The Ultimate

Interrelationships

-  Commentary

 
^Luk1:37“For nothing is impossible with God.”

- angel Gabriel talking with Mary about the birth of Christ,
 who was conceived in her by the Holy Spirit.

^Mar1:14 ..... Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. ¹⁵ ..... “The kingdom of God is near. Repent^4a and believe the good news!”

^Luk17:20 ..... “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, ²¹nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you.”
 

^Mat13:33 ..... “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
 

^Luk3:16“ ..... He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. ¹⁷His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” - John the Baptist speaking of Jesus
 

^Joh3:16“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

^1Joh4:10This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning^3a sacrifice for our sins.

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 ³⁶“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him.” - John the Baptist speaking about Jesus

 

 

^Joh5:28“ ..... a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his* voice ²⁹and come out—those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.”

    * Jesus'

^2The2:10 ..... They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. .....

  ¹² ..... all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.

 

^Mar12:28 ..... “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

 ²⁹“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: .....

³⁰'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' ” (Deu 6:4-5)

^Joh5:42“ ..... I know you. I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts. ..... ⁴⁴How can you believe if you ..... make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God?”

     

^Joh7:17“If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own.” -  Jesus

   

 

^Eph2:8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹not by works, so that no one can boast.

 

 

 
^1Tim1:14The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

 

^Luk5:31Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. ³²I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance^4b.”

 

^Act26:20“First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds.”

 

^Luk3:8“Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. ..... ⁹The axe is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” - John the Baptist

^Luk1:17“And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” - angel of the Lord speaking about John the Baptist

 

From the earliest Bible Study on Jesus Christ section, accessed from the lower left panel of the home screen, the two things at the core of what keeps people from believing in Jesus are hardness of heart and closing our eyes to the truth. Here John is softening people's hearts when he turns the hearts of the fathers to their children, as opposed to being absorbed in worldly things, and he opens their eyes to the truth when turning the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous. This turning to follow God's ways, loving people, is repenting.

^Act10:34Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism ³⁵but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right.”

 

^Act3:19Repent^4c, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, ²⁰and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus.

 

^Luk24:46 ..... “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, ⁴⁷and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”
 

Repentance and believing are inextricably linked. Inextricable: forming a maze or tangle from which it is impossible to get free, incapable of being disentangled or untied.  Hence: above - forgiveness of sins is tied to repentance              below - forgiveness of sins is tied to believing

  
^Act10:43“All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

^1Pet3:18For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit, .....
 

Christ could pay the penalty of death for our sins because he did not have to pay for His own, because he never sinned.

^1Joh2:1 ..... Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. ²He is the atoning^3b sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

 

^Rom3:23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption^6a that came by Christ Jesus. ²⁵God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. .....

^Eph1:7In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins [and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness Heb9:22], in accordance with the riches of God's grace ⁸that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.

 

 

^Act20:21“I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance^4d and have faith in our Lord Jesus.”

 

 

^Rom4:3What does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” (Gen 15:6)

 ⁴Now when a man works, his wages are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligation. ⁵However, to the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness. ⁶David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:

   ⁷“Blessed are they
        whose transgressions are forgiven,
        whose sins are covered.
   ⁸Blessed is the man
        whose sin the Lord will never count against him.” (Psa 32:1,2)

 ⁹ ..... We have been saying that Abraham's faith was credited to him as righteousness. ..... ¹¹ ..... he is the father of all who believe .....

 

 

God is holy. Our sins must be paid for, and that payment is death and separation from God, and punishment in the form of pain and torment. We can not work our way to salvation because our works are as filthy rags: 'All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.' (Isa64:6)   Note: Sinning is non-sustainable; it does not perpetuate life. Our 'righteous acts' do not make up for or cancel out our many sins. We must turn to God and believe in Christ, which means following Him, making changes toward becoming like Him, for real faith produces real change in the way we think, speak, and act. We can not do this on our own, but God's Spirit is in us and ' "nothing is impossible with God." ' (Luk1:37) Believe it, because:  ' "Everything is possible for him who believes." ' (Mar9:23) Note: Gen15:6 is the Scripture reference for both the above and below passages.

 

^Jam2:14What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? ¹⁵Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. ¹⁶If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? ¹⁷In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

 ¹⁸ ..... Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.

..... ²⁰You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? ²¹Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? ²²You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. ²³And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” (Gen 15:6) and he was called God's friend. ²⁴You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.

..... ²⁶As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.
 

^Act5:32“ ..... the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

^Gal3:11 ..... “The righteous will live by faith.” (Hab 2:4) .....

 ¹⁴ ..... by faith we ..... receive the promise of the Spirit.

It takes faith in Christ, trusting that His way is best, to turn from our sin. When we receive the Holy Spirit, we go from trying to follow God's commands, having limited success, to actually being able to do it, actually becoming righteous in our ways, though in the tests and trials, it still requires our effort, our unrelenting faith in Christ Jesus, which He helps us maintain.

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²²But the Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe.

 

Those who believe stand out from the rest of the world because their faith causes them to leave their sinful ways, and their love for God causes them to pursue becoming righteous, full of love toward others; so God cancels their debt of sin through Christ Jesus and puts His Spirit in them.   'God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.   If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.' (1Joh1:5-7)

 

^Rom3:21But now a righteousness from God ..... has been made known, .....

 ²²This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.
 

The Holy Spirit is this righteousness from God, who comes to live in us after we are cleansed from our sins through faith in Christ when we repent and set out to follow His teachings. The Holy Spirit helps and enables us to learn to actually live like Jesus, like God. With the Holy Spirit dwelling in us as we strive to live like Jesus, we have success, actually live righteously, love people.

^Joh6:63“The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing.”

^Joh3:6“Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.”

^Joh6:27“Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. ..... ”
 

 
 ²⁸Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”

 ²⁹Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”

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 ³³“For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

 
^Joh1:33“ 'The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.' ” - John the Baptist saying what God told Him about Jesus

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 ³⁵Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.”
 

^Mat5:6“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
                for they will be filled.”
 

