THE WATERFALL OF GRACE

GALATIANS 6:9 NLT  9 So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up.  The best advice for being a growing and successful Christian believer is just to stick with it. Just keep on doing what you know to do. More than anything, keep feeding on God's Word. The Word is what has the power to change things in your life. It is the power that drives the whole Kingdom of God. MARK 4:26-28 NLT 26 Jesus also said, "The Kingdom of God is like a farmer who scatters seed on the ground. 27 Night and day, while he's asleep or awake, the seed sprouts and grows, but he does not understand how it happens. 28 The earth produces the crops on its own. First a leaf blade pushes through, then the heads of wheat are formed, and finally the grain ripens. Jesus explained in Mark 4:14 that God's Word is the seed. So God's Word will bring forth God's will in your life if you will just plant it i

  Matthew 4:4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” The Bible tells us that God breathed into man and he became a living being. (Genesis 2:7) It also tells us that all Scripture is God-breathed. (2 Timothy 3:16, NIV) This means that when you read the Bible or listen to God’s Word preached, you are imbibing the very breath of God which gives you life. That is why there may have been times you walked into church feeling tired at first, but left at the end of the service feeling refreshed and energized.  God’s Word had breathed life into your body! I have also seen many of our church members becoming healthier, stronger and even younger-looking because they spend time in God’s Word. It is no wonder that Proverbs 4:22 tells us that God’s words are “life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh”. So if you are under the weather or if symptoms are attacking your body, doub

LUKE 16:13 CJB 13 No servant can be slave to two masters, for he will either hate the first and love the second, or scorn the second and be loyal to the first. You can't be a slave to both God and money." This is a simple yet profound, eternal truth -- always true in every situation. It is impossible to take orders from two places at the same time, without giving preference to one. Jesus did not say it was hard. He said it was impossible. True, sometimes it can seem possible for a while. But invariably the time comes when the orders from each side are going to conflict, forcing a decision. Who am I really serving? What dictates my actions? Who has final authority? Will I do what gets me the most money? Or will I do what God says?  From this verse we see that there will be times when God's direction will not be the most financially rewarding choice. Yet far too many who call themselves Christians never even consider choices which would provide them with less mon

ACTS 10:46a NKJ 46 For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God. PSALM 34:3 NKJ 3 Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together. In the New Testament, the word translated "magnify" is the Greek word "megaluno." It means to make great or enlarge. We certainly cannot make God any greater, but we can perceive Him as greater in our lives. In other words, what we think of God can be enlarged. How can we do this? What you focus your attention on will seem bigger, because you are choosing to let it occupy your time and thinking. Very small objects can block very large ones. A small coin in front of your eye can block the sun from view. Yet the sun is infinitely larger than the coin. It's the placement in your life that determines how big things seem to you.  An airplane in the sky can look very small, though in reality it is huge. That is only because you are far away from it. When Scripture talks of magnifying God, we a

1 THESSALONIANS 5:21  Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.  Sometimes things that should be obvious to us are not. Like, if what you are doing is not working out, it would be wise to consider a change. Too many people are not receiving the blessings God's Word promises, things the Bible says God desires us to have. But instead of considering changing things in their life, too often people fall into the temptation of blaming God and thinking He is holding out on them.  But that is never true! There is never any fault or problem with God. PSALM 84:11 KJV 11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.  If you are acting on the Word and planting good seeds, don't let the devil discourage you and cause you to give up too soon. But if the course of your life is going the wrong direction, and it is not getting better over time, then it would be wise to consider your wa

2 CORINTHIANS 3:2B NLT 2 Your lives are a letter written in our hearts; everyone can read it and recognize our good work among you.  Every day by your actions you are "writing" your story. One purpose of life on earth is to give us each an opportunity to "write" our own story, which we will be able to share and enjoy throughout eternity. We are here to learn, and what we experience and learn will be shared with many. Humans love stories. Facts and figures can sometimes be boring, but when anyone tells what happened to them, it usually draws our attention.  Everyone knows and loves the story of David and Goliath. We all love a good story. But what does every good story require? It must involve some problem or difficulty that is ultimately overcome so there is a happy ending. These are the stories we love to hear. The good news is that, because of God's love, your story will at least have a happy ending.  But you can make your story more interesting

ISAIAH 53:4-5 NKJ 4 Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.  This passage in Isaiah foretells the great substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, paying the price to redeem all mankind from the curse resulting from Adam’s rebellion. As you can clearly see, it includes healing along with payment for our sins.  In Matthew 8 we have the inspired commentary of the Holy Spirit Himself, affirming that the passage in Isaiah 53:4-5 includes physical healing. MATTHEW 8:16-17 NKJ 16 When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, 17 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: "He Himself took our infirmities An

