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Do you desire to be a disciple of Christ Jesus?  The Lord Himself stated to those who were listening to Him, that if you would come after him, to follow Him, to be His disciple, you must deny yourself, literally meaning "It's Not About You", and take up his cross daily and follow the Lord Jesus.   The old life and the old self is gone, you are no longer your own, you are His, and you live like Him in every way.  For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.  Jesus is life, in Him a person becomes a new creation that is given eternal life, he has life.  But on the other hand, a person who rejects the Lord Jesus, rejects life, denies eternal life and lives in death, heading toward eternal damnation.  The decision is easy, and it seems obvious, but many cannot see the truth of salvation in Christ, they have been blinded by Satan and are walking with the evil one hand in hand to Hell.  Choose life, seek life, know the one who gives life, Jesus Saves!

It has been a rough few days, Jesus was arrested, beaten, crucified, buried in a borrowed tomb, is missing from the tomb, some suppose His body was stolen, but some believe what they have been told, He is Risen!  And now Jesus appears to them as they hide in fear of the Jews, and as He appears in a room, locked and secure, He gives them His words of Peace, "Peace be with you"  And the Lord goes right into the mission He is giving them, a mission to go and tell the world about Him.  As the Father has sent me, I am sending you, Jesus was sent to earth on mission from God, from Heaven, a mission to save people from their sin, death and eternal damnation.  And Jesus not only did  commission His disciples almost two thousand years ago, He, today, is commissioning you and I to go and tell the world about Him and His amazing saving Grace.  Jesus gives you the same peace He gives to all, Go in peace, live in peace, Jesus Saves!

Oh, the simplicity of the Gospel message.  Maybe it is because it is so simple and so easy to be saved that over the years people have attempted to make it far too complicated and cumbersome.  By adding the 'sinners prayer', which cannot be found in the Bible, or walking an aisle, taking classes, and so much other unnecessary stuff to be saved.  Paul wrote a whole lot right here in the book of Romans that tell the unbeliever that it is easy, it is simple, for everyone, and that means everyone, no exclusions, who call on the name of the Lord will be saved.  People often say, but do I not have to do something?  There has to be some work, some great action to make it happen?  Not at all, Jesus paid your sin debt, all you need do is believe, and when you call out to the Lord, it shows Him your heart for His salvation.  If you have not come to faith in Christ I urge you to read the tenth chapter of Romans and look and see just how profoundly easy salvation really is, Jesus Saves!

There was no light, only darkness all about for the eternally existent one, Jehovah God was beginning to create a masterpiece.  The word of God tells us the earth was without form and void, dark and empty.  And God spoke, the powerful voice of God spoke "Let there be light", Yes, the intelligent designer of all spoke light into existence.  The Light of the world brought about Light into a vast darkness, where nothing lived, and in the distant future the Light of the World would come and live among men to bring light into a dark, sin filled world.  John 1:4-5 "In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it" Jesus is the Light of the World, Jesus created all that was ever created, and Jesus is Salvation to all who believe.  Today, let the light into your heart, ask the Lord to become the light of your life, Jesus Saves!

Most all of us have seen some of God's beautiful creation in nature, mountains, grand canyons, red rocks, seas, oceans, waterfalls and so much more.  As believers in the one true God, we know who it is that brought all of this about, God did, and it is a great reminder of the most powerful and yet most loving God ever.  The Apostle Paul tells us of the presence of God's natural revelation in Romans 1:20 "For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse"  Just one aspect of life that we can come to the Lord and give Him thanks, so look at all of His great deeds He has done in your life, the daily blessings He pours out upon you and praise His Holy name.  And because of His love, mercy, and grace, let us all tell the world about our God, and all He has done for us, and everything He has done from creation to Revelation, give thanks to the Lord, Jesus Saves!