We show that we are hungering and thirsting for righteousness by turning from our evil and sinful ways, (repenting), and actively living according to God's ways. This takes forcefulness to do, fighting to 'stand firm in the faith' (1Cor16:13), because we must resist the temptation to act on and gratify our worldly cravings and urges, passions, desires, and thoughts by putting our faith in Christ, believing His ways are superior and are true life, what will most fulfill and satisfy us, even though our worldly inclinations are strong and worldly pleasures are right in front of us, so easy to become fixated on.  You cannot want God in your life without wanting righteousness in your life, because God and His Spirit and Jesus are righteous and holy. You must 'hate what is evil; cling to what is good.' (Rom12:9), not delight in wickedness, wicked ways, for: 'All will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.' (2The2:12) 'Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.' (1Cor13:6)   Give it all you've got: ' "The good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it." ' (Luk16:16) ' "From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it." ' (Mat11:12)

 

^Joh7:37On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. ³⁸Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” ³⁹By this he meant the Spirit, .....
 

..... thirsty for righteousness. ' "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." ' (Mat5:6) Believing in Jesus means believing it when He said ' "I am the way and the truth and the life." ' (Joh14:6), that His way is THE way to live, the true best way, the way that makes you alive the best. This, of course, makes you His disciple, makes you want to be like Him.

^Joh4:14“but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

^Gal5:5But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. 

 

 

^Rom10:4Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.
 

^Gal3:26You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, ..... 

^Gal4:6Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts .....

^Rom8:12Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation—but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it.

¹³For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die;

When you receive the Spirit you can still decide not to live like God, not to obey His commands, you can still decide not to love the truth, to no longer believe and be living in Christ. You can decide not to allow God to lead you.

 

 but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live,

It is not enough to sense the Holy Spirit, you must follow His lead to be God's child. 'For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert. Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.' (1Cor10:1-5) 'Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe.' (Jud1:5-6) 'And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.' (Heb3:18-19) 'If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them.' (2Pet2:20-21)

 ¹⁴because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. ..... ¹⁶The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. ¹⁷ ..... we are ..... heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, ..... if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
 

^1Pet4:1Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. ²As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. ³For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery^2a, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. ..... ⁵But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.
 

^Jam1:12Blessed 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.
 

The crown of life is the Holy Spirit, 'by faith we ..... receive the promise of the Spirit.' (Gal3:14). Repenting, turning from our own ways to be obedient to God's ways, itself is a trial, as is resisting temptation. 'This is love for God: to obey his commands.' (1Joh5:3) Through the Spirit, God frees us from our bondage to sin, 'Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." ' (Joh14:34-36) 'Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.' (2Cor2:17) ' "The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing." ' (Joh6:63) Then we are free to love people with the love He fills us with, which is rewarding in many ways to the extreme. We also have the peace of God and joy in His presence, and God blesses us in so many ways. It is not possible to express in words the fullness and expansiveness of this life from God; it can only be experienced. There is another level, a higher level, of living that the world does not know, God's level, that can only be found through active faith in Jesus Christ. This level is truly mind blowing, far beyond what men can imagine.

 ¹³When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; ¹⁴but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. ¹⁵Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

^1Cor10:13No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

^Heb2:18Because he* himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

   * Christ

^Heb4:15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. ¹⁶Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
 

^Heb3:1Therefore ..... fix your thoughts on Jesus .....

 

^Heb4:14Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.

^Rom13:14 ..... clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.

 

 

^Rom14:23 ..... everything that does not come from faith is sin.

^Gal5:6 ..... The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

^1Cor13:6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

  ⁷It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

 ⁸Love never fails. .....

 

 

^1Cor16:14Do everything in love.

^1Tim1:4 ..... God's work—which is by faith. ⁵The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
 

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 ¹⁸ ..... fight the good fight, ¹⁹holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and so have shipwrecked their faith.
 

 

^Heb13:18Pray for us. We are sure that we have a clear conscience and desire to live honorably in every way.
 

^Heb9:14How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!
 

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 ²⁶ ..... But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself.
 

^Heb10:10 ..... we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
 

.....  ¹⁴ ..... by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
 

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 ²³Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.

^Heb13:12 ..... Jesus ..... suffered ..... to make the people holy through his own blood.
 

 

^1Pet2:21 ..... Christ suffered for you .....

  ²⁴He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.

Christ paid the price for our sins by his sacrificial death on the cross so that we can be cleansed of all guilt, forgiven, and have God's Holy Spirit living in us.  We can then die to our sin, be freed from its pull and live righteously, free to enjoy a life of love.

^Heb10:26If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, ²⁷but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.

^Phi3:18 ..... many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. ¹⁹Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.

 

^1Cor6:9Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders ¹⁰nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. ¹¹And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified^1a, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

 

^Eph5:3But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people.
 

Even a hint of these will do a lot of damage to the good God has for you to do.

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  ⁵For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
 

When we lust after women/girls we are being greedy because we want to have sexual relations with every attractive one we see, and we are idolizing sex by wanting it so badly, intensely.

  ⁶Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient.

^2Tim2:19 ..... God's solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are his,” (Num 16:5) and, “Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.”
 

 
^Act3:26“When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.” - speaking about Jesus

   

^Jam4:7Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ..... ¹⁰Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
 

We must put energy, effort, into living a life of love like Jesus, and not sinning; then through the help of the Spirit of God we will succeed. When we humble ourselves we admit that someone else knows what's best for us, God, and we submit to and obey Him. This is opposite to hardening our hearts towards our Creator, being indignant toward Him and stubbornly going our own way, doing our own thing, seeking pleasures and satisfaction our own way.

 
^1Pet5:8Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. ⁹Resist him, standing firm in the faith, .....

 

^Eph6:16 ..... take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
 

The arrows come in the form of trials and temptations, and persecutions. We simply believe that God will provide what is best for us while we continue to live according to His ways and do His will. This is childlike faith, ' "I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." ' (Mar10:15)

^1Pet1:6 ..... now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. ⁷These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. ⁸Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, ⁹for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

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 ¹⁰And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. ¹¹To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.
 

'For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.' (Eph2:8-9) God himself restores us, as we hold on to the faith He has given us, 'But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast.' (Heb3:6) and stand firm in it,   'Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.' (1Cor16:13) 'Stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.' (1Cor15:58)   Do what someone who trusts that God Almighty is on their side would do. Do His will amidst the fiery trials and temptations.

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  ¹² ..... this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it.
  

The grace of God is that he provides a way for us to become what he wants us to become, holy and righteous, loving and kind, full of faith. We go through trials, hardships, and sufferings in order for him to make us what he wants us to be ('Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. ..... God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.' (Heb12:7,10) ), and by His grace, his help, his involvement, we are sucesssful. And we would not even be in position to do any of this if it were not for the fact that He sent His own Son to die for, pay the price for, our sins, in order to restore our relationship with Him. More on: The Grace, Mercy and Compassion of God

^2Cor1:21Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. 

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 ²⁴ ..... it is by faith you stand firm.