Mark 5:18-20 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. 19 Jesus did not let him, but said, "Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you." 20 So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed. He has been out of control and broken for so long, his community and home now seem less appealing than the opportunity to go on the road with Jesus. The once demon-possessed man now wants to leave everything and follow Jesus. Isn't that the point? Jesus would continue to teach and heal. The once demon-possessed man could come up and tell his story of darkness and how Jesus healed him. Grown men would cry; others would come to know that whatever they were facing was not a hopeless situation as long as Jesus was around. It would be the perfect ministry! Only one problem....Jesus refuses t

  2 Corinthians 12:7-10 7 Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me--to keep me from exalting myself! 8 Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. 9 And He has said to me, My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. When you listen to someone speak, what gives his or her words weight? How do you decide to listen to what’s being said? Most often, we measure a per

We should expect God's protection, and thank Him for it. But we must remember that we receive from God by faith. So if we don't believe God will protect us, we are, in effect, hindering God's protection. So we need to feed our faith on the promises of the Bible concerning God's protection for His people. There are many, but here are two. ISAIAH 54:17 GWN 17 No weapon that has been made to be used against you will succeed. You will have an answer for anyone who accuses you. This is the inheritance of the LORD's servants. Their victory comes from me," declares the LORD.  LUKE 10:19 NKJ 19 "Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Then we also need to express our faith in thanks to God every day for His protection. The ninety-first Psalm can help us do this. I suggest you make it personal and speak it often. CONFESSION BASED ON PSALM 91

ROMANS 8:29 NLT 29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn, with many brothers and sisters. Jesus is not only our Saviour, but also the model of what we are to become. 1 CORINTHIANS 15:49 NKJ 49 And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.  1 JOHN 3:2 NKJ 2 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. God's whole program with mankind is to eventually make us all like Jesus Christ.  COLOSSIANS 3:10 NLT 10 Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. Jesus is our pattern, our example. He is the one we are to follow, to imitate.  1 CORINTHIANS 11:1 NKJ 1 Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.  JOHN 14:12 NKJ 12 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he w

1 THESSALONIANS 5:18 NLT  Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.  Some people have trouble being thankful unless they have a perfect life with everything they think they should have. But with the right perspective, you can be thankful when you have nothing. You can be thankful at least that you are not being overwhelmed by bad things. There are many people on a deathbed with cancer or other diseases, who would gladly give all their financial assets to be free from their disease. You probably would too, if you were in that situation. So, if you are not afflicted with a deadly disease right now, then you can, and should be thankful, no matter what else is happening in your life. "But , I do have a deadly disease and the doctors say there is no hope. How can I be thankful?" The fact that you are reading this demonstrates several things. First, you can read -- and still have vision. That is more than many peo

ROMANS 15:7 NIV 7 Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.  We have only two choices, accept people, or reject them. When you realize this, it may change the way you treat people. When we criticize or condemn people, we communicate rejection. When we try to change people, it communicates that they are not good enough for us, that we don't like them.  "But what if they are not perfect? What if they don't believe everything I believe?" Were you born believing all you do now? Or did you go through a process of learning over time? Should we throw out people because they still have something to learn? What happens when you don't accept people as they are? It feeds the lie that they are no good and have no value.  We can accept people and celebrate their value without approving of their sins. But when we refuse to accept people until they are perfect, we communicate rejection. When someone feels rejected, th

ROMANS 14:17 NKJ 17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.  Here is a description of the Kingdom of God: righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Righteousness means everything being right.  God has given us the gift of righteousness (Romans 5:17). That means He has put us in right standing with Himself. He has said that everything is right between us and Him. Sin no longer separates us from God, because the precious blood of Jesus has cleansed us and we are forgiven by God. Because we have right standing with God (righteousness), we have peace. There is no more struggle. God is not mad at us. God is on our side.  Peace means more than the absence of conflict. Peace means nothing broken and nothing missing. Peace includes the idea of prosperity -- having everything needful in abundance with no lack. When you are right with God and have peace -- nothing missing and nothing broken -- you will

ROMANS 12:15 KJV 15 Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. There are times when we should share the grief of others, understand what they are feeling, and support them in their sorrow.  JOHN 11:35 KJV 35 Jesus wept. Jesus lived a perfect life. He is our model as well as our Lord and Savior. If Jesus found it appropriate to weep at times, then it is appropriate for us, also. In general we should encourage people. We should try to get them to see the positive side of things and to trust in the Lord, and even to rejoice in Him. The Bible tells us to rejoice in the Lord always. But people are not perfect in acting in faith, and we can't force them to do something. So sometimes it is not appropriate to try to "cheer up someone." The Bible says there is a time to weep.  ECCLESIASTES 3:4 KJV 4 A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; Sometimes what is needed is not trying to change a person, but just lett

