The True Grace in Which You Stand

 

By Silvanus, our faithful brother as I consider him, I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God in which you stand.

—1 Peter 5:12 (NKJV)

 

Peter emphasized the true grace of God in this verse. If there is a true grace in which we can stand then there is also a false grace into which we can put our faith. The true grace of God, which gives us right standing with Him through faith in Christ, does not demand our performance to prove we have received God’s righteousness. False grace says we must prove we deserve the righteousness of God. We don't deserve it, and we can't earn it.

 

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

 

If the grace of God demanded our work to prove our salvation, then the work of redemption would place the work of holiness upon us. Holiness is God’s work in and through us. It is not our work. The gospel of grace is God’s gift given to those who believe by faith in the finished work of Jesus. It is nothing we do. It is all Jesus did. 

 

Right standing with God only comes through faith in what Jesus did for us. We are encouraged in 1 Peter 5:12 that it is the true grace of God in which we stand. 

 

“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God” (Romans 5:1-2). 

 

Being justified with God—having a right standing with God—is having peace with God. When you have peace in your relationship with someone, you don’t feel you need to prove yourself to them. We can only stand in the true grace of God—in His peace—when we believe in our hearts that we don't have to prove ourselves to Him. We can only live His righteousness when we believe we have received His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21). 

 

When we know we are at peace with God, we have His peace. We stand in His peace. We have nothing to prove to Him. Jesus proved Himself for us. He has bought for us what our human flesh could never purchase. We walk by faith in the righteousness He has given us.

 

Right-standing with God—peace with God—only comes through faith in what Christ did for us. True grace teaches us to deny ungodliness and to live soberly and righteously (Titus 2:12). True grace also teaches us that it is only by His righteousness we live and have our being (Acts 17:28). When we believe our righteous standing with God through the faith we have placed in Christ, we know we have peace with God. We live soberly and righteously out of His righteousness.

 

Faith in God comes out of who we believe we are in Christ. It comes out of believing that nothing can separate us from God —and that we have peace with Him because of our relationship with Jesus. Having peace with God is the only way we can walk in faith. Otherwise, we are going to try to do something to prove ourselves to God trying to get Him to do something for us. God does not do something for us because we do something for Him. There is nothing left for Christ to complete for us. His work is finished. 

 

When we believe Jesus’ work of grace is finished—when we believe He has accomplished our right standing, our forgiveness, and our healing (1 Peter 2:24), there is nothing left but to receive His forgiveness, healing, and peace with God. The work we do for Him that comes from our relationship with Him brings us rest. When we labor out of His righteousness, we can spiritually rest in His power. It is not our human strength. It is His spiritual strength. He brings the work into existence and not us. The work we do for Him is alive and powerful when it is His, and we have no need to prove that it is ours.

 

The true grace of God is received by faith and not by works in case any man boasts in his own effort. 

 

Know who you are in the finished work of Christ—believe the righteousness Christ has accomplished on your behalf—and rejoice in the hope of His glory (Romans 5:2). When you exercise faith, you trust God. When you trust God, you experience peace. Where you have peace in your life is where you have chosen to place your faith.

 

Are you standing in the true grace of God? Surrender to the righteousness that is yours in Christ. When you believe in your heart you have nothing to prove to God, He empowers His work in and through your surrendered life. You have been crucified with Christ, and you live your life by faith in Christ who lives in you. Out of your life will flow His living water. It is the true grace of God in which you stand. 

 

 

© 2024 Lynn Lacher

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Resolving Your Doubts

John 1:45-50     Philip hurried to find his friend, Nathanael, to share the amazing news.   “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”   Nathanael was clearly doubtful when he heard Philip’s excited declaration about Jesus.   “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”  he asked Philip.   Philip said to him, “Come and see.”   Nathanael did not allow his doubt to keep him from going with Philip and giving Jesus the opportunity to prove who he was. Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!” Surprised by Jesus’ comment, Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” We can only guess what Jesus saw Nathanael doing under the fig tree, but it is very clear that it was something that proved to Nathaniel beyond any doubt that Jesus was the Christ.   Nathanael exclaimed, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”   Jesus never reprimanded Nathanael for his doubts. He removed them instead. The Lord has an answer for every doubt that we have. What did Jesus recognize in Nathanael right away? He had no deceit. We need to be without deceit just as Jesus declared Nathanael was. We need to honestly come to Him when we are overwhelmed with doubts instead of running from His presence.   For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust. —Psalm 103:14   Jesus knows how weak we are. He remembers we are just dust. It is not a sin to doubt God, but doubt can become a stronghold in our lives if we continually choose to doubt after we have heard God’s truth.    We should do just as Nathanael did and bring our doubts to the Lord. Jesus is the only one completely capable of dealing with the doubts that plague us.    What are you doubting God for? James writes that one who doubts God should not expect to receive anything from Him. Jesus has seen you beneath your fig tree. He knows the truth that will resolve your doubt and set you free.   Come to Him honestly—not groveling and begging—just truly admitting you cannot resolve your doubt. Place your faith in Jesus. He is the Word of truth. He wants to reveal Himself in your heart. Allow the Holy Spirit to reveal the truth that will resolve your doubt. Believe what He says over what your conscience or the enemy or the opinion of anyone else says is true. His Word is truth. Nothing else.    The work of Jesus is finished. Let your doubt be finished, too.      www.lynnlacher.com/2024/01/resolving-your-doubts.html