 

^1Pet1:4 ..... you, ⁵who through faith are shielded by God's power .....
 

Again, 'Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.' (Jam2:17), 'The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.' (Gal5:6) Therefore when we turn from our selfish sinful ways and live a life of loving others, this shows that we love God, because this is what He does ...........

 

^1Cor8:3But the man who loves God is known by God.
 

'This is love for God: to obey his commands.' (1Joh5:3). These commands cause us to reject selfish harmful indulgences and behaviors so that we are free to love people, do good to them: 'And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.' (1Joh4:21)   'Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.' (Phi2:4) 'Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.' (1Cor10:24) 'For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.' (1Cor10:33)   ' "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." ' (Mar10:45)    'For Christ's love compels us, ..... he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.' (2Cor5:14-15)    ' "For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous        and his ears are attentive to their prayer." ' (Psa 34:12-16 OT) (1Pet3:12)

 

^2Joh1:6And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.

 

^Rom13:9The commandments, “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,” (Exo20:13-15,17; Deu5:17-19,21) and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Lev19:18) ¹⁰Love does no harm to its neighbor.

 

^1Cor7:19 ..... Keeping God's commands is what counts.

 

 ^1Joh5:3This is love for God: to obey his commands.

  And his commands are not burdensome, ⁴for everyone born of God overcomes the world.

  This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. ⁵Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

.....

 ¹³I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.

.....

 ¹⁸We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him.

back to keep yourselves in God's love Jud1:21

^1Joh2:14 .....

       you are strong,
       and the word of God lives in you,
       and you have overcome the evil one.

 ¹⁵Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. ¹⁶For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world. ¹⁷The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.

^2Cor4:18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

^2Cor5:7We live by faith, not by sight.

^2Cor5:16So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view.

^Mat5:28“But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. ²⁹If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.”

  

^2Pet2:14With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they are experts in greed—an accursed brood! ¹⁵They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved the wages of wickedness.

 

Lust is a greedy thing.

 

^Eph4:17 ..... you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. ¹⁸They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. ¹⁹Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.

 

'The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities�his eternal power and divine nature�have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools ..... Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator�who is forever praised. Amen. Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion. Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.' (Rom1:18-32)

 

..... ¹⁸by appealing to the lustful desires of sinful human nature, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error. ¹⁹They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity^5a—for a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him.
 

'Evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.' (2Tim3:13):   Promising freedom, but really it's slavery.

 

 ²⁰If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. ²¹It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them.

 ²²Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” (Pro 26:11) and, “A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud.”

^Jam4:4You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God?

Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.  

^3Joh1:11Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good.

          Anyone who does what is good is from God.

          Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God.

^1Joh3:29If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.

^Joh8:31To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. ³²Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
 

The Holy Spirit is the truth, ' "the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father" ' (Joh15:26), ' "But when he, the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth." ' (Joh16:13) 'Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. ..... As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.' (Jam2:17, 26)   ' "This is my command: Love each other." ' (Joh17:17) 'But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him.' (1Joh2:5) 'Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth.' (1Joh3:18)   True faith in Christ is shown by making every effort to obey His teachings, because we believe it when He said ' "I am the way and the truth and the life." ' (Joh14:6). By this same faith our sins are forgiven and we receive the Holy Spirit, who is the Truth, who gives us the power to be set free from the sins that bind us.   'You yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.' (1The4:9) 'If we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.' (1Joh4:12) 'God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.' (1Joh4:16) 'Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.' (Eph5:1-2)

  

 ^Joh14:

We obey, this is repentance, and receive God into our life.

 
 ¹⁵“If you love me, you will obey what I command.

 ¹⁶And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— ¹⁷the Spirit of truth. ..... you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. ..... ¹⁹Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. ²⁰On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.”
 

We obey, this is repentance, and receive God into our life.

 
 ²¹“Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me.

He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.”
 

We obey, this is repentance, and receive God into our life.

.....
 ²³Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching.

My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.

 ²⁴He who does not love me will not obey my teaching.”

 
 

If God has not come into your spirit, into your life, you have not really obeyed, loved, or put your faith in God; keep at it in earnest, ' "Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity." ' (Jer29:12-14)

 

.....

 ³⁴Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. ³⁵Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. ³⁶So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”
 

^2Cor2:17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
  

^1Tim6:12Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called .....  
 

.....

 ¹⁸Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. ¹⁹In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

^Act14:21 ..... they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, ²²strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.
 

^Heb12:7Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? ..... ⁹ ..... submit to the Father of our spirits and live! ¹⁰ ..... God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.
 

^Rev3:19“Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent^4e.” -  Jesus

 

^1Cor11:32 ..... we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned with the world.

 

^Heb5:8Although he was a son*, he learned obedience from what he suffered ⁹and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him .....

     * Jesus

Again, true believing produces action, obedience. 'For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.' (Rom8:29) As His brothers, we suffer many of the things He suffered, to learn obedience and be made perfect.

 

^Heb2:10In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God ..... should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering. ¹¹Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers.
 

If God used suffering to perfect Jesus, what's that tell us ??

^1Pet4:19So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.

 

^2Cor12:7To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. ⁸Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. ¹⁰That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

^2Cor11:29Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?

 

Our weaknesses help us be humble,     yet we must not give in to temptation, don't let yourself get involved in worldly sin; endure the hardship, the suffering, keep God's commandments through faith in Jesus Christ, and you will receive the prize: to be filled with God.

   

 

^2Tim2:3Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. ⁴No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer. ⁵Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules.
 

'Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. ..... God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.' (Heb12:7,10) It's hard to resist indulging in and fixating on worldly pursuits, passions, pleasures and behaviors, to resist following the cravings and desires, urges.     '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.' (Jam1:12) 'This is love for God: to obey his commands.   And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.' (1Joh5:3-5) The crown of life is the Holy Spirit, promised to those who overcome by faith in Jesus. ' "The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing." ' (Joh6:63) 'by faith we ..... receive the promise of the Spirit.' (Gal3:14)

 

^1Cor9:24Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
 

' "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it." ' (Mat7:13-14) 'Someone asked him, "Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?"    He said to them, "Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to." ' (Luk13:23-24)

 
 ²⁵Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. ..... ²⁷ ..... I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
 

Pride and sinful desires sometimes flare up after we do good things in God's service. Overcoming our sinful nature, denying ourselves, involves suffering and self-discipline. ' "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross [daily Luk9:23] and follow me." ' (Mar8:34)  "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." (Mat4:19) ' "Any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple." ' (Luk14:33)   'Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.' (Gal5:24) This is painful. Put your faith in Jesus Christ and you will succeed.