DEUTERONOMY 31:8 NASB  8 "And the LORD is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear, or be dismayed."  Here is my favorite translation of Hebrews 13:5, done by a professor of Greek, who indicated that to understand what the verse says in the Greek, it would have to be translated like this: HEBREWS 13:5 WUEST 5 Let your manner of life be without love of money, being satisfied with your present circumstances. For He himself has said, and the statement is on record, I will not, I will not cease to sustain and uphold you. I will not, I will not, I will not let you down.  God's promise is He will never leave us or forsake us. Yet we may sometimes feel hopeless and helpless -- like we are facing life all alone. What is the truth? Regardless of the circumstances, or how you feel, remember that God cannot lie. He is there to help you -- and He always will be. Feelings are fickle. Just because you feel a cert

Genesis 22:1-3 1 Now it came about after these things, that God tested Abraham, and said to him, Abraham!" And he said, Here I am." 2 He said, Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you." 3 So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him and Isaac his son; and he split wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.  While it’s often a struggle to put everything on the altar, one thing I’ve learned is that you don’t have to understand how God will accomplish His plans. All He asks is that you surrender your will to His and trust that He will show you the way forward (Prov. 3:5-6). Abraham’s willingness to give up what was most precious to him came from his unyielding faith in the Lord’s trustworthiness.  However, if you tell God no beca

1 Thessalonians 5:18 18 in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.  As unpleasant as trials are, there are still many reasons for giving thanks.There are provisions believers can count on during adversity: God’s presence, a pathway through the trouble, and potential to grow. Today, let’s explore two .  1) Protection. God doesn’t necessarily keep believers from suffering or disappointment. Stopping the storms may be our goal, but from His point of view, the adversity may be necessary to mature us spiritually. However, the Father offers protection by staying with us in the struggle. Once we receive Jesus as our Savior, we are promised that God’s Spirit indwells us and will never leave. What’s more, we have assurance that nothing can separate us from His love (Rom. 8:38-39). So our ever-present God walks with us through the hardships, providing guidance and speaking truth into the situation.  2) Peace. While difficulties cause many people

Nehemiah 1:1-11 Nehemiah demonstrates power in prayer. As a servant to King Artaxerxes of Persia, he had no right to request leave to rebuild Jerusalem’s walls, much less to requisition materials and protection. Yet knowing the nature of the God he served, Nehemiah did not hesitate to act boldly and ask the king for what was needed.  His prayer began, “I beseech You, O lord God of heaven” (Neh. 1:5). Lord, when it appears in all capital letters, denotes the word Jehovah (a form of Yahweh, the Hebrew name for God). It means “God who is eternal in His being”—conveying that everything everywhere is in His presence. So, when God makes a promise, He knows how He will keep it. That is why Nehemiah called Him “the awesome God who preserves the covenant.” He knew God was committed to bringing repentant Israelites back to their homeland to dwell in His presence (Neh. 1:9). Another Hebrew name used to refer to God, Elohim, is translated “He who is absolutely sovereign.” If He spo

JOHN 21:16 NLT  16 Jesus repeated the question: "Simon son of John, do you love me?"  Every one desires to be loved. We all want to be loved and accepted for who we are. We all want to be wanted. Possibly the greatest human desire is to have a suitable companion who thinks you are wonderful.  The rich man's problem is determining whether someone loves him as a person, or whether they only pretend to love him in order to receive the benefits he can provide. I once knew a wealthy man who discovered in his wife's diary her whole plan to deceive him into thinking she loved him, so she could marry him just for the purpose of getting his money. What a blow! The rich man has a huge problem. How can he know that someone loves him instead of his money? How can he be certain that he is not just being used for what he can provide because of his wealth and power?  God faces the same difficulty as the rich man. If God were to openly reveal Himself in all His pow

Ruth 1  1 Now it came about in the days when the judges governed, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the land of Moab with his wife and his two sons. 2 The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife, Naomi; and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem in Judah. Now they entered the land of Moab and remained there. 3 Then Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died; and she was left with her two sons. 4 They took for themselves Moabite women as wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. And they lived there about ten years. 5 Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and the woman was bereft of her two children and her husband. 6 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she might return from the land of Moab, for she had heard in the land of Moab that the LORD had visited His people in giving them food. 7 So she departed from the place where sh

