Bible study – Page 2 – Hope for Complete Healing

How to Be Free – Post 1

When you think about freedom, what is the first thing that comes to your mind? Are we ever truly free? If you have no job requirements and no obligations to anyone, you are still confined by time. You look forward to being retired, but now you have physical limitations and doctor appointments that keep you restricted. So physical freedom is not realistic. Can we find true freedom and what does that look like?

I explained in the last post (click the link to read) about two kinds of bondages that oppress everyone who allows it. In this post, I will explain how to be free from those two kinds of oppression. In subsequent posts, I will address common bondages and the truth that will set you free. Despite your circumstances, the following true story is a good example of spiritual freedom and how it helps you overcome physical constraints.

A True Story of The Power of Hope

In 1942, Frankl and his parents, wife, and brother were arrested and sent to the Thereisienstadt concentration camp; Frankl’s father died there within six months. Over the course of three years, Frankl was moved between four concentration camps, including Auschwitz where his brother died and his mother was killed. Frankl’s wife died at Bergen-Belsen. When Frankl’s camp was liberated in 1945, he learned of the death of all his immediate family members, except for his sister who had emigrated to Australia. In the camps, Frankl and fellow prisoners made an effort to address the despondency they observed in other inmates. In an effort to prevent suicide attempts, Frankl and others tried to help other inmates facing severe depression by encouraging them to reflect on positive memories, scenes, and thoughts. Frankl thought that during extreme physical circumstances, a person could escape through his or her spiritual self as a means to survive seemingly unbearable conditions. He believed the spiritual self could not be affected by external forces. (https://www.goodtherapy.org/famous-psychologists/viktor-frankl.html)

How Our Spirits Become Free from The Captivity of Sin and Resentment

It is in our spirits that we can attain true freedom. In 2 Corinthians 3:17, it says, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” Have you invited the Spirit of the Lord into your life to rule your mind and reactions? Isaiah 61:1 states, “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted [those who are deeply afflicted and distressed], to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.” At the beginning of His ministry, Jesus read this verse in the synagogue and said in Luke 4:21, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” Let us study the meaning of this verse.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me” The Holy Spirit came down from heaven in the appearance of a dove and rested on Jesus when He was baptized by John the Baptist. The Spirit of the Lord gives divine inspiration and power.

“Because he has anointed me.” Jesus is saying that he is set apart to do God’s work. Act 10:38 states, “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.”

“To proclaim good news to the poor.” Some versions use meek instead of poor. Jesus came to preach the good news of freedom from sin to the humble and needy. In Jesus’s first sermon, He said in Matthew 5:3, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

“He [God] has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives.” The Messiah came in human form to set free those in bondage to sin. Hebrews 2:17-18 states, “Therefore he [Jesus] had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation [pay the penalty] for the sins of the people. For because he [Jesus] himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” He also releases us from the captivity of resentment through forgiveness. Colossians 3:13 tells us, “Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.” Jesus came to break off all the chains of slavery to fleshly desires. Romans 6:22 states, “But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.”

“Recovering of sight to the blind.” Jesus heals the spiritually blind, though He did physically heal the physically blind. Act 26:18 states, “To open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.”

“To set at liberty those who are oppressed [bruised; bound].” It means those who are “pressed down” by great calamity, or whose hearts are “pressed” or “bruised” by painful events or the consciousness of sin. Romans 8:21 states, “That the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.” Sin oppresses us through guilt and shame. Jesus came to set us free from oppression if we believe in His name and receive Him into our lives. Have you done that?

Conclusion

Jesus Christ is the only one who sets us free spiritually when you receive Him into your life to be your Lord! The next path to freedom is aligning your thoughts with God’s thoughts. Your thoughts are directed by fleshly desires that keep you in bondage to sin and resentment. In the next post, we will explore how to keep our minds on Christ Jesus and be free in our minds. Before we can be mentally free, we need to first be spiritually free. Have you received Jesus into your life to be your Lord, so you can be sanctified from your sinful nature, and have the hope of eternal life?

May God bless you richly as you become free in Christ Jesus.

All verses are from the English Standard Version. If you find my posts and website helpful, please share this link with your friends and family: hopeforcompletehealing.com. The information is copyright protected. Please do not reproduce any part of the posts or my book without proper citation to Joyce Hanscom and this website.

My latest book is Unlocking God’s Promises, which explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Additionally, consider my book Fighting Unseen Battles, which describes the many unhealthy beliefs that control our lives and what the truths are. To learn more about this book, read the post How to Fight Unseen Battles.

Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com and ask for a PDF of Eight Life-Changing Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, the 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

Conclusion of Jesus’s First Sermon – The Wise Obey.

Below, I summarize Jesus’s instructions in His first sermon with links to the related post to learn more.

Matthew 5:13-20 – Be the salt and light for the world by showing our faith by our good works and giving glory to our Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:21-24 – Do not murder by being angry and insulting a fellow Christian; instead, seek peace.

Matthew 5:25-26 – Appeal to your accuser and make it right with the person you wronged.

Matthew 5:27-32 – How to control defiling thoughts of lust.