     

 ^Rom5:18I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.

^1Cor4:17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 

 

^Rom5:2 ..... we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. ³Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴perseverance, character; and character, hope. ⁵And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

 

 

^2Cor4:16Therefore we do not lose heart. .....

inwardly we are being renewed day by day.

 

 

^1The4:9 ..... you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other. ¹⁰ ..... Yet we urge you, brothers, to do so more and more.

 

 

^1Cor13:4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
 

Takes faith in Christ to do this.     'The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.' (Gal5:6)

 

^1Cor14:1Follow the way of love .....

 

^2Joh1:3Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father's Son, will be with us in truth and love. 
 

^Jam1:21 ..... get rid of all moral filth ..... and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

 ²²Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

^Joh12:47“As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. ⁴⁸There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day.”
 

Keep God's word in your heart, mind, and soul, so that you follow it, live by it, do it.     ' "For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say." ' (Joh12:49-50)

 

^Mat12:50“For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

^Luk8:21He replied, “My mother and brothers are those who hear God's word and put it into practice.”

.....

 ¹⁹My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, ²⁰for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.

^Mat5:22“But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.”

 ²³“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, ²⁴leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.”

^Eph4:29Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

.....

 ²⁶If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.
 

^Mat12:36“But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. ³⁷For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

^Jam3:2 ..... If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.

 ²⁷Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

^Heb10:35So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. ³⁶You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. ³⁷For in just a very little while,
 

  “He who is coming will come and will not delay.
    ³⁸But my righteous one will live by faith.
   And if he shrinks back,
       I will not be pleased with him.” (Hab 2:3,4)
 

  ³⁹But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.
 

 
^Eph6:23Peace to the brothers, and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. ²⁴Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love.

^Heb12:1 ..... let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. ²Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, .....
 

^Eph2:10For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

^Tit2:11For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. ¹²It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, ¹³while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, ¹⁴who gave himself for us to redeem^6b us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
 

The grace is that on the cross Christ paid the price for our sins, so that we may be forgiven, cleansed, and have God's Holy Spirit living inside us, enabling us to live a holy life of love. Once again, we see that we become pure in this life, eager to do what is good. When we are saved, we are saved from our sin, we are saved from sinning, set free to no longer be under the bondage of slavery to sin, so we can live true life, like God. 'Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." ' (Joh14:34-36)

 

^2Cor9:8And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

.....

 ¹⁰Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.

 ¹¹You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, .....

^Act15:8“God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, ..... ⁹ ..... he purified their hearts by faith.”
 

^Act26:17“ ' ..... I am sending you to them ¹⁸to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified^1b by faith in me.' ” -  Jesus speaking to Paul
 

^Joh8:12 ..... “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” -  Jesus

 

"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." (Mat4:19) To believe in Jesus is to turn from our worldly ways and follow Him (repentance), and to have Jesus and the Holy Spirit, life from God, daily guiding us into true living, true righteousness, true loving.

 

^Act2:38Peter replied, “Repent^4f and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

 

Repent                   and receive forgiveness of sins.                   Believe and receive forgiveness of sins. Repent and believe and receive forgiveness of sins. Faith and repentance are inextricably linked:     One cannot repent without believing,       Turning from our sin pleases God,     'And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.' (Heb11:6)       One has not truly believed until he has repented,      ' "If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own." ' (Joh7:17)

 

 

 

^Gal2:20“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
 

We give up our own worldly pursuits and follow Jesus, trusting this will lead to a better life for us. Crucifixtion is agonizingly painful, and so crucifying the flesh, putting the sinful nature to death, our desire to gratify sinful passions and cravings, urges and thoughts, and to indulge in sinful behaviors is nothing to take lightly. Some things will take everything you've got, all the forcefulness ' "The good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it." ' (Luk16:16) ' "From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it." ' (Mat11:12) you can put together, but with God's help, and only in this way, you will in fact overcome. Typically you can resist temptation a lot more than you think, just like you find out you can run a lot faster and farther than you think you can if you are being chased by an enraged wild bear. Living by faith requires repenting, dying to self, denying yourself, denying your sinful nature, serving and loving others. In that sense, therefore, I no longer live. As we do this God comes to live in us and does His will through us, because we are willing to do His will. ' "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross [daily Luk9:23] and follow me." ' (Mar8:34)   "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." (Mat4:19) ' "Any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple." ' (Luk14:33)

 

^Rom6:6For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with,

  that we should no longer be slaves to sin .....

.....

 ¹²Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.

  ¹³Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness,

 but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.
 

 
 ¹⁴For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.

^Rom6:16Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey—whether you are

  slaves to sin, which leads to death,

'Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.   Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever.      So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." ' (Joh14:34-36)

  or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?

 ¹⁷But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted.
 

 ¹⁸You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

¹⁹ ..... Just as you used to offer the parts of your body

in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness,

so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness.
 

.....

  ²²But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God,

 the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.

 ²³For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
 

back to finding out that Jesus and God are real Joh5:42

^Rom7:

 ⁵For when we were controlled by the sinful nature, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, so that we bore fruit for death.

 ⁶But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit .....
 

 

 

 

^Rom8:2

  ..... through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

 

As we receive more and more of the Holy Spirit, sin after sin that used to have a hold on us starts to no longer have a hold on us, losing its power over us, we are not bound by it.

 

 ³For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, ⁴in order that
 

 

the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us,

who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.

 ⁵Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires;

 but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.
 

Loving people, and saving them. 'Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.' (Phi4:8) The Spirit desires us to live a life of loving others, unselfishness, humility and gentleness, and He will give us large quantities of strength, joy, peace, inspiration as we follow Him.

 
⁶The mind of sinful man is death,

 but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;
 

So we must set our minds on doing God's will, being pure and loving others. Then the Spirit will have control and will enable us to succeed. Setting our minds on doing God's will:  this is the result of and what happens when we have true faith in Christ, this is what it means to believe in Jesus, this is real believing.   ' "I am the way and the truth and the life." ' (Joh14:6)

 ⁷the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. ⁸Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.

 ⁹You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit,

  if the Spirit of God lives in you.

 And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.

^2Cor13:5Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? ..... ⁸For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. ..... ¹¹ ..... Aim for perfection, ..... 
 

When we become Christians, we are forgiven our sins and become like Jesus through the power of the Holy Spirit. If you do not see yourself becoming like Jesus, you know that your faith is not real: 'Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. ..... As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.' (Jam2:17, 26) 'Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth.' (1Joh3:18)

 

 

^Rom2:29No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, .....