 Proverbs 15:18 18 A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, But the slow to anger calms a dispute.  When conflict occurs, people often look for someone to criticize.  Turning to the Lord in prayer is always the best way to respond in a crisis. As we do, we can ask for Him to provide. . . Spiritual discernment. God knows and understands perfectly the source of the problem, and He can enable us to comprehend it, too. Perhaps there has been a communication breakdown, a feeling of jealousy on the other person’s part, or a mistake on ours. With the Spirit’s assistance, we will gain insight.  A quiet spirit. Our human nature will want to react quickly so that we can defend ourselves or stand up for what we think is right. Before we act, we must deliberately focus our attention on God and experience the inner peace that He promises (John 14:27).  Wisdom. The Lord told His disciples that the Holy Spirit would give them wise words to say when they faced hostile authorities (Luke 12:11-

Galatians 2:11-16 11 But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. 12 For prior to the coming of certain men from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he began to withdraw and hold himself aloof, fearing the party of the circumcision. 13 The rest of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy, with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy. 14 But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in the presence of all, If you, being a Jew, live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, how is it that you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews? 15 We are Jews by nature and not sinners from among the Gentiles; 16 nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of

1 Peter 4:12 12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you;  Some believers like to portray their lives as ideal and carefree. But in reality, being a Christian isn’t always easy. In fact, sometimes we’ll experience trials that truly test our faith and ability to trust in God. In today’s passage, Peter refers to times of testing as “fiery ordeals.” He says we shouldn’t be surprised when adversity comes our way. It’s important to remember that God has a purpose for our trials and will see us through each step of the way. But what purpose does God have for the hardships we face?  First, the heavenly Father will sometimes use painful experiences to cleanse and purify His children’s lives. Trials drive us to the Lord. Then, as we begin to focus on Him, we’re increasingly able to see things from His perspective and often become more aware of our sin.  Second, the Lord

John 14:16-17  I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever;  that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.  Following the Last Supper, Jesus took time to teach the disciples more about His mission and what would happen after He left the earth. He knew their darkest times lay ahead. They would experience despair at the death of their beloved Teacher, great joy at His resurrection, and sorrow at His departure. He was also aware that bearing witness to His life would challenge their faith. So, in John 14:16-31, He promised a Helper who would stand alongside them in the coming trials. We often face life with a stiff upper lip, trusting our own ingenuity and skills to get us through. In choosing to follow the Lord, however, we agree to adopt a totally different mindset: We’re weaker than we could have imagined, but t

    Isaiah 61:10-11 10 I will rejoice greatly in the LORD, My soul will exult in my God; For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 11 For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, And as a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up, So the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise To spring up before all the nations. The word delight means “to gain great pleasure, satisfaction, and happiness.” Wouldn’t you like those to be the words that describe your relationship with God—one where both you and He enjoy time spent in each other’s presence? If that sounds good to you, then I have great news. God also wants that kind of delightful friendship, which develops through commitment, trust, and patience.

        Colossians 2:6-7 6 Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude. Once we have made up our minds to obey God, we gather courage around us like a cloak and proceed. That is, until something causes us to hesitate and question the wisdom of this decision. Our faith is wavering. What do we do now?  Ask yourself questions about God. Has God promised to meet all my needs? Has He sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in me, guide me, and equip me to obey Him? Did God promise to be with me at all times? Is anything too hard for Him?  Search the Scriptures for answers, and let truth fill your mind. Meditate on God's Word. Ask the Lord to help you find Bible verses that relate to what you are facing.

  Mark 9:21-24 21 And He asked his father, How long has this been happening to him?" And he said, From childhood. 22 It has often thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!" 23 And Jesus said to him, `If You can?' All things are possible to him who believes." 24 Immediately the boy's father cried out and said, I do believe; help my unbelief." Since faith is the core of our Christian experience, the consequences of wavering faith are far-reaching. Vacillating trust can lead us to make wrong decisions. Sometimes, after praying for direction, we might receive an answer that leads us to think, I can’t do that. So, instead of asking God to strengthen our faith, we make excuses. We may choose to postpone our obedience—even indefinitely—in order

    James 1:1-8 1 James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad: Greetings. 2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 5 But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. Faith is the heart of our Christian life. It is the m

Hebrews 12:25-29  25 See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven. 26 And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, YET ONCE MORE I WILL SHAKE NOT ONLY THE EARTH, BUT ALSO THE HEAVEN." 27 This expression, Yet once more," denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; 29 for our God is a consuming fire. Television news is often filled with interviews and images of people who have suffered some unimaginable tragedy. One day we’re shown tornado survivors whose homes were torn apart by powerful winds. Another day we may see massive floods sweepi