Matthew 5:33-37 – Do not take oaths. Let your “yes” be yes, and your “no” be no.

Matthew 5:38-39 – Do not retaliate.

Matthew 5:40-41 – Give extra to those who ask.

Matthew 5:42 – Give to beggars and borrowers.

Matthew 5:43-48 – Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.

Matthew 6:1-4 – Do not practice your righteousness to be noticed by others.

Matthew 6:5-15 – Pray to your Father in heaven and forgive anyone who has sinned against you, just as your Father in heaven has forgiven you.

Matthew 6:16-18 – Do not fast or give to be noticed by others. Our reward is from God.

The Wise Person Helps the Poor

Matthew 6:19-24 – Serve God, not money.

Matthew 6:25-34 – Do not be anxious (concerned) about anything but seek first God’s kingdom.

Matthew 7:1-6 – Be careful how you judge.

Matthew 7:7-11 – Ask, seek, and knock through prayer and expect answers.

Matthew 7:12 – Treat others as you would have them treat you.

Matthew 7:13-14 – Enter by the narrow gate and not by the wide gate that leads to destruction.

Matthew 7:15-20 – Recognize false teachers by their fruit and avoid them.

Matthew 7:21-23 – Do your heavenly Father’s will to enter His kingdom.

What is your impression of Jesus’s first sermon? Would you attend His church if He was the pastor, and you heard this sermon? No doubt, His teachings are hard to understand and follow in our earthly minds. Understanding Jesus’s lessons requires the Holy Spirit’s help. For those who received Jesus by grace through faith are raised up and seated in the heavenly place with Him (Eph. 2:4-9). So we need to set our minds on the things above, and then Jesus’s teachings will make sense (Col. 3:1-2). Jesus’s first sermon is about being heavenly-minded, not earthly-minded. He begins by telling us how we will be blessed when we focus our fleshly minds on what is important to God and His Kingdom. The rest of His sermon is about how a citizen of heaven lives as an ambassador on earth (Phil. 3:20 and 2 Cor. 5:20). Jesus said we are to be the light and salt on the earth by doing what He wants us to do.

Building On a Rock Verses Sand.

Jesus ends His sermon with this analogy. “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” ̶ Matthew 7:24-27.

What rock should we build our house on?

If Jesus Christ is our rock, then by faith in Him we will stand firm. Romans 9:33 states, “As it is written, ‘Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.’” And 1 Peter 2:6-8 tells us, “For it stands in Scripture: ‘Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.’ ^7-8So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,’ and ‘A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.’ They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.” When we stand firm in our faith in Jesus and obey his instructions, we will not be destroyed by the storms that will certainly come. So, when people fall away from the Lord, it is because they have a shallow faith and do not obey His instructions.

Jesus taught us what He expects of us if we were to be wise and follow Him. Building on a rock gives your house a solid foundation. 1 Corinthians 3:11 states, “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” Obey Jesus’s instructions and build your spiritual lives on His truths, then you will not fall. If you ignore His instructions and build your life on the sands of self-centered living, human opinions, unhealthy beliefs, and worldly wisdom your life will fall apart. You will know who is Christ-centered and built their spiritual life on the rock because they won’t be destroyed when trials and difficulties come. Likewise, those who fall away and leave the church because of being offended, their spiritual life was built on the sands of self-centered living.

Conclusion

Too many Christians have a casual interest in Jesus’s teachings and do not want to follow and obey Him. Jesus is not hell insurance. He wants a love relationship with us. Do you love Jesus Christ and desire to obey His instructions? Only those who love Jesus will obey Him and do His will. Jesus tells us in John 14:21, 23, “Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” Verse 23, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” Also, John 13:35 tells us, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” So, if you were to be arrested and taken into a courtroom, what is the evidence to show that you love Jesus and love others?

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All verses are from the English Standard Bible. If you find my posts and website helpful, please share this link with your friends and family; hopeforcompletehealing.com. The information is copyright protected. Please do not reproduce any part of the posts or my book without proper citation to Joyce Hanscom and this website. Check out my latest book Breaking Mental Strongholds, which you can order on Amazon. To learn more about it, read my post called Breaking Mental Strongholds Book. Also, check out Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. To learn more about this book, read: How to Fight Unseen Battles.

Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com, and ask for a PDF of Eight Life-changing Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

Why Some Believers May Not Go to Heaven

Why doesn’t every believer go to Heaven? This is a tough question because the Bible is clear that everyone who believes will spend eternity with God in heaven (John 3:16, 1 Timothy 1:16, and 1 John 5:13). So why does Jesus say in His first sermon, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. ²²On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ ²³And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ – Matthew 7:21-23” Woe! If you consider the verses before these verses to beware of false prophets, then verses 21-23 make sense because they refer to false prophets who often preach on TV and in our churches. If you haven’t read the previous post, read it now, How the Wise Recognize False Teachers and Teachings.