 

Exalting Him

 

 

Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!

—Psalm 46:10

 

 

In Psalm 46:8, the psalmist declared that God’s power and might are discernable if we have the hearts to perceive. Psalm 46:10 tells us how to acquire that type of heart. We have to be still and listen. God is continually sharing His heart with us and revealing what He is doing in our lives, but we are often too busy to be still long enough to hear Him. It is in the stillness we more easily perceive what God is doing in us. It is in our quiet and undivided time with Him we hear His voice.

Psalm 46:10 tells us to be still and know that He is God. 

To “know” God is the deepest intimacy where two become one. To know Christ is to know the Father. In Jesus, we are joined to God spiritually. He is in us and we are in Him. But we must be spiritually conscious of this union of our spirits with His Spirit to receive the Word He longs to quicken in our hearts.  

When we are still and desiring to understand this spiritual connection we have with Him, we grow more in our knowledge of the new life He has given us. The Holy Spirit is our tutor. We grow in the knowledge of the grace we have received. We grow more spiritually aware of His presence and His work in us. The Holy Spirit teaches and guides us and reveals exactly what we spiritually need at the moment it makes the greatest impact. 

The peace of God guards our hearts. Our time with God is peace. Our spiritual connection with Him is the peace Jesus has purchased for us. We receive His love and guidance in His peace—not in unrest and doubt. We receive His spiritual gifts in His peace—not in unrest and doubt. 

The all-powerful and holy God has come to live within you. The Holy Spirit proves this in you. To know God’s greatness and to perceive His work in your life you must be still. The busyness of life will keep you from that knowledge. Being still is not just withdrawing from your busy life. It is meditating and reflecting on the loving goodness of your Father. It is opening yourself to His Word. You still yourself. You calm your mind. You calm your fear and let go and trust your Father. He will keep you in perfect peace when you are attuned to Him. In your stillness with Him, you receive from the Oneness you have in Him. His Spirit has all truth to reveal to your spirit in your quietness with Him.  

God is always first in our lives. He is always working, but we can become so busy we miss what He is doing. Being still makes us more aware of His truth revealing His promises in our lives. God is always being exalted throughout the world—He is always working—He is always providing—He is always healing—He is always revealing Himself, but we can miss Him if we are too busy with the affairs of this life. Whether it is doing His work or living through hard circumstances or striving to receive His love, He wants you to just stop and know who He is in you. He wants to reveal Himself to you. He does not withhold Himself from you. 

Don’t hurry to work and to do. Don’t rush to prove yourself to God. Be still and just listen. Allow God to prove and reveal Himself to you. Calm your thoughts and know He is God. In the quietness of knowing Him, as He reveals Himself more and more to you, He makes you a part of His praise. Your knowing Him—spirit to spirit—impacts your heart and exalts Him. In the stillness, your spirit worships and exalts Him.  

 

© 2024 Lynn Lacher

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Striving

 

There are two ways to strive or work. One way is with the guidance and strength of the Holy Spirit. The other way is in our own strength. The first surrenders to the righteousness of Christ that is ours. The second works to prove its own righteousness. The first way is life. The second way is death.

 

“There is a way that seems right to a man,” Solomon said, “but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12).  

 

What appears right to our natural minds, is what we think is right. Not what God thinks. What we think is carnal. To be carnally minded is death (Romans 8:6).

 

 “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” Jesus said. “No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).

 

We don’t work our way to God on our own worth. We come to God on Christ’s worth. He is the way, the truth, and the life. The only way to experience God’s acceptance and approval is by understanding spiritually who we are in Christ. To be spiritually minded is life and peace (Romans 8:6).