If God were to send a Prophet to America today, this message from Amos would probably be what God would say.  You want to appear righteous and pious, you want the world to think you care about the less fortunate around the globe, but in reality you are a self centered people promoting harm and injustice worldwide.  Much of what our nation promotes is absolute injustice, abortion, homosexuality, transgenderism, communist ways and much more.  Let justice roll down like waters, people know right from wrong, people know these ideas are bad, but they promote them anyway, we need real justice in the eyes of God.  And righteousness, there is little of that to be had in our nation and our world, churches defending the injustices of abortion and transgenderism, both that are harmful and destructive and unGodly.  God is saying it is time to stand up for real justice for all and righteousness will prevail, Jesus Saves!

James tells us a lot about how hard it is for us to control our tongues, that they are fire starters, a mighty force hard to keep bridled.  And along with that great truth is this perfect way to live, always be quick to hear, ready to listen to what is being said.  And as you listen, pray the Lord will help you bridle that wild tongue of yours for it can easily get you into trouble.  And finally be slow to anger, do not allow the words being spoken to you stoke the fires of anger within you.  We must always be prepared for a conversation, especially if we have any idea it might get unpleasant, always pray beforehand.  Breathe deeply before you even think about speaking, take your time, understand that the situation might not be what you think.   And then be very slow to allow your anger to come out, if you need to, take a break, take a walk, take a hike... Listen, Jesus Saves!

Jesus on more than one occasion told His disciples that through faith, strong , real faith they could do mighty things.  In Matthew 17:20 "He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”  And here in Mark, Jesus shows them through the cursing of the fig tree, and then the next day it is withered, that they could do that and more with faith, truly believing.  If you will pray in true belief, knowing it will happen, you have whatever you ask, Jesus fulfills every need. Believe that you have received it as you are praying for it, that is true faith, that is bold faith, that is what Jesus is talking about, come to Him boldly with childlike faith and see what He does, Jesus Saves!

As the Apostle Paul prepares to bring his letter to the church at Galatia to an end, he brings a message of service to others, for we are nothing unless we live a life in Christ Jesus, loving and serving others.  Paul reiterates what the Lord said as well, we are to be helping others carry their burdens daily, walking hand in hand with them, bearing them up.  For Paul states, in doing so, we fulfill the law of Christ, of which Jesus said we are to love God with all our heart, soul and mind, and when we love others as we love God, we do live in obedience to the Lord Jesus. Paul completes this thought with this statement, "So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith"  We must be willing to take advantage of every opportunity given to us by God, and live rightly in Christ Jesus, Jesus Saves!

The Fear of the Lord ~ This is the beginning of everything, it is when you know God and Fear Him that you come into an intimate and righteous filled relationship with Him.  We as believers are called to Fear the Lord and love the Lord with our heart, soul and mind, with our whole being, for that is where God wants us.  The first of the Ten Commandments is the most important, you shall have no other Gods before me, if you keep this one commandment, you will keep them all.  Solomon wrote that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, Godly wisdom, Godly insight into how to live for the Lord.  And the knowledge of the Holy One is insight, for when we come to a true knowledge of God, when we truly know Him, our life and perspective on life changes dramatically, we become a different person, a new creation in Christ Jesus.   Today, ponder your relationship with God, is He the most important person in your life, do you know Him personally, does He know you as His child, Fear God, know God, love God, Jesus Saves!

The mind is a very powerful tool, if used in an improper manner, or allowed to wander in the wrong direction can lead to consequences, even death.  We must control what enters our mind, either through the eyes or the ears, and then keep the mind clear of darkness, clear of pollution, and absolutely not focused on this fleshly world we live in.  Rather, set your mind or keep your mind focused on God and led by the Holy Spirit of God.  And we do this by taking every thought captive, staying in close relationship with the Lord, in meditation on His word and in constant prayer.  We read in Proverbs 4:23 "he taught me and said to me, “Let your heart hold fast my words; keep my commandments, and live", guard your heart and guard your mind, walk by faith, not by sight and stay focused on your Savior, Jesus Saves!

