare themselves to other people. I would have to say that they know Jesus with their mind. They need a transformation by the renewing of the mind.

Look at what the following verse says: Proverbs 3:5-6, Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding (mind). In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.

Have you ever thought about how much information you put into your brain (mind) each day? Some of it stays and some of it goes away. Some of what stays, we will apply to our heart. It can easily become a god and become very real to you. Whatever that something or someone is can take over our mind, emotions, and affections. A person needs to be aware of what the heart stays fixed upon.

“Jonathan Edwards from his sermon Divine and Supernatural Light has a great illustration to make this point using honey. He says, “your mind can know honey is sweet, people can tell you it’s sweet, you’ve read books about it, etc. but if you haven’t actually tasted it, you know with your head, but not with your heart. When you actually taste it, you experience it for yourself, you know it in a full way, and you can know it in your heart.”

God has given us His Word, the Bible, so that we can learn what we should or must do in order to receive His blessings. The following verse is another reference to the word “heart.”

Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” – Psalm 139:23-24.

The human heart is mentioned about 300 times in the Bible. We need to understand that the heart is the spiritual part of us where our emotions and desires dwell. Because of the fall of Adam and Eve, every human being is born into sin. Our heart is naturally evil and deceitful above all things, who can understand it? As stated in Jeremiah 17:9. Although we may not understand, God does and He knows our every thoughts.

In order for you understand your heart, you must learn what God teaches in His Word. It is not enough just to hear teachings on the subject. The Bible teaches us that we must feed on the scriptures so they speak to us through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Then you must exercise your faith and believe for it to grow strong. Your faith will become stronger the more you feed it regarding any subject.

In order for you to receive the gift of salvation from God, your heart must be changed. This only happens by the power of God in response to faith. Romans 10:10 (NIV). 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and in Psalm 51:10 (NIV). 10 Create in me a pure heart, O God. Salvation is by the grace of God.

I can say through my own experiences that God will test your heart in order to keep you on course. He will fill you with new ideas, new desires, new wisdom, and new hope if you follow Him with your heart and not with your mind. As you continue in your new life, God places a high importance on keeping our hearts pure. Everyone must work at keeping their heart from evil. I must say that God’s way is the best way. Love to all.

THE HEART

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THE HEART

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The word “Heart” occurs over one thousand times in the Bible, making it an important subject that Christians should become aware of what God has to say about it. The “Heart” is the center for both the physical and spiritual activities of our lives.

The heart is the core of our being and the Bible sets the importance of keeping our hearts pure.

Proverbs 4:23 NIV Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

This article is not about the heart as a vital organ, a muscle that pumps blood throughout the body. Neither is this article concerned with romantic, philosophical, or literary definitions. When the Bible in the Old and New Testaments speak about the heart, it never means merely human feelings.

The Biblical word “Heart,” is the inner part of man, made of three parts all together, with the primary part:

  1. Mental Process, which is the major part, which is to lead a person in their life.
  2. Emotions, enriching our lives.
  3. Will, where decisions are made between rational and irrational.

We need to remember that God created male and female in His image. Geneses 1:27, so God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. With that in mind we must realize that God has a heart.

We have a heart because God does. David was a man “after God’s own heart” (Acts 13:22).

And God blesses His people with leaders who know and follow His heart (1 Samuel 2:35 and Jeremiah 3:15).

Let us look at some additional verses regarding the “Heart.”

Deuteronomy 6:5 (NIV) Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.

Proverbs 3:5 (NIV) Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

Rather than trust our hearts, we are to commit our hearts to God. In all your ways submit to him.

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

Now, let us look at the other side of the “Heart.”

Mark 7:21-23 (NIV). 21 For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23 All these evils come from inside and make a man unclean.

We all have a heart problem. Our biggest problem is not external but internal.

Jeremiah 17:9-10, (NIV) The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind to reward a man according to his conduct.

Matthew 12:34 (NKJV) For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

There is hope, for God has provided a way for our “Heart” to be changed. In order to be saved, the heart must be changed. This can only happen when we have faith and believe in Jesus Christ. It happens when the power of God, by His grace creates a new a new heart of the one who believes in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ for that is the Gospel.

Ezekiel 36:26 (NIV). 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone.

He will fill your “Heart” with new ideas, new wisdom, and new desires. It is a free gift. All you have do is receive Jesus as your Savior. God loves you and so do I. Love to all.