 

But, sometimes, don’t we strive and work for God hoping that God will accept us—hoping for God to forgive or heal or bless us—not realizing if we would labor out of the right standing we already have in Christ, we would experience His life and peace? If we would strive with His power working in us and not strive on our own strength, wouldn’t we live the truth of the new person He has made us?

 

“To this end I also labor,” Paul wrote, “striving according to His working which works in me mightily” (Colossians 1:29).

 

Paul strived with God’s guidance and power. He proclaimed the Gospel out of His right standing in Christ. He knew He had nothing to prove to God. Christ had already proved him righteous. Paul knew that there was nothing more to win. Jesus had already won for him every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3). Paul lacked nothing in Christ. He had all he needed within him. He drew on the truth of the power the Holy Spirit had given him. 

 

When you strive mentally, emotionally, and physically out of your own resources, you will become mentally, emotionally, and physically exhausted. Christ, the hope of glory, has come to live within you (Colossians 1:27). You have already received the power of the Holy Spirit. Still, you must surrender your mind and your thoughts to His mind and thoughts—your way to His way—your opinions to His truth—your circumstances to His promise. These must be submitted to His truth to experience His power. God is all-powerful but He has given you the authority to use the power He has given you (Luke 7:8, 9:1). You lack nothing in your right standing in Christ. You already have everything you need. You draw from God’s resources within you. 

 

“But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior” (Titus 3:4-6).

 

It is His righteousness that saved us and His righteousness that works in us—not our own.

 

You work out your salvation and conform to it by the renewing of your mind with God’s truth (Romans 12:1-2)—not by striving to prove yourself worthy to God. When your mind conforms to the truth of who you are in Christ—that He presents you holy and blameless to God (Colossians 1:22), the word of faith is heard in your heart (Romans 10:17). You have no need to prove what Jesus has proved out of His unconditional love for you. You believe in God’s truth. You know you can draw upon God’s power. You labor out of the righteousness Christ has earned for you. 

 

Working without faith is death. Working out of your faith in Christ is life (James 2:20-22). When you draw by faith on the truths of who you are in Christ, you experience His life empowering you. You walk by faith and not by sight. You believe what you cannot see. And you speak life into what by all human understanding appears dead.

 

*******

 

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us. May the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen” (Ephesians 20, Hebrews 13:20-21). 

 

© 2024

 

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Walk in His Light

 

 

 

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

—1 John 1:5-7

 

According to 1 John 1:5, God is light. Since we all have fallen short of God's perfection (Romans 3:23), walking in the light isn’t about our ability to live a sinless life. If we were able to live a sinless life, then there would be no need for Jesus to cleanse us from all sin as 1 John 1:7 declares. 

Walking in the light is walking in God. 

Christians are “in God” but don’t instinctively “walk in God” or live the way He desires. In Romans 8:5-9, Paul teaches about being in the Spirit and walking after the Spirit. He explains why only those who walk after the Spirit experience the righteousness of God fulfilled in their lives. 

Our fellowship with God produces the ability for us to walk in the light. But our walking in the light doesn’t produce fellowship with God. This is an important difference we often miss. Our actions reveal whether or not we have a relationship with the Lord, but our actions never give us a relationship with Him.

 

Failure to understand that our actions do not give us a relationship with God has led many believers to try and earn fellowship with Him through what they do. When we do this, we are trusting in our holiness. We are coming to God without trusting in Christ and His righteousness. When we come to God on our own merits, we are defenseless against the enemy’s condemnation. It is so important for us to realize that God doesn’t accept us based on anything we do. God accepts us based on our faith in Jesus Christ. 

 

If we have faith in Jesus and fellowship with Him, holiness will come as a fruit of our fellowship with Him (Romans 6:22). 

 

“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit” (Romans 8:5).

 

Romans 8:5 gives us a test so that we can determine if we are walking after the flesh or after the Spirit. We have to judge our thoughts. If we are consistently thinking about the things of the Spirit (John 6:63), then we are walking after the Spirit. If we are thinking about carnal things, then we are walking according to the flesh and are subject to our feelings instead of God’s truth. We need to constantly remind ourselves—to be continually renewed in the spirit of our minds (Ephesians 4:23) that to be carnally minded is death but to be spiritually minded is life and peace (Romans 8:6). 