It is time to replace that bad habit of worry with something that actually has value, praise and worship of the Lord your God.  Jesus spends a good amount of time here in His amazing Sermon on the Mount talking about the time wasting habit of worry and anxiousness.  Worry is putting your mind in high gear and going nowhere, your head is spinning with worry, but there is no progress, only wasted time.  God says, I created the birds of the air, and they have all they need, the flowers of the field, and they have the best of clothing, so think about this, will God not supply your every need?  We are told to number our days, to make every hour count for something, we are not to waste the little amount of time we have been given, therefore, do not be spending time worrying, it gains nothing.  Worry less, Know Jesus more, Jesus Saves!

Freedom, freedom is found in the truth, we are truly free when we know the truth and stand firm upon the truth.  And we find the truth in the very word of God, Jesus said in John 8:31-32 "So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  When you become a follower of Christ Jesus, you are set free from the bondage of sin, the chains of death, and separation from God, that is the freedom we have as the Holy Spirit of God enters our lives.  Most people do not see the oppression and bondage that comes with a sin filled life, it is just what they do, but when they see the light of Christ come into their life, it all changes and the realization of that freedom in Christ is like nothing you will ever experience.  Know the truth, Know Jesus, Jesus Saves!

Thomas the disciple, he gets a real bad rap for simply being a scientific disciple, he wants proof, evidence of what he is being told.  And Jesus is more than understanding, Jesus did not get angry and displeased with Thomas, no He fully understood his questioning, and gave Thomas the opportunity to do as he had requested.  At that moment Thomas declared to Jesus, "My Lord and my God", there was no question that Jesus was alive.  But the Lord makes a statement right then that would impact people for many years to come, a statement intended for generations to read and hear.  "Thomas, have you believed because you have seen me?Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed"  People for almost two thousand years have read and have heard the Good News and believed without seeing Him, today we believe yet we have not seen.   "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen" ~ Jesus Saves!

 How often we fail to see the goodness of the Lord when life is hard, when dark times come upon us...  Here the Psalmist, David had been pursued by the King of Israel, seeking to kill him for Saul was jealous, envious, and unstable in mind.  But David, rather than getting depressed and wallowing in self pity chose to seek the and praise the Lord.  And he wrote this psalm, O taste and see that the Lord is good, for God is good all the time, even when this life is difficult and challenging, God is still on the throne and God is still good.  For happy are those who take refuge in Him, those who seek the Lord, and look to Him to carry them through those rough waters and protect them when they walk through a wall of fire.  Like the old song written by Bill Gaither says, "The longer I serve Him, the sweeter He grows", O taste and see that the Lord is good, Jesus Saves! 

Love and God are synonymous terms, God is love, God is the originator of love.  God's love for His human creation goes far beyond the obvious, it extends further and deeper than the surface that we can see.  God created all that has been created and then placed man within His creation and gave him dominion over it all, all for the love of God.  But the greatest act of God is His plan and the full execution of that plan to save His human creation from it's sinful nature, it's bent for wickedness, leading to sure death and destruction.  God loved mankind so much that He sent His only Son to die on a cross, a criminal's death to pay their sin debt, then He was raised from the dead to give all who would believe eternal life.  That is the love of God, He is the giver of life, we live because God loves us.  Salvation in Christ Jesus is a matter of life and death, believe upon the Lord and live, or reject Him, deny Him and death and destruction will come, Jesus Saves!

You have heard the saying, "you have got to stand for something, or you will stand for anything", that is quite true, we all must be willing to take a stand, and in this case, we must stand for righteousness sake.  Blessed or highly favored are those who are persecuted for righteousness, for standing up for what is right, for standing up with Jesus.  Some of the major issues we stand for today that cause people to hate us are Abortion, we will defend those who cannot defend themselves, and we are severely hated for it.  Those who are encouraged to transition to a different gender at a young age, this is wrong and we will stand against it.  Or simply standing up for is right in a world that embraces wickedness and evil, it is the right thing to do.  When we are willing to take a stand against evil, we will be persecuted and hated , But God says our is the Kingdom of Heaven!  Do what is right and stand up for what is right. It is worth whatever cost comes your way, Jesus Saves!