False teachers have a belief in Jesus, but they distort God’s truth and do not submit their minds to the Holy Spirit’s renewal to be righteous and holy (Eph. 4:24). We are renewed in our minds by reading God’s Word every day, and meditate on the truth, and apply it to memory. Each one of us could be guilty of having false beliefs and being a false prophet. As a Christian blogger, I am very concerned that I may misrepresent God’s truth, which is why I rely on Scripture to do the teaching. You may call me out if you feel I am not representing the truth of God’s Word. I noted in my last post that not all Bibles are equal, and many versions misrepresent the truth, especially the paraphrased versions.

What is a prophet? It says in 1 Corinthians 14:3, “The one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding [not tearing down] and encouragement and consolation [comfort, support].” If you don’t know the truth of God’s Word, you can be a false prophet. For example, your friend is unhappy with their marriage. If you comfort and encourage them by saying, “God wants us to be happy, so it is okay to divorce your spouse.” That is a false teaching. Instead, speak the truth explained in 1 Thessalonians 5:15-18, which is “See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. ^16-18Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” And Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Changing our thinking and doing the will of God is difficult, but when we obey, we will be rewarded with joy and peace even in difficult circumstances. If you have misrepresented the truth of God, repent, and ask His forgiveness, and He will forgive and restore you. Next, read your Bible every day and meditate on the truth. Then you will do well (Ps. 1:2-3).

What do you want God to say to you when you stand before Him? What if God says, ‘I never knew you; depart from me.’ (Matt. 7:23)? The subject of this post is heavy, but necessary to ponder because we all will stand before Him someday, maybe today. Will He say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” (Matt 25:21,23)?

What is The Will of God?

Jesus said in His first sermon in Matthew 7:21, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” The condition is doing the will of God, though our assurance is by grace. So, what is the will of God? The Bible says that the will of God is to obey His instructions and do what we know He has called us to do, which I will write about in the next post. I wrote extensively about what the will of God is in Unanswered Prayer. Asking For God’s Will or Your Will?

Disclaimer: Our salvation and eternal destiny with God are not because of what we do or by our works, but by the grace of God. Ephesians 2:8-10 states, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. ¹⁰For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Once we have received salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit seals us, and then we must work out our salvation by renewing our minds and doing His will. See the blog posts called Forgiven and Saved? Now Renew Your Mind (Part One) and Three Steps to Renew Your Mind (Part Two).

How can I be assured God will say, “Well done, good and faithful servant?”

The Apostle Peter’s instructions in the next passage give us hope. Peter tells us to be diligent, which means to apply ourselves to accomplish something. Meditate on the words of 2Peter 1:3-11:

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness,

through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence,

by which He has granted to us His precious and very great promises,

so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature,

having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire (lusts).

⁵For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith, virtue (moral excellence; right action and thinking; goodness of character), knowledge, self-control, steadfastness (perseverance), godliness, brotherly affection (kindness), and love. (My paraphrase in parentheses.)

⁸For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁹For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.

¹⁰Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities, you will never fall.

¹¹For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

A promise is an assurance we depend on. Verse 10 promises we will never fall if we seek and practice faith, moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, kindness, and love. Then, verse 11 promises we will enter the eternal kingdom of Jesus Christ. And verse 8 promises if we have these qualities, we will not be ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of Christ Jesus. How fantastic is this!

Conclusion:

Our life on earth is but a blink or breath compared to eternity (Ps. 144:4). So, be mindful of the day of judgment and what God will say to you. In this post, you learned you are eternally secure when you do the will of God, fear Him, and diligently seek to add to your faith; moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. In the end times, there will be a great falling away because of deception and suffering. Resolve in your heart today that you will not fall away and begin today to do the will of God found in the Word of God. Hebrews 3:12 states, “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.”

RELATED POSTS:

What Is Required to Stand Before God?

Posts About Godliness

Example of Suffering Well and God’s Response: Part 2 of Suffering Well

My latest book is Unlocking God’s Promises, which explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

How the Wise Recognize False Teachers

Have you met a false prophet or teacher? Would you know a false prophet if you saw one? Jesus explains how to identify a false teacher in his first sermon. As I read through Jesus’s first sermon, I am tempted to think his sermon is a series of unrelated ideas. So how does Matthew 7:15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves,” relate to verses 13 and 14. Jesus taught about the path of life, and how few find it compared to the path of destruction where many enter. To learn more about the path of life, read How to Find and Stay on the Path of Life.

Jesus’s next point in verse 15 warns us about false prophets who lead people away from the path of life and onto the path of destruction through wrong teaching. Jesus said in Matthew 24:11, “And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray.” A false teacher or prophet is not born-again, thus Jesus compares them to a ravenous wolf who appears to be a Christian in sheep’s clothing. Isaiah 8:20 (KJV) tells us why, “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Christians have the light of Christ in them, but those who do not practice the truth are in the dark. John 3:20-21 explains, “For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. ²¹But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

Jesus Explains How to Recognize False Teachers.

In Matthew 7:16-18, Jesus explains, “You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? ¹⁷So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.” Jesus uses the fruit analogy to explain how to recognize false teachers. So, the good tree produces good fruit, therefore, a person who has the truth will produce the truth found in God’s word. But if a person is full of false beliefs, they will teach heresy, which is a teaching contrary to God’s Word. Many false teachers begin with a scripture verse to appear as if they abide in the truth, but then twist the scriptures into a false doctrine. I can list many false doctrines, but I won’t.