 

^Tit3:5 ..... He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, ⁶whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, .....
 

 ¹³ ..... from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying^1c work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. 
 

^Col1:21Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. ²²But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— ²³if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel.
 

^1Cor15:1Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. ²By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

^Heb3:6But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast.

^Eph3:14For this reason I kneel before the Father,

..... ¹⁶I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ¹⁷so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
 

This strengthening may come as a small still (yet forceful ' "the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing" ' (Mat11:12) ) voice (the Holy Spirit) that you must seek to listen to; He is very powerful.   'The LORD said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.         Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" ' (1Kin19:11-13)

 

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, ¹⁸may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, ¹⁹and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

 ²⁰Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,

[his incomparably great power for us who believe.  Eph1:19]
 

The Holy Spirit is this incomparably great power at work within us, astonishing!

  ²¹to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

 

^Col2:9For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, ¹⁰and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. ¹¹In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, ¹²having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.
 

^Col3:1Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. ²Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. .....
 

The Heavenly:  loving people and helping them get saved. The Heavenly: 'Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.' (Phi4:8)

 ⁵Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. ⁶Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. ⁷You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. ⁸But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: [bitterness Eph4:3], anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. ⁹Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices ¹⁰and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

.....

 ¹² ..... clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

^Mat6:14“For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

 

^Mat7:1“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. ²For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

 
^Jam5:9Don't grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!

^Luk6:37“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”

 

^Jam2:13 ..... judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!

 

^Mat5:7“Blessed are the merciful,
              for they will be shown mercy.”

^Luk6:36“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”

^Rom12:18If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

^Mat5:9“Blessed are the peacemakers,
                for they will be called sons of God.”

^1The5:15Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong [evil for evil  Rom12:17], but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.

^1Pet2:23When they hurled their insults at him*, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.

    * Christ

^1Cor4:12 ..... when we are persecuted, we endure it;

  ¹³when we are slandered, we answer kindly.

 

^1Pet2:19For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God. ..... ²¹To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.

  
"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." (Mat4:19)

^2Tim3:12In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,

 ¹³while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

^Phi1:29For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him, .....

 

^Rom12:14Bless those who persecute you; 

bless and do not curse.

 

^Mat5:10“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
                   for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

 ¹¹Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me*. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

 ^Luk6:22“Blessed are you when men hate you,
      when they exclude you and insult you
        and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man.”

 ²³“Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven.”

     * Christ
 
 

' "Everything is possible for him who believes." ' (Mar9:23)

 

^Mat5:44“But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. ..... ⁴⁸Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
 

Being perfect is about loving people.   ' "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell." ' (Mat10:28) And yet, 'God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.' (1Joh4:16-18)   If we love and therefore no longer need to fear God,           then we do not have to fear people.    'If God is for us, who can be against us? ..... Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written:    "For your sake we face death all day long;       we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." (Psa 44:22) No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.' (Rom8:31,35-39)

 
^Luk6:27“But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. ..... ³⁰Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.”

^Luk6:35“But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.”

^Mat5:39“But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. ⁴⁰And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. ⁴¹If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.”
 

An example of someone forcing you to go a mile might be when someone is very pushy about wanting you to do something for them that is a real inconvenience for you; do twice as much for them.

 
^2Cor11:20 ..... you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or pushes himself forward or slaps you in the face. ²¹To my shame I admit that we were too weak for that! 
 

^Eph6:10 ..... be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.

^Col1:11being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully ¹²giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. ¹³For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, ¹⁴in whom we have redemption^6c, the forgiveness of sins.

 
 
^Phi4:4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!

  ⁵Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
 
  

It takes real faith in Christ to always rejoice in the the Lord, and to be gentle to all. But we know the Lord is near, 'Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them.  And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.' (1Joh3:24) He watches over us closely, 'And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him.' (Rom8:28)

 

 
^1The5:13 ..... Live in peace with each other. ..... ¹⁴ ..... be patient with everyone.

^1Tim6:11 ..... pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. 

^2Cor3:18And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

^Col1:27 ..... God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

 ²⁸We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. ²⁹To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.
 

 

^Act1:8“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses ..... ” -  Jesus
 

The following is what people will witness from you: love:

^1The2:10You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. ¹¹For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, ¹²encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory.
 

Here is an example showing we can actually live holy, righteous, and blameless, because others have done it in the past. This passage shows that living in this way is done by living a life of love for others. When we go and make disciples, we do it gently in love.

 

^Mat28:18Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” - after Jesus' resurrection from the dead
 

A giant test of our faith; if we believe all authority in heaven and earth has been given to Christ, why then would we be afraid to proclaim and teach everyone the gospel ?? 'Perfect love drives out fear.' (1Joh4:18)

 

^1Tim2:3 ..... God our Savior, ⁴who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. ⁵For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, ⁶who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time.

^Act4:12“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
 

No one else has come down from heaven, someone who does not sin, God actually, to pay the penalty for our sins for us by dying; a painful death.

^Joh20:21Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” ²²And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”
 

Jesus received the Holy Spirit before he was sent out into public ministry; and so do we. 'When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased." ..... Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry. ..... Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him.' (Luk3:21-22, 4:1-2, 14-15) 'Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. ..... "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!" '  (Mar1:14-15)

 

 

^Act20:26“Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. ²⁷For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.”

 

^Col4:5Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ⁶Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

 

We are gracious, regarding others as better and more important than ourselves, kind and gentle, patient, merciful, non-judgmental and non-condemning, and forgiving, but at the same time remind people of the true righteous and holy ways of God that we must follow, and  to believe in Jesus (make the most of every opportunity).

 

 

^1Cor15:58 ..... stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

 

^1Tim4:12 ..... set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.

..... 

 ¹⁵Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. ¹⁶Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.

 

 

^Rom12:11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.

 

^Act5:20“ ..... tell the people the full message of this new life.”

.....
 ⁴²Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.

 

 

^1Cor16:13Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.

 

'Perfect love drives out fear.' (1Joh4:18)

  

^2Cor4:13It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” (Psa 116:10) With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, .....
 

Real faith comes out by telling others about salvation through Jesus Christ: 'The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.' (Gal5:6)  and ' "Love your neighbor as yourself." ' (Lev19:18 OT) (Rom13:9)   If we love people we will want them to get saved and talk with them about it, pray for them, and do this on an ongoing basis out of earnest concern, with gentleness and respect.

 

 

^Mat10:32“Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. ³³But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.” - Jesus
  

^Act4:31 ..... And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

 

^2Tim1:7For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

 ⁸So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, ..... join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, ⁹who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace.