Blessed, Highly favored are those who make peace where there is no peace.  These people are willing to step in and help others find common ground and come back to a place of peace.  This is not an easy task, listening to both sides without prejudice, hearing arguments, pleadings, and peoples justification for the battle.  Oftentimes people do not desire to have peace, they enjoy times when there is strife all around, but there must be peace, especially in the church.  Making peace requires several important things, truth, humility and patience, because truth wins the day and Jesus is truth.  Humility brings people to a place of realization that whatever is going on is not centered on them.  And patience is a must when we are bringing others to the table of peace, it does not always happen in a quick and easy manner, it requires patience.  
Blessed are the peacemakers,  for they will be called children of God ~ Jesus Saves!

Are any of us truly pure in heart?  No, of course not, but, if we have been redeemed by Christ Jesus and we have surrendered our will for His, and we have placed our full trust in Him, then we are covered with the blood of Christ and clean and pure and Holy in the sight of God.  This verse reminds me of David, a man after God's own heart, he was not perfect by any means, but he loved the Lord deeply.  When David was confronted with his sinfulness by Nathan the prophet, he realized his sin against God and he repented and wrote a Psalm, where he wrote  "Create in me a clean heart, O God"  The pure in heart are those who believe in the life saving power of the blood of Christ, that He shed on the cross of Calvary, where Jesus died for the sins of the world, then rose from the dead to give each believer eternal life.  We are saved by faith, made clean by the blood of Christ Jesus, pure and Holy in the eyes of God, Jesus Saves!

Are any of us truly pure in heart?  No, of course not, but, if we have been redeemed by Christ Jesus and we have surrendered our will for His, and we have placed our full trust in Him, then we are covered with the blood of Christ and clean and pure and Holy in the sight of God.  This verse reminds me of David, a man after God's own heart, he was not perfect by any means, but he loved the Lord deeply.  When David was confronted with his sinfulness by Nathan the prophet, he realized his sin against God and he repented and wrote a Psalm, where he wrote  "Create in me a clean heart, O God"  The pure in heart are those who believe in the life saving power of the blood of Christ, that He shed on the cross of Calvary, where Jesus died for the sins of the world, then rose from the dead to give each believer eternal life.  We are saved by faith, made clean by the blood of Christ Jesus, pure and Holy in the eyes of God, Jesus Saves!

God demonstrates mercy for us every day, but His mercy is beyond anything we can comprehend, Romans 5:8 tells us "but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us"  Mercy is being reprieved when we absolutely do not deserve to be reprieved, even though we are guilty God redeems us and makes us clean of all of our sin.  And God expects us to do the same for others, we are to be merciful to those around us.  Jesus made this promise, Blessed or Highly Favored are those who show mercy, for they too will be shown mercy.  So, instead of demanding retribution and always holding others fully accountable for their actions, let us show more mercy and be loving and forgiving.  Blessed are the merciful, Jesus Saves!

Again Jesus is making a promise, an if-then statement to all believers.  Blessed or highly favored, Divinely touched are those who hunger, those who have a very deep longing or strong desire to see something come about.  And those who thirst, those who have a deep seated almost painful desire to see something come about.  And that outcome is to see righteousness reign supreme over all the world.  And the Lord says to those people who have these deep heart filled desires, you will be satisfied, not with food but with Joy, with Peace, and with the love of God.  One day this will happen, when Jesus returns and rules this world unfettered by evil and wickedness, righteousness will be the way of life at that time, and we do long for that time to come.  If you feel this very strong desire to see this world change, and you do not know Jesus, cry out to Him and ask Him to come into your life, Jesus Saves!