Here are a few of my experiences with false teaching. I went to a Bible Study at a local church that I did not attend. One member said they believed Jesus sinned because they read Jesus was perfected by suffering. The pastor agreed with the false belief. I had to speak up and graciously share the truth. At another church we visited, the pastor requested that the church members invite their dead relatives to the communion table. My husband and I were mortified and did not take part. The pastor knew us and kept inviting us to the communion table; we did not budge. In another church, a new pastor was hired who did not have the fruit of the Spirit. He also did not allow small groups to study the Bible together but had to use books he approved, which shows a problem. I learned later that they were part of the Hill Song movement, which teaches false doctrine. I remember sitting in one of the small group leader teaching sessions with the Hill Song leadership and thought they were not teaching the truth and distorted the truth of God’s Word.

Ask the Lord to give you discernment to know when the teacher or preacher is speaking a false doctrine or distorting the truth. Read the entire Bible at least every two years. Memorize the truth so you recognize heresy. For example, a woman in my Sunday School had the wrong belief that Christians did not have to face the judgment of God. I gently disagreed and could show her the Scripture in 2 Corinthians 2:10, which says, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.” Had I not known that truth, other believers in the Sunday School would adopt that false teaching. With that said, we all can be false teachers if we don’t know God’s Word. Likewise, choose an accurately translated Bible such as the New King James, The New American Standard, or the English Standard, which are all accurately translated. To learn more about translations, read this article.

Another way to recognize a false teacher is to use the 1 John 4:6 test, “We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.” Don’t be afraid to confront your pastor or teacher about specific truths you believe they are misrepresenting. The Apostle Peter wrote in 2 Peter 2:1, “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.”

False Teachers are Destined for Hell.

The end of 2 Peter 2:1 tells us that false teachers bring swift destruction upon themselves. Jesus continues his sermon by saying in Matthew 7:19-20, “Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.” Fruits in our lives are the work of the Holy Spirit as we submit to God and let Him sanctify us in his truth. John 17:17 says, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.”

A teacher or preacher whom you are learning from should show love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness/humility, faithfulness, and self-control. Therefore, if you want to be a teacher, make sure you abide by the Word of God, submit to God’s authority by obeying Him, and set your mind on the things of the Spirit and not your flesh (Rom. 8:4-10). James 3:1 states, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.”

Be aware of the “Christian” literature you read online or in books, that they do not twist the truth or add their truth to God’s truth. Revelations 22:18-19 states, “I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.”

The Apostate Church.

What is an apostate church? An apostate church is led by a teacher who is living in obvious sin, such as homosexuality, pedophilia, adultery, drunkenness, and so on. Such leaders rebel against the commandments and truth of God and teach a false truth that leads those who listen down the path of destruction. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 tells us, “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.” And 1 John 4:1 instructs us, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

Conclusion

A good Biblical teacher will fit the description in Titus 2:7-8, “Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.” Another description is in Titus 1:7-9; “For an overseer, as God’s steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. ⁹He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.” If your pastor or teacher resembles these two passages, you have a sound teacher.

My latest book is Unlocking God’s Promises, which explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

How to Find and Stay on the Path of Life

What is the path of life? How do we get on the path of life? Jesus said in His first sermon, “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. ¹⁴For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” (Matthew 7:13-14). Why is the gate narrow and the way hard that leads to life? Why would anyone want to walk the path of life if it is hard? Everyone is invited to enter the narrow gate and walk the hard path of life with Christ, but few want to because it requires living a holy life according to the Golden rule (Matt. 7:12). Hebrews 12:14 explains, “Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.” Living righteously and treating others as you want to be treated is hard in a world ruled by wickedness and self-centered pride. The evil one lures us to walk his wide and easy path of destruction, which is self-centered living that leads to eternal death and separation from God. A person who unwisely is offended will take the path of destruction until they forgive the offense.

What is the Path of Life and How Do We Find the Narrow Gate?

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). Jesus died on the cross to set us free from the control of sin and save us from the wrath of God because of our sin. Sinners are those who disobey God’s command to love Him with all their heart, mind, soul, and strength and to love their neighbor as themselves (Luke 10:27). Read my previous post on the Golden Rule.

God is holy and perfect, and He hates sin and must punish disobedience. But He loves us and sent His only son, Jesus, to take our punishment and to cleanse our sinful nature. He promises to forgive you of all your sins and remove all unrighteousness (1John 1:9). Unrighteousness is not doing what is right in God’s eyes. To follow Jesus requires perseverance and dedication to live a life worthy of Him (Col . 1:10).

Believing in Jesus leads to the path of life and ultimately eternal life (John 3:16). Believing is finding the narrow gate, walking the path of life is where people fail. Some mistakenly think that if they just believe, it is enough to keep them out of the lake of fire. The devil believes in Jesus and that He is the son of God, yet he is destined for the lake of fire. Some mistakenly believe that grace covers all our sins, and we don’t need to repent or put off our sinful behavior and put on a new life that resembles Jesus’s holy life.