 

We are new creations in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17) and have a new identity, which is our spiritual man and not the flesh. But we will always be in the flesh until we put our faith in Christ and not in ourselves. We must choose to put on our spiritual man—the new person Christ has made us in righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4:24). We choose to walk in His light by faith, realizing that within ourselves we can’t walk in God’s righteousness. Christ alone makes us holy. His truth sanctifies us (John 17:17). When we believe this in our hearts and surrender to the righteousness we have received in Christ, holiness is the fruit of our relationship with God.

 

“And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8:10-11).

 

Holiness is not born of your works. Holiness in your life is born of your relationship with Jesus whose work was perfect. Holiness is the fruit of your relationship with God in the finished work of Christ. 

 

Never say you have fellowship with God and then walk in darkness. Walk in the light—walk in God—walk in the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the desires of your flesh (Galatians 5:16).

 

You reap holiness as a result of your relationship with Jesus Christ.

© 2024 Lynn Lacher

 

 

God Is For You

 

Why do some Christians struggle and others have peace and joy no matter what their circumstances? It is because of their perception of God and their attitude toward Him. The way you see God determines your approach to life. It reveals how you see yourself and what you believe your opportunities are. If you believe God is against you, you have no reason to have a positive attitude in life. But if you believe God is for you, you can believe in His goodness and see beyond any hardship that comes. You believe His abundance is yours.

 

Despite David’s faults, he had an approach to God that defined his life. 

 

“When I cry out to You,” David wrote, “then my enemies will turn back; this I know, because God is for me” (Psalm. 56:9).

 

David was convinced that God was for him. Do you believe God is on your side? That He wants you to receive his blessings and His promises? Believing God is for you is the determining factor in your life and future.

 

When Moses asked the Lord to see His glory, how did the Lord answer him? 

 

“And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth’” (Exodus. 34:6).

 

The Lord revealed His goodness and mercy—not His holiness or anger.  He was giving Moses the truth on which Moses could fulfill God’s purpose in his life. If we are going to have a chance in this fallen world, we need a revelation of God’s abounding goodness toward us. It is His goodness that draws us to repentance. It is His goodness in us—the righteousness that Christ has given us—that convinces us God is for us and we can become a conduit of His blessings.

 

“The Lord is merciful and gracious,” David wrote, “slow to anger, and abounding in mercy” (Psalm 103:8).

 

David believed in God's abounding mercy long before God sent Jesus to redeem us and pour His love into us (Romans 5:5). Until we understand God’s abounding goodness and mercy, we will struggle to earn God’s love on our own merit. We will try to earn His love through our works and then have to deal with the shame and guilt of sin Jesus has forgiven. We will not believe God is for us.

 

“Moreover whom He predestined,” Paul wrote in Romans 8:30, “these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.” 

 

Then in Romans 8:31, Paul asks us how we will respond to these truths:

 

 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” 

 

How do we respond to these truths? If these are true and God is for us, then who has any power to be against us? The way we view God and our attitude will either bring victory or drown us in defeat and despair. Despite the challenges of life, we should seize each day with joy because God is good. He is for us! His goodness and grace abound toward us!

 

“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work (2 Corinthians 9:8).

 

As a man thinks in His heart, he is (Proverbs 23:7). What you believe about God—your attitude about your life—is who you are. It is what you believe, and it determines your outcome.

 

Believe God is for you.

 

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Paul’s Prayer for You

 

Have you ever had something you hadn’t seen before in the Word suddenly jump off the page? You knew without a doubt it was God’s Word for you. You had read that verse numerous times before, but you had never seen it with such clarity or had it to speak to you so completely. Unexpectedly, it was suddenly unhidden for you. You had received a revelation of God’s truth in your heart.

Paul knew the importance of receiving the revelation of God’s Word. He prayed for the Ephesian Christians “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him” (Ephesians 1:17). Paul’s prayer is for us too. We need to look at the words “wisdom” and “revelation” to know what Paul is saying. 

The word “wisdom” in this verse is from the Greek word “sophias.” It is a word used to describe insight or wisdom not received naturally. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:14 that the things of God are foolishness to our natural mind. The wisdom of God that Paul speaks of here is not human wisdom. It is the supernatural wisdom of God—His divine insight that can only be discerned spiritually.

The word “revelation” is from the Greek word “apokalupsis.” It signifies something that has been veiled or hidden and then suddenly becomes clear and discernable. Think of flying above clouds in a plane. Those clouds are so thick they block your vision of what is below. The plane descends, and suddenly the panorama of the earth is before you. What you now see has always been there for you to enjoy, but the clouds have blocked your vision. The moment the clouds are suddenly removed, you have a revelation of what has been hidden from you.