Let's start today with the word blessed.  Many people want to believe this word simply means happy, but in reality this word holds far more significance than a fleeting emotion.  Blessed means highly favored, Divine favor, a state of Spiritual well being employed through the Grace of God.  Blessed are the meek, another word that is often mischaracterized, meekness is not weakness.  Meekness is power under control, Jesus demonstrated this often during His life on earth.  The Lord Jesus had the power to destroy the world, yet chose to allow the world to kill Him.  You and I have the power to do many things, but we as followers of Christ choose to restrain ourselves  for the sake of our Lord.  In many cases, what good does it do to get angry and lose control ?  When remaining calm, cool and collected will win the day.  Jesus is a gentle Spirit, we are also called to be gentle in our lives, to show the world a different manner in which to live.  Gentleness truly is next to Godliness, Jesus Saves!

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord!  The word of God speaks a great deal about humility, being a humble person, and rightly so as the number one sin is Pride.  Pride is the attribute you do not want associated with your person, it is ugly, it is mean, and it is self centered.  The Apostle Peter tells his readers you are to be humble and to live under the mighty hand of God, surrender yourself to the will of God.  Prideful people rarely become followers of Christ as they are too self focused to look to another for salvation, they have it covered, they think.  Live a Christ centered life, willing to lower yourself to be His servant and to love others like He loves you, rather than a self centered life expecting others to bow down to your self deception of greatness.  Humility leads to submission to the Lord your God, which in time will lead to Him exalting you, Jesus Saves! 

Consider His great deeds, His great works, His love and compassion, for He is God, the creator of all and the keeper of all.  We do not need to stop and ponder God for very long and we are overwhelmed by all He has done, He created the world we live in, He flooded the earth to cleanse it, He called a man and created a special people, He parted the Red Sea to save them, He gave them a land of their own, He stopped time to give them victory.  When you believe that God has abandoned you, meditate on all He has done and remember His promise to all people who love Him, I will never leave you nor forsake you, I am with you always.  And the Biggest wonder of all, He died on a despicable Roman cross to save you, died a criminal's death to redeem you, and He rose from the dead to give you eternal life ~ How Great is our God!  Spend some time today to just ponder everything God has done in the past as we read in His word, His story, and then ponder all He has done in your life, then let us praise God for He is great, Jesus Saves!

Paul, a man called by Christ to come and serve Him as His Apostle to the Gentiles.  For most this seemed a very unlikely choice as he was so zealous to stop The Way, and kill the name of Jesus of Nazareth.  But Paul heard the call and fully accepted Christ as Lord and Savior, he was all in, fully committed to the Lord.  This verse shows us that Paul had no desire for self, but only to do the work the Lord had drawn him into.  Jesus said in Matthew 10:39 "Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it"  This life we live here on earth is nothing more than a vapor, it is gone quickly, we must then make the best of it, spreading the Good News of Christ Jesus must be our life's goal, and to finish well, Jesus Saves!

Here, near the end of Paul's first letter to the church at Corinth, he explains a mystery, one many of us believers are patiently waiting for, and the Victory we have in Christ Jesus.  The mystery is the Rapture, the taking up of believers into Heaven without death, it is real and it will happen.  Then there is the Victory in Jesus, When the Lord Jesus died on that cross He paid the sin debt of every person, sin had been defeated and remains a defeated foe to this day and into eternity, Victory over sin.  When Christ was resurrected from the dead, He defeated another dark and ugly foe, Death.  Death no longer has a hold on us, we can know with confidence that we will not be chained in death, but be in the presence of our Lord, Victory over death.  Now, let us live in the Victory that God had given us, keep your eyes upon Jesus, and look up for your redemption is very near, Jesus Saves! 