Who is on the Path of Life?

When we find the narrow gate and believe Jesus is the Son of God and the savior of the world, we need to go through the narrow gate and walk in love as Jesus did. Jesus says that we need to strive to enter the narrow gate (Luke 13:24). Hebrews 12:14 says we are to “Strive to live in peace with everyone,” which is an example of holy living. Striving takes an effort on our part. The effort is putting off our old life of sin (self-centered pride) and putting on the new life, “created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:24). Also, 1Thessalonians 4:7-8 states, “For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. ⁸Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.”

So, what are we to discard? Colossians 3:5-10 tells us to, “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. ⁶On account of these the wrath of God is coming. ⁷In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. ⁸But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. ⁹Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices ¹⁰and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”

Many people in the church have not put on a new life of righteousness and holiness. Dare I say, going to church is not entering the narrow gate. Choosing to heed God’s calling and be a disciple of Jesus is the narrow gate. The path of life is hard because it is the path of love. Loving those who sin against you and forgiving them is hard to do. Being kind to your enemy is hard. Praying for those who persecute you is hard. Trusting Jesus to meet your needs is hard. Giving to the poor and ungrateful is hard. Giving up your old sinful ways and friends is hard. But those who obey God are wise (Matt. 7:24). Wise people will strive to stay on the path of life that leads to eternal life.

What happens when the gate is closed?

Luke records the following exchange with Jesus in Luke 13:23-28, “And someone said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” And he said to them, ²⁴“Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.

²⁵When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’

²⁶Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ ²⁷But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’

²⁸In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out.

This passage is sobering. Why does God close the door? The first thought that comes to my mind as I pray for God’s answer is the door is closed when Jesus returns to rule. The opportunity to enter the narrow gate is ended. Many Christian people who believed in Jesus but did not submit their lives to Him and continued living a sinful life will be left behind. They will realize they are not on the path of life. You may have been a Sunday school teacher or a deacon in your church. If you have not entered the narrow door/gate yet, don’t wait, because the next moment may be too late.

Conclusion

The golden rule explains why the path of life is hard and few find it. We must strive to enter the narrow gate and live in peace with all men (Rom. 12:18). Those who do not put off their sinful desires and put on the holy life are still on the path of destruction. Follow Jesus to the gate and stay yoked to Him as you walk the hard path of love (Matt. 11:29-30).

Check out my latest book Breaking Mental Strongholds, which you can order on Amazon. To learn more about it, read my post called Breaking Mental Strongholds Book. Also, check out Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. To learn more about this book, read: How to Fight Unseen Battles.

How Does a Wise Person Treat Other People?

Have you heard about the Golden Rule? Where did you learn about the Golden Rule? Did you know that Jesus Christ is the original author? He said, “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets (Matthew 7:12). First is the principle of doing to others what you would want them to do to you. The second principle is the Law and the Prophets.

The golden rule seems so simple, and I wasn’t going to write a blog because it is common sense, but after writing a blog about the following two verses, I understood why Jesus gave this command. To understand the next two verses, you need to understand the golden rule.

Why is this command golden? Take a moment to quiet your mind, then imagine a world where everyone treats everyone around them as they would want to be treated.

We will treat other people as having worth.
Everyone will be respectful, kind, patient, and gentle.
People will show grace and forgive others for offenses.
We all live in peace with everyone else.
No one is arrogant.
People won’t keep a record of wrongs.

How many marriages, families, and communities would be transformed if they would follow this rule? The problem is that we have a sinful nature that is prideful and self-centered. I explain the damaging effects of pride on relationships in HOW PRIDE DESTROYS.

What is The Law and the Prophets?

What is the law and the prophets? This exact phrase can be found in four other verses: Matthew 22:40, Luke 16:16, Acts 13:15, and Romans 3:21. The law was given to Moses by God when the Israelites were in the desert. God’s law governed their behavior, much like our laws govern our behavior. The laws God gave were to lead the people to love Him with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love others as themselves. The Pharisees added burdensome legalistic laws of dos and don’ts that had nothing to do with love.

Prophets are God’s messengers to warn people to repent when they forget God’s laws and disobey Him. The following is another example of the law and the Prophets. Matthew 22:35-40.

³⁵And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. ³⁶“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”

³⁷And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. ³⁸This is the great and first commandment. ³⁹And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

⁴⁰On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

The following verses explain how love fulfills the law.

Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. – Romans 13:8

Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. – Romans13:10

For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” – Galatians 5:14

If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. – James 2:8

Conclusion

The golden rule is the same as loving your neighbor as yourself. Read my post about this called Diminish the “Self-centered” Belief to Expand Goodness (Other-centered). How amazing it is to obey God’s command to love others as ourselves. Do you love other people as yourself or do you have any hate for someone who hurt you?