^Rom1:16I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: ..... ¹⁷For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” (Hab 2:4)
 
 

 

^2Cor2:14But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. ¹⁵For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. ¹⁶To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. .....

 

^2Cor3:12 ..... we are very bold.                      

 

^2Cor4:2 ..... by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. .....

^1Pet3:15 ..... But do this with gentleness and respect, ¹⁶keeping a clear conscience, .....

^2Tim2:24And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. ²⁵Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance^4g leading them to a knowledge of the truth, ²⁶and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will.

 

^2Cor10:1By the meekness and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you .....

 

^Tit3:2 ..... show true humility toward all men.
 
 

Being humble helps us love people:   'Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.' (Phi2:3)   'Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.' (Eph5:21)

 

 ³At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures.

 

 

^Eph2:1As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, ²in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 

 ³All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.

 

^2Pet3:9The Lord ..... is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 

..... ¹⁵Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, .....

^Rom2:4 ..... the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, ..... God's kindness leads you toward repentance .....

 

^Phm1:9 ..... I appeal to you on the basis of love.

 

^2Cor4:5For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. 

 ⁶For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” (Gen 1:3) made his light shine in our hearts .....
 

 
 ⁷But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

^1Cor4:20For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.

^1Cor2:4My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, ⁵so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.
 

This demonstration is not always a profound physical miracle, but just as much the love and purity and faith coming out of us, the things we say and do exuding from the power of a transformed life, affecting everyone around; it is not of this world, and people can sense this, sense the power of God.

^2Cor13:3 ..... Christ is speaking through me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. ⁴For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God's power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God's power we will live with him to serve you.
  

The power of serving, not beating people over the head with the Bible, but gently and respectfully admonishing, demonstrating genuine friendship and concern, being humble, that is, considering others better than ourselves and being submissive. It takes power to deny ourselves,  ' "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross [daily Luk9:23] and follow me." ' (Mar8:34) "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." (Mat4:19) ' "Any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple." ' (Luk14:33)   and help meet the needs of others, 'Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.' (Phi2:4) 'Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.' (1Cor10:24) 'For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.' (1Cor10:33)   ' "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." ' (Mar10:45)     'For Christ's love compels us, ..... he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.' (2Cor5:14-15)    People will recognize that something is different, see God in you, see this demonstration of the Spirit's power: loving and serving. ' "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." ' (Joh13:35)     Just because you feel weak, that is not necessarily a problem keeping you from serving the Lord! It may be the plan: 'To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.' (2Cor12:7-10) 'Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?' (2Cor11:29)

 

 

 

^Phm1:5 ..... I hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints. ⁶I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.

 

 

^1The2:2We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in spite of strong opposition. .....

 ⁴ ..... We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts.

^Eph6:19Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.
 

.....

 ⁶ ..... As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, ⁷but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children. ⁸We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.
 

Again, the power of love. Genuine friendship. Those in leadership positions sometimes use their power to dominate and burden. A true believer would not do this, but rather, as a result of being taught by God and acting out his faith serves in humility, gentleness, and respect. This shows God to people, this is powerful. 'You yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.' (1The4:9)

 
 ⁹Surely you remember, brothers, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you.

^Act20:34“You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions.

 ³⁵In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' ”

^2Cor12:15So I will very gladly spend for you everything I have and expend myself as well.

 

^1Joh2:10Whoever loves his brother lives in the light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble.
 

When we live lives of love, we live to serve and assist others, 'Serve one another in love.' (Gal5:13)    ' "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." ' (Mar10:45)        God comes and lives inside our hearts.     'God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.   If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.' (1Joh1:5-7)  and 'God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.' (1Joh4:16)      When this happens we no longer pursue selfish sinful cravings. 'So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.' (Gal5:16)   'Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.' (1Joh4:7) In order to love, in order to be with God, we must give up our selfish sinful ways, we must turn away from them, repent, and trust our lives to God. This is true believing. And then this is what we become:

^Mat5:14“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house [Luk11:33...,that those who come in may see the light]. ¹⁶In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
 

The world is so lost, so not seeking Jesus: it needs all the help it can get. We must love and serve people, pray for them to find Jesus, find the true God.

 

^Joh13:34“A new command I give you: Love one another.

 As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
 

'This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?' (1Joh3:16-17) Seems impossible for us to think of loving others the way Christ loved us, His love, the love of God, being so perfect and pure, and yet, ' "Everything is possible for him who believes." ' (Mar9:23),  ' "For nothing is impossible with God." ' (Luk1:37), and the believer is with God. How much more then, what He commands us to do, what to Him is so important.   'You yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.' (1The4:9) 'But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him.' (1Joh2:5) 'If we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.' (1Joh4:12)

 

  ³⁵By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
 
 

 
^Joh17:22“I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: ²³I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” -  Jesus praying to God the Father about believers
 

To think that we can have the same unity the Father and Son have! Therefore, people know that God is in our midst because there is no other way we could love each other like we do, and live in such complete harmony.

^1Pet3:8 ..... all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble.

 

^Mat13:31 ..... “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. ³²Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.”

 

 
^2Cor5:17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! ¹⁸All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ ..... ²¹God made him who had no sin to be sin for us [OR, be a sin offering], so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
 

^1Cor6:19 ..... your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you .....
 
 

  
^2Cor6:4 ..... as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses; ⁵in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; ⁶in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love; ⁷in truthful speech and in the power of God; with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left; .....
 

The Holy Spirit can do amazing things through us: To be able to do all the above, and much of it simultaneously, loving and doing God's work in spite of the hardships, is walking on water. Here we see people actually living and becoming the righteousness of God. God wants to get a lot out of us, use us to do a lot. He is shrewd and tough: ' "I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow." ' (Luk19:22), and He can do it, ' "For nothing is impossible with God." ' (Luk1:37) Believe: ' "Everything is possible for him who believes." ' (Mar9:23)

 

 

^2Cor10:4The weapons we fight with ..... have divine power to demolish strongholds. ⁵We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

 

^2Cor6:16 ..... For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.” (Lev 26:12; Jer 32:38; Eze 37:27)

   ¹⁷“Therefore come out from them
           and be separate, says the Lord.
        Touch no unclean thing,
           and I will receive you.” (Isa 52:11; Eze 20:34,41)
   ¹⁸“I will be a Father to you,
           and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” (2Sam 7:14; 7:8)
   

 
^2Cor7:1Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.
 

