Keep the Faith Now

S.E.E.D. For Today____ Holiness Scripture " And let us work toward complete holiness because we fear God." 2 Corinthians 7:1b NLT When you think about the believer today or the church, what is our view on the importance of holiness? The generation coming ahead will they even know what holiness is all about? Why is the chief attribute of God no longer the strongest part of our Christian education? It seems so strange to think that we have separated ourselves from this important nature of the Father to have engrafted a form of His holiness to become inclusive. Theologically it is true that when we are saved we are instantaneously justified and sanctified but we must fulfill our calling by progressive sanctification. The word of God exhorts us to cut off our unholy alliances ( including our thoughts, desires, affections, anger, pride and more ....) and cleanse ourselves that we live in the fulfillment of God and possess the promise. Example  Holiness the ch...

S.E.E.D. For Today____ Enemies Scripture "While we were God's enemies, He made us His friends through the death of His Son. Romans 5:10a New Century Version A man giving up His Son for His enemies? That through Him we would be God's friend again? Who does this for an enemy? What manner of love is this not only would we become His friends but also through His Son become His children. This incredible display of loving one's enemies is at times beyond comprehension. The atonement of Christ was intended to make us one with God at one moment. This is the kind of love that the Father has given to us even as children that God Himself assumed our nature in the person of Jesus Christ and died. Maybe many would lay their life down for a friend but for an enemy never. Once we were alienated from God as enemies but the power of His love through Christ has made us friends, children of the Most High God. He Has commanded us to love our enemies as well, do good t...

S.E.E.D. For Today____ Humility Scripture "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves." Philippians 2:3 NIV Our attitudes toward one another are important and there are special bonds to one another due to our relationship in Christ. Paul says that we must have the same attitude that Christ had. Though He was God He did not think of Himself equal with God as something to cling to. Instead He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being, and when He appeared in human form, He then humbled himself in obedience to God and died as a criminal on a cross. The Power Of Humility obtained our salvation, Jesus thought of us better than Himself. Humility does not mean putting ourselves down but rather lifting others up. If you want to make God happy, be unselfish with one another, treat others like you want to be treated. Jesus gave up trying to advance Himself, He lived to help...

S.E.E.D. For Today____ Hypocrisy Scripture "Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father in heaven." Matthew 6:1 ESV Our acts of devotion, our piety and the attention that is being sought by many has overwhelmed what true relationship with Christ models. The danger today is that we get caught up in getting the glory instead of God. Hypocrisy takes on two forms, outer appearance and inner appearance, but what is the true reality. The religious posture that exist today seeks to win applause of an audience, one must know that acts of charity is not serving God. Jesus said in Matthew 23:5 "Everything they do is done for men to see; They make their phylacteries wide and their tassels on their garments long;" You may receive the admiration of others but it cancels out what you receive from God.  Hypocrisy has filled our pews and the pretenders our pulpits....

S.E.E.D. For Today____ War Scripture "We are human, but we don't wage war as humans do." 2 Corinthians 10:3 NLT The more diligent we become in serving and approving ourselves to God, the more we must expect to suffer from misrepresentation and slander. As hard as it is for us many times to disengage ourselves from reacting to the flesh we must employ the unconventional warfare of the believer. Eugene Peterson translates Paul's message like this; "The world is unprincipled. It's a dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn't fight fair. But we don't live or fight our battles that way, the tools of our trade are not for marketing and manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture." There was disobedience in Corinth because Christians were believing lies instead of the truth of God's word, and they were warned to tear down every argument and reason so that their hearts and minds would return to t...

S.E.E.D. For Today___ Miracles Scripture "Who can list the glorious miracles of the Lord?" Psalms 106:2 NLT Miracle is the general term for the wonderful phenomena which accompanied Jewish and Christian revelation especially at critical moments. The biblical term of miracle is the extraordinary work of God, transcending the ordinary powers of nature. Throughout history God has displayed His power, His sovereignty and His greatness through miracles. The miracle of creation, man as He formed Him from the dirt,  Noah as He and His family survived a world flood, Abraham and Sarah who gives birth in their old age, Moses leading the children out of Egypt and God parts the Red Sea, the manna, the cloud, the quail, the water from the rock, the list goes on and on. These acts of God exceed our comprehension. "Many, O Lord are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be ...

S.E.E.D. For Today___ Believe Scripture "And if you have no doubts in your mind and believe that what you say will happen, God will do it for you." Mark 11:22c New Century Version As the disciples are continuing in their education and training as co-workers of Jesus, the topic shifts from Christ being a miracle worker to the application of prayer. The inevitable connection between faith and prayer is expressed here and attest that true prayer is making requests of God in faith. Faith believes enough to ask, asking is the conviction we should have to know that God intends for His will to be done. Many of us waver in faith and prayer becomes difficult in light of every circumstance. You may be about to faint or baffled by what you see, but what seems difficult to you will be easy for God. Every circumstance and habit in life takes faith. It's not by the intensity of your prayer that moves God it is the confidence you approach Him with that can move mou...