Related posts

Wise People Love Those Who Hate Them

How to Dig up the Unforgiving Belief to Grow in Love

Hope for Lasting Peace, Love, and Victory

Love From a Pure Heart

A Wise Person Knows When to Ask

Have you prayed and asked God for something but He did not grant your request? Many people become offended and angry at God for unanswered prayer. So why does God promise to give us what we ask? I wrote a series of posts on God’s promises and learned that most promises come with a condition. I also wrote a series of posts on why God may not answer our prayers the way we want Him to. So, I will refer you to that series of posts for increased understanding.

Jesus said we should ask, seek, and knock.

Jesus spoke the following in His first sermon in Matthew 7:7-11, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. The condition is we must ask, seek, and knock. This verse follows the verses on judging, which I wrote about in the last post. So, if you ask God to show you the plank in your eye, He will show you. If you seek Him for wisdom to know when to judge and when not to judge, you will receive wisdom. If you knock on the right doors to open opportunities for ministry to others, He will open opportunities. ⁸For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. When does God not give us what we ask and seek Him for? James 4:3 states, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.”

Jesus wants to give us good gifts.

Jesus compares His desire to give us good gifts to our earthly fathers. ⁹Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? ¹⁰Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? ¹¹If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” The condition is having God as your heavenly Father. Do you believe that Jesus is the Son of God and took your punishment for your sins so you can be forgiven and saved from God’s wrath on sin? Did you ask for forgiveness and freedom from sin’s control by seeking Jesus as the Lord of your life? If you answered yes, then God is your heavenly Father, and you are a joint heir with Jesus.

Luke clarifies the good gift as the Holy Spirit in Luke 11:13. “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Jesus says the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth in John 16:13, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.” So, when you receive the Holy Spirit you will discern the truth about people, yourself, and circumstances.

Good gifts God has given me.

I needed a spinet piano for my living room because my son was taking piano lessons. I did not have any money to buy one. I asked God to provide one. The next day, I turned on the radio, which I rarely did, and heard the Care and Share announcement. Someone was giving away a spinet piano, we just had to pick it up. Coincidence? I don’t think so. We then gifted it to our youth pastor’s wife.

Another answer to prayer was for a Rhode Island chicken. A raccoon was eating my chickens, and I was very upset. We caught the coon, but I was missing chickens. It was late in the season to get more chicks, so I ask God for a Rhode Island chicken. The next morning, I went to my garden to see what I needed to harvest that day, and I heard clucking. I looked around and there was a Rhode Island pullet in my fenced-in garden. I did not know why she was there, other than it was a gift from God.

I could tell you many other times God answered prayers. I wrote a post about miracles I experienced that you might find interesting called Trust God to Keep His Promises

RELATED POSTS

POSTS about God’s Promises

Posts about Prayer

The Wise Person Carefully Judges

Jesus’s first sermon is broken up into three chapters, and it is tempting to make the chapter break into different sermons even though it is one sermon. In Matthew 7:1-6, Jesus warns us not to judge based on what He previously said. Read the previous posts on Jesus’s first sermon to refresh your memory. Passing judgment on someone is expressing a critical opinion based on a limited understanding of the other person’s perspective. We must remember that all believers are in the process of renewing their minds to walk like Jesus. Some are further along than others, so let us show grace to those who do not have the same level of obedience. As born-again believers, we are all holy and set apart for God, but we are all at different stages of sanctification, so we should be careful how we judge another person’s actions and instead be encouraging. Spouses are guilty of judging each other when they become offended by what the other person says or does that they dislike. Be kind and patient, and do not judge in arrogance.

How much do you want to be judged?

Jesus teaches us to not judge hastily but carefully. Matthew 7:1-2 states, “Judge not, that you be not judged. ²For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.” Take a moment and ponder what Jesus means by “with the measure you use it will be measured to you.” It sounds like we will reap what we sow. When I am around someone who judges people, I feel like I need to defend the person being judged. Then I think, why are they judging others? Could that person have childhood insecurities, are they prideful, do they want to gossip, or are they truly offended and need to talk to the person who has offended them instead of judging them?

Also, in Luke 6:37-38 Jesus further explains, “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; ³⁸give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”

The Hypocrite Passes Judgment

Jesus continues His sermon in Matthew 7:3-5, “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? ⁴Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? ⁵You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.” A speck is barely noticeable unless you are looking for it.

The person who passes judgment on minor offenses in others and tells them about it but does not consider their own offensive ways is a hypocrite. A hypocrite is someone who thinks they are righteous but can’t see their own sin. Romans 2:1 explains, “Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things.” I have observed that people judge others for the very same issues in themselves.

Before you judge someone, ask God to show you, if you have the same problem then offer the same grace you would want to receive. Seeing our offensive ways requires us to humbly ask God to search our hearts and minds (Jer. 17:10). Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” And Psalm 139:23-24 explains, “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! ²⁴And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!”

When is it necessary to judge?

In 1 Corinthians 5:11-13, the Apostle Paul says, “But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. ¹²For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? ¹³God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.” For example, my husband and I were friends with a couple who said they were Christians but were in sexual sin. I felt very uncomfortable associating with them because of these verses. We spoke to them about getting married, but they were both clear they did not want to marry. They continued to attend our church. Eventually, they broke up, but neither one submitted their lives to God and continued in sexual sin with other people. In the passage above, the Apostle Paul is saying to “purge the evil person from among you.” Why do you think he said this? Yet most churches do not do that. I would like to know your thoughts.