And so again, we must make the effort, every effort, to be holy, coming out from worldly lifestyles; this is repenting, the result of true believing, and then God will receive us, forgive us through Christ's sacrifice for our sins, and live in us by His Spirit. We become His temple.

 
^1Tim4:7 ..... train yourself to be godly.
 

 

 
^1Cor6:13 ..... The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. .....

¹⁷But he who unites himself with the Lord is one with him in spirit.

 ¹⁸Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. ¹⁹Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; ²⁰you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

^Rom12:1 ..... offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. 

^Heb12:28 ..... since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, ²⁹for our “God is a consuming fire.” (Deu 4:24)

 

 

^Heb12:16See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. ¹⁷Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears.

Don't give up what you have with God to lust after a woman.

^1Tim5:1 ..... Treat ..... ² ..... younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.

Don't lust after a single one, rather, love them as you would your sister.    ' "Everything is possible for him who believes." ' (Mar9:23)

 

^1The4:3It is God's will that you should be sanctified^1d: that you should avoid sexual immorality; ⁴that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, ⁵not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God; ..... ⁷For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. ⁸Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.
 

^Gal5:16So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.
 

.....

 ¹⁹The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery^2b; ²⁰idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions ²¹and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

 ²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. ²⁴Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.
 

^Luk14:33 ..... “any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”
 

This includes all our desires, urges, and cravings to gratify our sinful passions, pleasures, and thoughts, and to indulge in worldly behaviors; not dwelling on these things or living them out. This is what it takes to live a life of loving and serving others.

^Mat13:44“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.”

^Phi3:7But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.

 I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ ⁹and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.
 

'By faith we ..... receive the promise of the Spirit.' (Gal3:14) The Holy Spirit is this righteousness from God, through whom we become sanctified over time, actually living righteously in pure love as we learn to be more and more willing to go God's way.

 

^Phi3:10I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ¹¹and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

^Phi1:21For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

 

^Act20:24“..... I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.”

 

^1Cor10:33 ..... For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

 

^Cor5:14For Christ's love compels us, ..... ¹⁵ ..... he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.

^Mar8:34 ..... “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross [daily Luk9:23] and follow me. ³⁵For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. ³⁶What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul [very self Luk9:25]? ³⁷Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?”
 

 
^Joh12:25“The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.”
 

This refers to loving the things worldliness has to offer: lust and debauchery, drugs and alcohol, money and luxury, power and status, conceit and selfish ambition, deceit and falsehood, anger and malice, hatred and slander, complaining and devisiveness, etc....

 
^Luk14:26“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple.”
 

What we hate is the sin in all of us, wrongdoing, how messed up we are, the messed up things we all do and the bad ways in which we often interact with each other and treat each other, the harm we do to ourselves and others.

 

^Heb11:24By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter. ²⁵He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. ²⁶He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. ²⁷By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible.
 

'Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.' (Num12:3)     Humility is being submissive and counting others better and more important than ourselves; in this case that other is God.

 

 

 

^Mat6:24“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”

 

^Luk12:33“Sell your possessions and give to the poor.”

 

^Luk19:8But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”  -  Zacchaeus was a wealthy chief tax collector

 ⁹Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. ¹⁰For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”
 

True salvation comes when you truly repent.   Zacchaeus truly repented, therefore it changed his actions. This showed he believed in God, just as Abraham did when he went to sacrifice Isaac (Jam2:21, Gen15). His heart change was real because it changed his life.     'Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth.' (1Joh3:18)   'Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? ..... For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth' (2Cor13:5-8)     Turning to God, Zacchaeus changed from serving self to loving others. 'But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him.' (1Joh2:5) 'Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.' (Eph5:1-2)   How you act shows how you believe.

 

^Luk16:10“Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. ¹¹So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?” 
  

True riches  =  the Holy Spirit.     Having God in and with us in all the things we think and feel and do and say, experiencing His presence and insights, His thoughts and ideas and feelings, His continual newness and creativity, the atmosphere(s), ambiance(s), and all the inspirations that come from being around Him, all the things that are inexpressibly fantastic, marvelous and good, the strength and energy, joy and peace, becoming complete in His love, and bearing much fruit in the Kingdom.

 

 

 

 

 ^Mat7:13“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. ¹⁴But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
 

By all means, go all out in your faith; this is really the only way to do it because: ' "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"  "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: ..... 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' " ' (Deu6:4-5 OT) (Mar12:28-30)   God gets what he wants, he is shrewd and tough: ' "I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow." ' (Luk19:22). Err on the side of without question doing right according to God's written Word! God wants people who love Him with everything they've got, and in the end you can be certain that's what He will have.

 

 

^Mat7:21“Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
 

God can tell by what you do whether you really believe in Him, love Him. These are inextricably linked together, though sometimes you must obey by brute force, trust him by brute force, and the faith that makes it easy and the love will come along, from God and from the effects or fruit of obedience, soon thereafter.       ' "The good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it." ' (Luk16:16) ' "From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it." ' (Mat11:12)       This is the grace of God; he puts us through the trials to discipline us, to make us holy, 'Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. ..... God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.' (Heb12:7,10) and then after we have suffered a little while restores us and makes us strong, firm, and steadfast. Fight, 'stand firm in the faith.' (1Cor16:13):  'And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen. ..... this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it.' (1Pet5:10-12)   God makes us strong by permeating us with His presence; divine inspiration.   ' "For the joy of the Lord is your strength." ' (Neh8:10) " 'You have made known to me the paths of life;       you will fill me with joy in your presence.' "          (Psa 16:8-11OT) (Act2:28)   - King David speaking of Jesus talking to God the Father

 

^Luk6:46“Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say? ⁴⁷I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. ⁴⁸He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. ⁴⁹But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”

 

^Luk13:23Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?”

   He said to them, ²⁴“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.”

 

Making every effort requires forcefulness. ' "As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man." ' (Mat24:37-39) ' "However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" ' (Luk18:7) Beware the teaching that 'believers' who have no fruit are saved but just 'not living in the blessings', as if you can decide to keep some of your sins in trade for having to lose some of God's blessings. The gospel of God does not teach this. It is non-sense; it may make sense according to human reasoning, but God thinks in a different way, operates on a higher plane, accomplishing His perfect will through us, 'his good, pleasing and perfect will.' (Rom12:2), ' "For nothing is impossible with God." ' (Luk1:37)  Do you believe this?

^Mat11:12“From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.”

 

^Mar10:15“I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”

 

^Luk16:16“ ..... the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it.”

^Rev1:5 ..... To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, ⁶and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen.
  

