THE WATERFALL OF GRACE

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