S.E.E.D. For Today___ Win Scripture " By Your endurance you will win your lives." Luke 21:19 World English Bible Working out your salvation can be very hard, but endurance, steadfastness or perseverance is the key to winning. Jesus is saying that the disciple or the believer must cling to their faith in the midst of persecution and by standing firm you will gain life. The enemy always appears to be winning but it is just an appearance only and not the reality, for they can do nothing against you that God won't make work for the good of them that love Him. But our flesh often feels the pain and often ops to faint in the face of affliction. Don't yield to the lies of the accusers for they will say you can't win, but you can win. Don't yield to irritation, don't yield to depression, don't yield to fear, don't yield to failure, do not yield to temptation, correct the mistakes that you can and endure. In the movie the wiz the scarec...

S.E.E.D. For Today__ Unity and Love Scripture "How wonderful, how beautiful, when brothers and sisters get along! It's like costly anointing oil flowing down from head and beard," Psalms 133:1-2 Message Bible When we read the scriptures you cannot help but see that throughout biblical history brothers or the brethren did not always live in unity and love. It first started with Cain killing Abel, Lot and Abraham's arguments, Joseph's brothers hating him, Miriam and Aaron criticizing Moses, and David's children turning against him and each other, even the disciples argued over who would be the greatest in God's Kingdom, and the sad thing is that rivalry and division still rears it's ugly head in our families and the church today. Those who have been born of God all belong to the same family and need to live in unity and love. The Psalm writer said how pleasant or how wonderful and how attractive it is when we all get along. It's...

S.E.E.D. For Today__ Conversation Scripture "When you talk, do not say harmful things, but say what people need_words that will help others become stronger." Ephesians 4:29  New Century Version Paul is discussing the unwholesome talk which literally means rotten, putrid or filthy. This includes obscene language, but more so Paul is placing the emphasis on spreading conversations which run others down and delights in their weakness. Anyone that engages in conversation like this are dispensing poison into people's system a little at a time, the more they talk the more they dispense. To some people dispensing bad news or poison through speech have become a natural tendency to do so. Such talk should not be part of the believer's life. Paul says speak that which is helpful to others, conversation that they need to build them up or strengthen them. In others words bring news that people can use. Our words should be a vehicle and demonstration of the grace of God, co...

S.E.E.D. For Today___ Courageous Scripture "So be strong and courageous, all you who put your hope in the Lord!" Psalms 31:24 NLT God had protected David from danger many times. As for the plots of the enemy, the Lord always took care of that too. God's great goodness and marvelous lovingkindness were all that David needed to weather the storm and survive to lead his people. However at one point David may have been ready to give up, It wasn't the enemy that frightened him it was the thought of being abandoned by the God he trusted and served. Fear weakens us and courage strengthens us, therefore we should resist the cowardly thoughts that over take our minds from time to time. Not because we are afraid of people, but afraid of failure, afraid of success, afraid of being lonely, afraid of not knowing and more. Under the pressure of distress we must act in the face of all of of our fears. In the movie The Wiz, the cowardly lion is kicked out of t...

S.E.E.D. For Today___ Count the   Cost Scripture "But don't begin until you count the cost." Luke 14:28 NLT Jesus uses two parables of building and war to encourage His followers to count the cost. He talks about beginning the construction on a building without calculating the cost or going to war without counsel, so you cannot become a disciple without counting the cost. Both emphasize the necessity to take some time and compute it all. The upside to our failure of obeying God's will is that we don't calculate the cost. Every accomplishment in life requires counting the cost, but many of us want the successes without considering what will it cost me. We beg God to use us, to choose us to do great things for the Kingdom of God without knowing it will cause us to write a check that in the end we can't cash. Jesus is saying look you cannot be my disciple until you give up everything you own, so consider the cost before you start. Who begins construction...

S.E.E.D. For Today_ Obedience Scripture "If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land" Isaiah 1:19 NIV God is not always interested more in our sacrifices although we are commanded to do so, but sacrifice without obedience is nothing to Him. Isaiah is presenting this message to God's people because of their rebellion towards God. He says to them why do you continue to invite punishment? Your head is injured and your heart is sick. The Lord through the prophet is expressing Himself to His people  those who have blatantly rejected His love and care for them. God expresses I get no pleasure when you come to worship me, your convocations and your celebrations, your prayers mean nothing to me. God still takes compassion on His people and offers them pardon instead of punishment. He tells them to wash themselves, that their sins would be out of His sight and to give them up. He calls on them to settle the matter, He says ...

S.E.E.D. For Today__ Image Scripture " Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God___truly righteous and holy." Ephesians 4:23-24 NLT  The Ephesians had put off the old self when they first came to Christ. Paul in effect challenges them to stop the repeated putting on of the old garments, the old style of life. Those who live for God must do so by repeatedly putting off. The problem is we have to stop putting on the old garments, they should not be comfortable or natural. We have worn them so long that they naturally drape us and we don't realize what our wardrobe consist of until we see God. We cannot effectively change our wardrobe until our thinking has been altered or have had alterations. For many image is everything, but not the image of who we are but the image of what we were created to be like. We struggle with seeing ourselves as God intended us to. You are not a kitty, ...