^Rev2:1“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:

      These are the words of him who ..... walks among the seven golden lampstands*: ²I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. ³You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. ⁴Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. ⁵Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent^4h and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. ⁶But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. ⁷ ..... To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.”

    * the words are Jesus', and the lampstands are the churches
 

.....

 ¹¹“ ..... He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death.”

.....

 ¹⁷“ ..... To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.”

.....

 ²⁶“To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— 

 ²⁷'He will rule them with an iron scepter;
       he will dash them to pieces like pottery' (Psa 2:9)

— just as I have received authority from my Father. ²⁸I will also give him the morning star.”

^Rev3:1“To the angel of the church in Sardis write:

      ..... I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. ²Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. ³Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent⁴ⁱ. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you. ⁴Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. ⁵He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.”
 

.....

 ¹²“Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name.”
 

 ²⁰“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. ²¹To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.”
  

^Rev15:2And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and over the number of his name. They ..... ³ ..... sang the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb:

   “Great and marvelous are your deeds,
        Lord God Almighty.
     Just and true are your ways,
        King of the ages.
    ⁴Who will not fear you, O Lord,
        and bring glory to your name?
     For you alone are holy.
     All nations will come
        and worship before you,
     for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

^Rev19:6Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:

   “Hallelujah!
        For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
   ⁷Let us rejoice and be glad
        and give him glory!
     For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
        and his bride has made herself ready.
   ⁸Fine linen, bright and clean,
        was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)
 

 ⁹Then the angel said to me, “Write: 'Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!' ” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”

 ¹⁰“ ..... hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

^Rev21:1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. ²I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. ³And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ⁴He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

 ⁵He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

 ⁶He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.”

 “To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life.”
 

 ⁷“He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son.”
 

 ⁸“But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

.....

 ²²I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. ²³The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. ²⁴The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. ²⁵On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. ²⁶The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. ²⁷Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.
 

^Rev22:3No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. ⁴They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. ⁵ ..... And they will reign for ever and ever.

^Rev22:10Then he told me, “..... the time is near. ¹¹Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who is vile continue to be vile; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy.” - angel speaking to John
 

 
 ¹²“Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. ¹³I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”

^1Cor4:4 ..... It is the Lord who judges me. ⁵ ..... the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.

^Heb4:13Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

^Rev2:23“ ..... I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.” -  Jesus

 

' "I the LORD search the heart         and examine the mind,         to reward a man according to his conduct,         according to what his deeds deserve." ' (Jer17:10)

 

^2Cor5:11Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. .....

^Luk6:31“Do to others as you would have them do to you.”

^Rom13:9 ..... “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Lev 19:18)

 

^2Cor5:10For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
 

 ¹⁴“Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. ¹⁵Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.”
 

 
 
 ¹⁶“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. ..... ”

¹⁷ ..... Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.
 

^Rom12:2Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

.....

 ⁹ ..... Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.
 

But about the Son he* says,    “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever,         and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom.     You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;         therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions         by anointing you with the oil of joy.” (Psa 45:6,7 OT) (Heb1:8-9)    * God

.....

 ²¹Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
 

Again, there are things we must do to have real faith in God: We overcome by faith.

 

 

 

^Mat13:40“As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. ⁴¹The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. ⁴²They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. ⁴³Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. ..... ”
 

^Rev20:10And the devil ..... was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
 

This is the real place also referred to as hell.

  
 ¹¹Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. ¹²And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. ¹³The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. ¹⁴Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. ¹⁵If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

  

People in the book of life act right, the evidence of faith. Trusting their life to God, they are willing to be obedient to His commands and be transformed to become like Him. Regarding the city where God lives:     'Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.' (Rev21:27)     At the end of the day,                             real faith produces real actions.     We can be judged as to whether we had faith by looking at how we lived our lives, 'Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. ..... As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.' (Jam2:17, 26) 'I will show you my faith by what I do.' (Jam2:!8)      'What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?  Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?  In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.' (Jam2:14-17)   When we repent and believe in Jesus, and the Holy Spirit comes to live in us, we go do good and loving things. These are the proof that we really repented and believed.

 

^Gal6:7Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.

  ⁸The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction;

the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
 

Those who allow themselves, force themselves,     ' "The good news of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it." ' (Luk16:16) ' "From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it." ' (Mat11:12)     to be led by the Spirit, to follow the leadership of the Spirit, reap eternal life:     'But if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.' (Rom8:13-14)            You can experience the Spirit, Christ, the presence of God, His care and love, but elect to not follow Him, which ultimately leads to condemnation:   'For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert. Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.' (1Cor10:1-5)   'Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe.' (Jud1:5-6)   'And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.' (Heb3:18-19)   'If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them.' (2Pet2:20-21)     ' "He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire." ' (Luk3:16-17)

  

 
 ⁹Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. ¹⁰Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
 

 
^2The3:13 ..... never tire of doing what is right.

^Rom1:4 ..... Jesus Christ our Lord. ⁵Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.

^Rom2:6God “will give to each person according to what he has done.” (Psa 62:12; Pro 24:12) ⁷To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. ⁸But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.
 

^2The1:3We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. ⁴Therefore, among God's churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.

^Jam1:2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. ⁴Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 

 ⁵All this is evidence that God's judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. ⁶God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you ⁷and give relief to you who are troubled ..... ⁸He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. ⁹They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord .....

..... ¹¹With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith.

^Heb6:7Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of God. ⁸But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned.

 ⁹Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are confident of better things in your case—things that accompany salvation. ¹⁰God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. ¹¹We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. ¹²We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.
 

^Heb3:12See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. ¹³But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. ¹⁴We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first. ¹⁵As has just been said:
 

 
 
   “Today, if you hear his voice,
        do not harden your hearts
     as you did in the rebellion.” (Psa 95:7,8)

  ¹⁶Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? ¹⁷And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert? ¹⁸And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? ¹⁹So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.
 

^Heb4:1Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. ²For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith. ³Now we who have believed enter that rest, .....

..... ⁹There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; ¹⁰for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. ¹¹Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience.
 

^1Cor10:1For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. ²They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. ³They all ate the same spiritual food ⁴and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. ⁵Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.

 ⁶Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. ⁷Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry.” (Exo 32:6) ⁸We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did—and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. ⁹We should not test the Lord, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes. ¹⁰And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel.

 ¹¹These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.
 
 

^Jud1:5Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe. ⁶And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day. ⁷In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire.
  
 

 ¹⁴Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied ..... : “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones ¹⁵to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” ¹⁶These men are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires .....
  
 

 

^2Tim3:4 ..... lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— ⁵having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.