My husband and I had another instance when we needed to judge a brother in our Christian group. We asked a Christian brother who had a tree-cutting business to cut down some trees for us, which he did, and we paid him. He tried to swindle a significant amount of money from us by falsely billing us for other work that he clearly did not do. Then he went around telling others we did him wrong. We had to judge him as a swindler and a liar. When we presented our case and the truth before the leadership, he backed off. We forgave him, but then we had nothing to do with him, though the leadership continued to befriend him. God removed him from the fellowship by sending him to jail because his evil heart led him to commit a crime. Evil men need to be removed from the church because they cause corruption within the church.

In the next verse, Jesus is telling us when we should judge those outside the church. Matthew 7:6 states, “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.” The words of God are holy, so when we speak to people about Him, and they curse the words of God, they are the dogs. Pearls are God’s truths, so when you present God’s truths to someone, and they despise their value and trash all that God calls good and say it is evil, they are pigs. These are profane and corrupt people who need Jesus but are clearly antagonistic toward the truths of God. If they begin to attack and abuse you, you need to get away quickly.

Conclusion

Judging is complex but it is always better to give grace and encourage others to love and do good deeds (Heb. 10:24) . Proverbs 24:23 states, “These also are sayings of the wise. Partiality [bias; prejudice] in judging is not good.” No need to elaborate. We have all been wrongly judged in one way or another by others who disagree with our decisions based on their bias. Conversely, we have judged others based on our biases and beliefs. Instead, we should patiently show grace and gently correct those who are in opposition.

Someone will say, “What if the other person is clearly in sin according to Galatians 5:19-21 “Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Yes, gently and lovingly warn those who are clearly sinning and pray they come to repentance. James 5:19-20 says, “My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, ²⁰let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”

May God Bless this word and give us all understanding that we would obey it.

Prison Report 9 – The Holy Spirit’s Role

We had five girls this past Friday. If the Holy Spirit reminds you about this prison Bible study on Friday nights, please pray for me and Sandy, my co-teacher. Please pray for all prison ministries throughout the world, that God would “open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me [Jesus]” Acts 26:18.

Please pray for Shaina, she was a drug runner to Philadelphia and faces State time. Her boyfriend died of an overdose. Then she tried to overdose on Fentanyl but survived. She realizes God saved her for a purpose. She has three children and cries herself to sleep over her many losses. She is growing in her faith but needs your prayers. Theresa has been very faithful in attending the Bible Study but is now legally blind because of cataracts. Another girl, Tiffany, returned from State prison for a hearing. She was so glad she came to the Bible Study because she really needed to know how the Holy Spirit helps her. The following is my Bible study. I only completed points one and two. The ladies were so grateful to understand the role of the Holy Spirit in their lives.

Friday, July 21, 2023

The only way we can be victorious over addiction or bad habits is to rely on the Holy Spirit, who gives us power and will lead us on the right path. Only He can keep us on the narrow path that leads to life. We cannot do it on our own or by willpower. But, when you cease to abide in Jesus and the Word of God, then temptations will lead you astray to the path that leads to destruction (Matt. 7:13-14; look up and read). Remember, James 4:7 (look up and read). If you do not submit your thoughts to God’s truths every moment, especially when you are tempted, then the devil will lead you away from the path of life. So, what is the role of the Holy Spirit in your life?

I shared my testimony of how the Holy Spirit helped and protected me when I got involved with the wrong group of people and dated a bad character who led me down the path of destruction. The Holy Spirit convicted me of my sin and kept reminding me of the truths that I learned as a child. I stayed in the party scene until my third year of college. A Christian friend invited me to go to a Christian Campus group and a local church, but I was still partying. During a Christian concert, the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, “Either walk with me or don’t, stop walking the fence.” I made the decision that night to submit to God and walk with Him. After that, I found going out with my party friends very distasteful, and I found joy and peace in following Jesus. I struggled with my faith for a time, but the Holy Spirit encouraged me.

The following is my outline and questions on the role of the Holy Spirit. I hope you are encouraged.

1. The Holy Spirit is our helper.

John 14:26; “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”

John 15:26; “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.”

___ How do you receive someone’s help?

___ When someone teaches you something, what do you do with what you learn?

___ Why can’t a prideful person receive help?

The Holy Spirit helps you pray.

___ What is prayer?

___ How often should we pray?

___ Why do you pray?

Rom 8:26-27 states, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. ²⁷And he [God] who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”

___ What weakness do you need the Holy Spirit to help you with?

___ Is God’s will always what your will is? Whose will is better?

Eph 6:18-20 states, “Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, ¹⁹and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.”

___ How do you pray all the time in the Spirit?

___ How do we keep alert in prayer?

___ Why should we pray at all times?

1 Peter 5:8-9 tells us, “Be sober-minded; be watchful [stay in prayer]. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.⁹Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.”

He will lead you and tell you what to do or say.

Act 13:2 states, “While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”

Act 16:6 states, “And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.”