S.E.E.D. For Today_ Perseverance Scripture "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him." James 1:12 NIV The experience that we endure as children of God are not accidental, their is a purpose behind  everything that occurs. We may not always understand God's purpose and most definitely Satan wants us to question does God even care, our emotions and our decisions flip flop, one minute we trust God and the next we don't. When you don't understand why and what you are going through it is easy to revolt against God, because for the most part we want to know who is responsible for this? We get it when we go through when we have done wrong, but when you are giving it your all and life kicks and beats you to no end we wonder is God looking at this and what is He going to do. The bible lets us know that God does allow trials, we kn...

S.E.E.D. For Today_ Perseverance Scripture "Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:4 NIV The book of James in the 1st chapter begins with a greeting and then this analogy of going through. He writes " consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. " One of the key words in that verse is develop. God is developing perseverance through your trials and tribulations. Perseverance produces staying power and toughness. The more test we have the tougher we get. Perseverance develops when we are repeatedly being beaten and tested but prevail. The more test we pass the tougher we become. Paul said it like this in Romans 5:3 " we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance." Trials have a purpose in your life, because it tr...

S.E.E.D. For Today_ Doors Scripture "I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close. You have little strength, yet you have obeyed my word and did not deny me." Revelation 3:8 NLT This is the message from the One who is Holy and True, to the church in Philadelphia. "What He opens no one can close;". The meaning of this statement of an open door in the Greek indicates that this door has been opened and remains open, although the Lord can shut it again. In this door no one is not going out through the door into the world but it is a coming through the door into the Kingdom.  God opens the door that no one is able to shut, so that people may enter into His presence.  These are the acts of His government. Through Christ God has opened the door for those who choose to enter into His salvation, relationship, and to experience the opportunities that are available to those who persevere. God opens doors of opportunity that ...

S.E.E.D. For Today_ Identity Scripture "For we are God's Masterpiece. He created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things that He planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10 NLT If you ever questioned your identity, who you are and why you exist, this is the answer. You are God's  Masterpiece. We are God's work of art, He is the creator, nothing exist apart from Him. He brought everything into being. We are the apex of God's workmanship not even the angels can compare to us for we are made in the image of God. Many Christians wonder about their identity in Christ, but you, the individual, you are God's special possession, the apple of His eye, heirs of the Kingdom of God. We often question our identity, why do we standout from the crowd, why am I different, why can't I be common? A masterpiece depending on the artist can have tremendous value,  your worth to God is priceless. The price was so high for His human masterpiece that He paid to get...

S.E.E.D. For Today_ Stability Scripture "It is life to me now, if you stand firm in the Lord." 1 Thessalonians 3:8 Moffat New Testament Paul who definitely made the choice to give his life totally for the sake of the gospel, willingly underwent distress, persecution, prison, beaten, forsaken, the tribulation he endured to him was nothing compared to his choice to live for Christ. But he was comforted knowing that the church in Thessalonica had stability in the faith. Paul's heart is on fire for the Lord and this tender affection he has for this church is because they have kept their position. This uplifted Paul, he could not find enough words to describe the joy and the positive effect their stability in the faith was to him. It was like a shot of life, it fueled his purpose. As a pastor it encourages and strengthens your life when you see the saints persevere, standing firm in their faith no matter what. This comfort is good for all those that are l...

S.E.E.D. For Today_ Choices Scripture "By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king's edict." Hebrews 11:23 NIV Choices are extremely important, what you choose indicates what type of future you have. Making choices can be difficult because of the multiple choices we get to make and the free will to decide. Choices have short and long lasting effects, which determines in many courses the turn your life will take. Most of us wrestle with ourselves after we have made many choices. Out of the best of our reasoning, our desire, our appetite do we make up our minds. Faith operates on choice, "by faith Moses' parents defied Pharaoh's order and kept their son alive. His mother trusted in the providence of God, her choice was to risk her life for the life of her child. Her choice had astounding circumstances that will always be shared with all humanity. M...

S.E.E.D. For Today_ Choice Scripture "Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying Him and committing yourself firmly to Him. This is the key to your life." Deuteronomy 30:19a; 20 NLT Since we are created in the image of God, we have minds to think with, and a will to decide with; and God calls us to make right decisions. Moses made it clear that making this decision isn't a difficult task. In Israel's case the choice was between trusting God and enjoying the bounties of the land or turning to idols and experiencing the curses given in the covenant. It's either life and blessing or death and cursing is this such a difficult decision to make. Of course today the choice is between eternal life or eternal death, salvation by the grace of God or condemnation by the righteousness of God. The sensible decision is to choose life but many struggle w...