In the same sense, God’s truths that we now hold on to and that are life to us were once veiled and hidden. Those truths had always been there in the Word but were concealed from our sight. But once the Holy Spirit knew the time was right, the veil that blocked our vision was removed. Our minds instantly saw and understood. We had a revelation of God’s truth that we received at just the time it was needed.

God is for you. The Holy Spirit does not hide His truth from His children. The Word is hidden from those of the world who do not have the mind of Christ to discern it. The Word is only hidden from us until the Holy Spirit reveals it to us. Paul prayed for God to give the Ephesians a spirit of wisdom and revelation because they needed spiritual insight beyond their own human understanding. He prayed for them to be supernaturally empowered to see what they could never see by themselves.

Our human understanding limits us. We will never be intelligent enough to understand God’s truth by ourselves. We need wisdom and revelation knowledge that only the Holy Spirit imparts. 

Do you need His clarity and guidance? The Holy Spirit has all of God's truth to reveal to you. Pray Ephesians 1:17 for your own life. Ask Him to give you “a spirit of wisdom and revelation in your knowledge of Him.” God has all the answers you need. He can suddenly remove the veil that has blocked your vision and help you clearly see the truths you need to understand to live your life to His fullest.

Ask, and God will reveal His truth to you. Seek, and you will find it. Knock, and that truth will be opened to you. Pressed down and running over, you shall receive.

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Blessed to Bless

Some people resign themselves to where they are in life. They might say they are contented, but if you offered them a joyous life, they would take it. If you offered them good health, they would take it. Many times those who say they are contented are only resigned. 

 

Are we resigned in our expectations of God?  Or do we see beyond where we are in life and believe the truths He has for us? If He offered us more, would we take it? 

 

God does offer us more. Not one of us fully understands all God wishes to reveal to us. Are we resigned or do we hunger to receive what He has bought for us with His precious blood? Do we yearn to intimately know Him, the hope of His calling, the inherent riches of His glory, and the exceedingly great power given to us who believe?  

 

The Holy Spirit has come to reveal the goodness of God to us—the goodness that while we were yet sinners, God loved and blessed us beyond what we deserved. The greatest exchange took place. Jesus became our sin, and we became God’s righteousness. The righteousness—the goodness—of God in us leads us to repentance. It is the love of Jesus that declares our hearts are right and good with God. The potential for God’s good is real in us. 

 

“A good man out of the good treasure of the heart brings forth good things” (Matthew 12:35).

 

Have you considered the potential for increase God has placed in your heart and mind?

 

The words of your mouth speak either life or death, and you will experience the result of what you say (Proverbs 18:20-21). When you speak life, you are speaking God’s increase into your life. However, His abundant life is not just about you receiving blessings. It is really about you being able to bless others. 

 

“You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way” (2 Corinthians 9:11).

 

To understand the truths of God, we must increase in our knowledge and understanding of Him. The Holy Spirit cannot teach or lead you into God’s truth until you believe His purpose is to guide you into all truth. If you are resigned to staying where you are—if you do not wish to know and take hold of all God has for you, you will not increase. If you do not increase, not only will you lack, but others will, too. Mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically, you will live an unfulfilled life. 

 

“May the Lord give you increase more and more, you and your children” (Psalm 115:14).

 

The very nature of God is "increase." God’s Word is the incorruptible seed that increases when sowed into your heart. When protected from the cares of the world and the deceit of the enemy, His Word produces fruit in your life. God’s expectation is for His Word to work in you “exceeding abundantly more than we can ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20).

 

God’s abundance begins with a revelation of His unconditional love and purpose in your life. The love of Jesus has provided for your whole life—mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. You are new in Him. He has blessed you beyond human understanding, and He wants to reveal Himself to you. The Holy Spirit has come to reveal all Jesus has purchased on your behalf. He wants to increase in you to sow into the lives of others. But until you sow Him into your heart, you will remain resigned and live beneath all God has for you. 

 

You are blessed to bless others. But you need to increase in the knowledge of the blessings you have received in Christ to know what you have to share.  Open yourself to the Holy Spirit. Receive God’s love as you never have received it before. Sow His love and expect more. Sow every good and perfect gift you have received from the Father. Sow the peace and joy you have and bless others. Sow your gifts. Sow your talents. Bring forth the good of God that is in your heart. 

