HE IS ABLE Blog » Blessings

All about Yahshua (Jesus)

He Is Able — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 09:07:50 +0000

I think I’ve learned a bit about Paul reflecting on the first chapter of Ephesians. For instance, from chapter 1 verse 3-14 I’ve developed an impression that Paul was excitable. (Read the passage here.)

He was obviously wound up because the whole section is one long sentence in the Greek. He is so enthusiastic about his theme he doesn’t draw breath.

For perspective, when he was writing the letter he was chained to a Roman soldier and under house arrest.

And what was he so excited about? Simply, Paul is excited about Jesus. Twelve times, by my count, in those verses Paul refers to things that happen for us in or through Jesus.

I’d like to comment on four themes attached to the centrality of Jesus. First, in Jesus we have received immense blessings.

Paul writes an amazing thing in verse 3. He says that God has, “blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.” Hear the emphasis… every spiritual blessing.

What has God given us? The answer is everything. In Romans Paul wrote, “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32 ESV).

Another way Paul talks about us getting access to all of God’s blessings is that in verse 5 he writes that, “In love he predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ.”

The person who is adopted by God gets access to the inheritance of God. We are treated, and blessed like the children of God we are.

Second, we have redemption and forgiveness

That’s from verse 7 which says, “In him [that is, Jesus] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses according to the riches of his grace.”

Notice the two key words: redemption… the image is God acting to purchase us out of slavery to sin and death to free us for holiness and life… and, forgiveness.

And the price which bought us redemption and forgiveness was Christ’s blood. “For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.” (1 Peter 1:18-19 NLT)

Third, we have a purpose

What I have in mind here is when Paul says in verse 12 that, “we might be to the praise of his glory.”

The ‘praise of his glory’ is a phrase I love. It’s the perfect mission statement for every Christian individual, family or ministry. It suggests that everything about are lives should point anyone who sees us to the character and majesty of God… and to inspired to praise him.

And lastly, we have a living future

Here is verse 13 and 14 from the Message: “It’s in Christ that you, once you heard the truth and believed it (this Message of your salvation), found yourselves home freesigned, sealed, and delivered by the Holy Spirit. This signet from God is the first installment on what’s coming, a reminder that we’ll get everything God has planned for us, a praising and glorious life.”

It’s all about Jesus!

Copyright Adam Bennett 2008

The Power of Worship

He Is Able — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 17:32:16 +0000

Singing praises to God or worshiping him opens up a window to heaven. As your praise reaches the heart of God, it becomes a two way stream of communication. As you touch God with your praise, his Holy Spirit touches you and ministers to you. Praise and worship can also open the door to blessings from God.

We praise God because he is worthy of all praise. He is the maker of Heaven and earth and the entire universe. He has given us life and through his son has saved us from eternal damnation. He loves us completely despite of our short comings and sinful nature.

Probably the best examples of how to worship the Lord can be seen in the life and Psalms of King David.

God described David as “a man after his own heart”. David loved God and God loved David. David had a wonderful musical talent and regularly came before the Lord in songs of love and thanksgiving. He danced and played music to praise God. In (2 Sam 6:14-15) it says

“And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet”. (KJV)

David wrote beautiful words to express his deep devotion and love for God. David actively pursued God, and desired to have a close personal relationship with him. This is demonstrated in (Psa 57:7 –10) where he writes “My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise. Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early. I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations. For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds”. (KJV)

When we praise God we are allowing the Holy Spirit to speak through us directly to our Father in Heaven. The Holy Spirit’s presence can be felt right inside of us and surrounding us as we speak to the Father through him. I have heard many times of healings taking place when people have been worshiping God, and I believe this is because the power of the Holy Spirit comes upon them and ministers to their needs while they are praising God.

There are several different Hebrew words used in the Bible to denote praise and worship. These can be translated into the following English meanings.

Worship – To fall down prostrate (especially reflexively in homage to royalty or God), to bow down, crouch, fall down flat, humbly beseech, make or do obeisance, do reverence or to stoop.

Praise – Literally to use (that is, hold out) the hand; to revere or worship (with extended hands); intensively to bemoan (by wringing the hands): give thanks, rejoice; a celebration of thanksgiving for harvest, to kneel; by implication to bless God (as an act of adoration) or congratulate.

The main difference between worship and praise is that we worship God for who he is, and praise him for what he has done.

You will see that many of these translations display the theme of humility – of coming before God in subservience and in reverence of his awesome power. We are not praising him as we would a child who has done well, from the viewpoint of someone who is older and wiser – we are to praise him out of our total unworthiness to even be in his presence. In humility we need to grasp the magnitude of his awesome power, love and grace and praise him for them. We need to praise him for loving us despite of how unworthy we are of his love. We need to lift his name on high, not because of who we are, but because of who he is.

visit http://www.the-ten-commandments.org

Debra Lohrere

Holy but Miserable

He Is Able — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 17:58:55 +0000

It is written that without holiness, no one shall see the Lord.
But should misery accompany holiness or is it something that we can avoid?

Our attitude towards trails determines if we are miserable or joyful.
The Blessings of God is given by believing that our God is faithful.

As long as we are in the world, there will be trails and tribulations.
But many choose to use these trials as misery justifications.

We should rejoice when we suffer for the sake of the cross.
We should allow God to use us to draw those that are lost..

Although suffering may appear as something that the enemy initiates.
It yields an anointing that no devil can duplicate.

Misery doesn’t have to accompany a Christian’s holy life.
We can choose to rejoice today to overcome our inner strife.

Kelvin Gilmore