2 Peter 1:21 states, “For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

___ How do you know when the Holy Spirit is speaking to you? (I shared the various times the Holy Spirit spoke to me and lead me to go places and to do something.)

2. The Holy Spirit gives you power.

Act 1:8 states, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

____ How do you know you have power?

___ What does it mean to be a witness?

Act 10:38 states, “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.” (Jesus was fully human, and I believe the anointing happened when the Holy Spirit descended on Him when He was baptized. I explained how God wants to heal them from the oppression of the devil.)

Romans 15:13 states, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”

___ Why does the power of the Holy Spirit give you hope?

Next week, we will cover the next two roles of the Holy Spirit.

3. The Holy Spirit renews us.

Titus 3:3-7; For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.

⁴But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, ⁵he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit

⁶ whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, ⁷so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

4. He helps you put off your old life and put on the new life: Eph 4:22-24; Col 3:5-15;2Cor 5:17; 2Cor 7:1.

1 Thessalonians 4:7-8 states, “For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. ⁸Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.”

Your old life of sin is full of destructive pain and guilt. Ask God to expose the sinful actions that hurt others or yourself, seek His forgiveness, and ask God to remove your guilt and the oppressive spirits from that memory and heal your emotions. Ask God to remove pridefulness so you can humbly seek forgiveness to help them be free from the pain you caused them. If you are angry or anxious, seek God to show you why. Then forgive those who betrayed you and ask God to heal your heart and remove the oppressive spirits attached to the resentment that controls your thoughts and emotions. God wants to purify you and heal your memories so you can put off your life of sin and put on a new life of righteousness, love, joy, and peace.

To read my other Prison Ministry Reports.

Why the Wise People Are Not Anxious

In Jesus’s first sermon, He goes into great detail explaining why we should not be anxious. So why are we naturally anxious and worried? Jesus says it is because we don’t have enough faith. Remember, “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen (Heb. 11:1). George Muller, the German missionary to England during the black plague, showed great faith in God’s provision. He started orphanages to take care of all the children whose parents died during the plague. Then he prayed and believed that God would provide food and necessities for the orphanages, and He did. This is an encouraging testimony; I recommend everyone read his story. All the missionary stories involve faith in God and how God came through for them.

The Wise Knows God Cares.

I must admit that I have a stock of food and necessities in the event of a disaster, or another quarantine like during Covid. So, having at least three months of food and water to get through an unforeseen disaster is wise. But we should not be consumed with worry about a disaster that may never happen. Dictionary.com (2023) says that being anxious is being full of mental distress or uneasiness because of fear of danger or misfortune, or greatly worried. Jesus explains in Matthew 6:25-26, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Jesus does not want us to be anxious but trust that He is our provider. To build your faith, read in the book of Deuteronomy about how God provided everything for one million people for forty years, plus their clothing and sandals did not wear out.

This concept is hard because it defies our fleshly nature to not trust God. We work so we can buy food and clothing and keep a roof over our heads. What does Jesus mean when He says, “Is not life more than food?” Maybe we should be more concerned about living our lives for our heavenly Father and not be mentally consumed with our daily or future necessities. ²⁶Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Jesus is saying, our heavenly Father will provide what we need because He cares for us. Does this mean we don’t have to work? No, the Bible says, if we don’t work then we should not eat (2Thes. 3:10). I am pondering what Jesus possibly means, and I don’t really know. Maybe we are to trust our heavenly Father for everything, even what we need in the future, knowing He cares for us even more than the birds. This principle goes beyond food and clothing. One time, I needed a cheap place to live with my two toddlers, because I had no actual job and just started an alterations business. I trusted God to provide, and He did a miracle. Read my story in the post called Trust God to Keep His Promises.

The Wise Have Faith

Jesus further explains in Matthew 6:27-32 “And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? Anxiety and worry cause stress in our bodies, which weakens it. Read this article to learn how. We need to keep in mind that in Jesus’s time, they did not have shopping centers and grocery stores everywhere or clothing factories, so this was a legitimate concern. We may not worry about not having clothing, but we may worry about other things, like our family, finances, jobs, and so on.

²⁸And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, ²⁹yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? ³¹Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³²For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”

God is all-knowing and all-powerful, so why don’t we trust Him to provide what we need, now and in the future? The answer is that we are sinful and would rather trust in worldly institutions, even ourselves and others, to meet our needs. The remedy is to stay in constant prayer and expectation of how our heavenly Father will meet our needs. Philippians 4:19 states, “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” And the Apostle Paul says in Ephesians 3:20, “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us.”

The Wise Are Kingdom Minded

Jesus says in Matthew 6:33-34, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. ³⁴“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” Seek means to look for. The kingdom of God is an actual place and a place where our faith dwells. Romans 14:17 states, “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” We must first look for God’s presence and purpose in our lives. I wrote a post about this. Read, How do you seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness?

Conclusion

The Apostle Paul told the Philippian church in Philippians 4:6-7,“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” So never be anxious, stay in constant prayer and expectation and you will live in peace.

Other posts on the Sermon on the mount.

Posts about God’s promises.