 

 

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Faith to Believe

 

 

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

—Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV)

 

 

Your faith is what pleases God. He rewards those who diligently seek Him with all their heart. Persistent seeking of His truth rewards you. The truth of His Word takes root and comes alive within you. You believe without seeing with your natural eyes because you believe in who He says you are in Christ. You know His promises are true.

 

The power of the Word is real within you when you act upon it and choose to live its truth—even when what you experience is not seen, heard, or felt with your natural senses. Taking God’s truth and making it your own becomes the foundation for what you believe. Your attitude about your life changes. You see beyond what you experience. 

 

You cannot understand God’s Word with your natural mind. It seems foolish to you. His truth can only be understood spiritually by the Holy Spirit revealing it to you (1 Corinthians 2:14). When the Holy Spirit reveals something in God’s Word to you, you must choose to take possession of it and make it yours. It must renew your mind again and again (Romans 12:2). God’s truth then becomes what you believe. Now it is your truth, and it is real and powerful in your life. 

 

When you believe in God's truth, you see with faith what has not been seen or experienced. Believing His truth by faith pleases God, and He rewards you according to what you believe (Hebrews 11:6, Matthew 9:29). If you believe His Word and envision His promise, you receive the benefit for which the Word was sent.  If you don’t believe, then you don’t open your heart to the abundant life Jesus died to give you.

 

To be carnally or naturally minded is death to your faith. To be spiritually minded is life and peace (Romans 8:6). Draw a line in the sand, and believe His truth. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God—not with just your mind but with your heart (Romans 10:17). Walk by faith and not by what you see (2 Corinthians 5:7). If you doubt, you miss out on what God wishes for you (James 1:6-7). But when you believe, nothing is impossible with God (Mark 9:23). You choose to believe by faith the truths you have received in Christ. 

 

Do you believe that God benefits you when you seek Him with all your heart? To receive the benefits of His truth, you have to believe them. Reach out without doubting. Seek God’s truth with all your heart. You will find it (Matthew 7:8). Believe His truth you find. Make it yours by faith. You can do it. You believed by faith when you were saved. You can believe by faith in what His Word reveals to you. 

 

Faith is not found in anything we do. It is only found in Jesus. Faith alone in Jesus is what is needed to believe. If you seek Him with all your heart, you will find Him (Jeremiah 29:13).

 

© 2024 Lynn Lacher
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A New Beginning

Has there ever been a time when it seemed like there was no more hope? You were at a point in your life where it seemed your dream was over? Things were so overwhelming you didn’t think you would make it?

 

Each one of us at some time in our life comes to the place where we don’t know what to do next or how to respond, or even how to pray. The dream around which our lives have revolved suddenly seems over. If you have ever found yourself in a place where you were convinced your dream was over, you know this is hard.

 

When we get to this place where we discover we can’t resolve the issues we face, then we get to the place where we learn to trust the wisdom and power of God.

 

The Apostle Paul came to understand this. He went through learning experiences when he had to face dangerous circumstances and conditions in his missionary journeys. In 2 Corinthians 1:9, Paul found himself in such a place.

 

 

“Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves,” Paul wrote, “that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead” (2 Corinthians 1:9).

 

 

Paul was definitely at one of those places where they seemed to be no hope!  The situation before him was so dangerous he called it “the sentence of death!” 

 

The word “sentence” in 2 Corinthians 1:9 is taken from the Greek word “krino.” It refers to a jury’s final ruling in a trial. So the word “krino” signifies a final verdict or a sentence handed down in a court of law. 

A final verdict is handed down after all the evidence has been examined by the judge or by jurors. In using such a word as “krino,” Paul was saying that by all appearances there was no way that he and his friends would survive what they faced. As far as they were concerned, the court’s final verdict was in, and the sentence required their deaths.

No matter that Paul’s life and ministry seemed finished, he survived and fulfilled God’s calling on his life. Things might have appeared to be over, but it was really the start of a new supernatural release of God’s power in his life. Paul had been under such extreme stress that he was sure death was inevitable. Then in the midst of what seemed death, God spoke life. His supernatural power was released, and Paul and his companions were saved. Paul certainly learned not to trust in himself but in God “who raises the dead.”

When you seem at the end of all hope, you aren’t. This is when God’s resurrection power begins to work in and through you. There is really no such thing as no hope. You really have hope. As long as you realize you have a loving Abba Father on whom you can call, there is still hope for you and for your situation right now! If you learn to trust God and rely on Him, your dream that appears over can find new life. Whatever you are facing can become a new beginning filled with God’s overflowing abundance.

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