The writer of Hebrews brings to mind the times in which the Lord Jesus, in the flesh, fully man went to God the Father in desperate prayer.  We can read how deeply troubled Jesus was as his hour had arrived, He knew what the hours just ahead of Him held, it was deep dark waters he was going to be walking through.  Jesus, in the Garden of Gethsemane prayed that His Father would take that cup from Him, but knowing that God is all good and all knowing surrendered His will for the will of the Father.  We can learn a great deal from how Jesus prayed, and even more about how Jesus reacted, "not my will, but yours be done".  There are times in our lives when we know a difficult season is upon us and we pray simply for relief, to be delivered from this time of trouble.  But we need to remember those hard times are what strengthen our faith, and God knows what you need, and the trials of life will help us even though they are hard.  "Even though my friends may fail me, sin and death and Hell asial me, I know my Jesus will never fail me", Jesus Saves

God desires that His people be comforted in times of need, distress and sorrow.  Isaiah spoke a similar message in his time as well, he said "Comfort, comfort my people, says your God"  We serve a God of all comfort, one who knows our every need, every tear, and every sorrow that comes our way, and He comforts us in many ways.  One way that God comforts is through others who have experienced the love, mercy and compassion themselves from the Lord.  Paul is writing to the people in Corinth to encourage them to be God's comforters, to ensure their community is being given the comfort that the Lord has poured out upon each of them.  Paul is making a strong point in these opening verses of his second letter to the church at Corinth, the word comfort is used some ten times in the beginning of this letter.  As followers of Christ, we are to be comforters to others, just as Christ is to us, comfort, comfort my people, Jesus Saves!

The Apostle Paul in his letter to his young protege, Timothy, is writing to encourage him, to lift him up as he goes off to start a new chapter in his life as a pastor in the city of Ephesus.  Timothy was known to be timid and nervous, but was good at what he did.  But because of his young age, Paul wanted to give him assurance his age should not be the problem as long as he carried himself in the right manner.  Paul says to him, let no one despise you because you are young, but be set apart for God, set an example of what a young believer in Christ looks like, acts like, and speaks like.  Love like Christ loves the church, have a strong, bold faith, and stand above reproach, walk in Christ's righteousness.  Age should not be a deterrent for anyone, young or old, if we live as the Lord Jesus has taught us.  Let them see Christ in you, Jesus Saves!

This piece of Scripture is one of those that can be taken out of context in many ways.  We live in a very fallen world and we also know that bad things happen to good people.  Not all things that happen are good in any way shape or form, they are just plain bad and ugly.  But God, God can work miracles and God can make a way where there is no visible way to you and me.  It comes down to trusting God, that He will indeed work all things out for good, and for those who love Him and trust Him, we stand on this promise.  For we can know for certain that all things will work according to His purpose and His will.  If we look at the lives of the disciples, they looked to God and trusted God in all things, knowing how ever it worked out it was God's will.   God has a good plan, a plan that is unfolding day by day, and one day in the future it will be complete, we need only trust Him, Jesus Saves!

Fear is a good emotion in times of danger, when we need to be alert and ready for what seems to be imminent.  But fear in general is wasted time and usually drives us to act in irrational ways.  The Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to Timothy, "for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control", let us use the power God has given to us.  The fear of man is a problem, a snare, and it leads us away from God our protector.  The Psalmist wrote in psalm 118 "The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?" ~ Whoever TRUST in the Lord is safe.  We must trust in the Lord in all situations for He is our Savior, our refuge, and our protector, what can man do to me, Jesus Saves!

At face value the words of this statement do not tell of the gravity of the work done in delivering us from the domain of darkness.  The act of delivering you and I from Satan's grasp required death.  God's plan of redemption of all of mankind required sacrifice, and not just any sacrifice, it demanded a perfect sinless lamb of God  to lay down His life.  There was no other way, and Jesus willingly went to the cross to pay the sin debt of you and I, thus delivering us out of the evil ons domain of darkness.  And in doing so, we have been transferred into the Kingdom of God's beloved Son, Christ Jesus.  The Lord Jesus, by sacrificing His life, created a bridge to deliver us from sure death and Hell to Eternal life in Heaven, Jesus Saves!