Act 17:28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being.
The Lord is the very source of our lives. We breathe because He first breathed life into us. The very essence of our lives , our existence, depended upon and depends upon God, whether men know this or not. He holds it all together. Not only is He the creator but He is the very fabric of all that exists. We move because He created these bodies and we think because God created our minds. This is the universal truth of all men whether they care to acknowledge it or not.
Now the twice born man is very different from the once born man. He no longer lives, in the sense that he merely exists. It is now Christ that lives in Him. He is a new creation in Christ and is a son of the living God. The Father and the Son have taken up residence in Him by the power of the Holy Spirit. So his life is now supernatural. Yes he exists, he lives, but its no longer he but Christ in him. This body of the saint that was once only a vehicle for the soul of man, is now the residence of the most High God. The life that he now lives is maintained and sustained by faith.
To move in God is to walk in the manifest presence of the Lord. In the natural, to move means to go from one place to another. In the supernatural, to move in God is to draw deeper into the heart of the Father. And from that place comes power, and so we can move in the power of God. We can move in the love of God. We can move in forgiveness and grace and discernment. Like the natural man, when the spiritual man moves, he is moving from one place to another. It is part of his spiritual journey home, from precept to precept. Ever closer, ever deeper.
Our being is our very existence. Every human being exists in time and space. Yet the man or woman who is born again now exists not only in time and space, but in the Kingdom of God that was and is and is to come. When we have our being in Him by virtue of the new birth we live and move and have our being in the Kingdom of God. We breathe rarified air. Our atmosphere is different from the rest of humanity. We breath in the poison of the world and we breath out life. In the place of darkness we bring life from the light of God like spiritual photosynthesis.
Brothers and sister, let us reckon this to be so as we live and move in this world. Know who you are and know your place in this world. You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Pet 2:9)
Archive for the ‘the gospel’ Category
In Him is everything.
Posted by appolus on May 19, 2021
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church of scotland, Daily devotional, Devotions, Jesus, revival, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, the state of the church | 1 Comment »
One in Spirit and in victory.
Posted by appolus on May 14, 2021
Col 2:15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
When we suffer for His sake brothers and sisters and rejoice in the midst of it, then we disarm principalities and powers. We “prove,” to that old ancient liar that this is exactly what he is and we do it all by the indwelling power of the risen Christ. He has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and a sound mind. His perfect love demonstrated through us casts out all fear and makes a public spectacle of principalities and powers.
It diametrically opposes the powers that be who lie and would have us believe that force must be met with force, that evil must be rendered for evil for good to triumph. Jesus overcame them on the cross and He cried out to His Father to forgive His enemies. The first martyr Stephen cries out even as He was being cruelly stoned, that this would not be held against the ones stoning Him. This is the power of God that breaks ancient chains of evil and establishes the witness of Christ to the world and to the principalities and powers.
You have been called to this brothers and sisters and it is a high and noble calling. It is a calling that requires our old man and woman to die. For in the flesh we are no different from anyone else in the world. We would simply be frail creatures who could laugh only when the going is good, who could be happy only in the midst of prosperous circumstances and who could praise God only as long as He “blesses” us. Yet in this higher ground that we have been called to, we praise God not only from the mountaintops but from the lowest valley’s. We praise God whether we walk as free men on this earth or chained with fetters of iron.
We praise God for better or for worse. We praise God in sickness and in health, we praise God whether rich or poor. We who love our spouses know that this is our commitment we make to them, we who love God know that His calling is on another level altogether. The marriage of the flesh is one thing and it is noble, the marriage of the Spirit is high and lifted up and it is holy. We are one flesh in our marriages. We are one spirit in Jesus. When we walk according to that spirit we walk in power and in love and with a perfect peace that triumphs over principalities and powers for all the world to see. Your light is the life that draws the world to Jesus.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church of scotland, Daily devotional, Devotions, revival, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
And we shall bear fruit.
Posted by appolus on May 12, 2021
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church of england, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, healing, Ignited Church, inspirational, Jesus, new wineskins, revival, Spiritual warfare, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church | 3 Comments »
Diotrephes rules and reigns.
Posted by appolus on May 8, 2021
Once the clergy/laity distinction is removed the concept of ministry changes. It ceases to be the proprietary right of the few and becomes the privilege of all. ( Arthur Wallis.)
This point made by Wallis is the beating heart of religion. The clergy/laity system is a perpetuation of the ancient religions and is a death blow to a royal priesthood. Imagine a system where is everyone is a priest in a spiritual priesthood set up by Jesus Himself. It is a shame that for the most part we have to imagine that. One thing is for sure, where this clergy/laity system exists, there is no functioning priesthood. One may say there is and fool oneself, but where the clergy/laity exists then the royal priesthood has been reduced to a mere mental assent to an abstract truth.
It is one or the other for it cannot be both. Men want to lead or be led, most want to be led. They want a mediator between them and God and there are plenty of men willing to play that role. The rewards of the role are status and power. There is hierarchy and talk of authority and submission. Yet the leadership model of the priesthood is a bottom up servant leadership where one washes the feet of the others.
Diotrephes rejected the Apostle John. Think about that. The Apostle that Jesus loved was rejected by a “leader,” and why? He loved the preeminence. He wanted to be the leader, he was jealous of any other voice. This is absolute evidence that Jesus was not preeminent in the church that Diotrephes “ran.” How often we ask the question “who runs your church.” If the answer is anything other than Jesus, if 95% of the time only one man speaks, you can be sure the spirit of Diotrephes roams the corridors of power in that place. Jesus has been dethroned and is now as unwanted as the Apostle John was. The question is, how welcome would the Apostle John be in your gathering?
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church of scotland, False Doctrine, False Prophet, Jesus, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, the remnant, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Learning to be content.
Posted by appolus on May 7, 2021
Php 4:11 Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.
The question is, are you content? I would argue that the whole world is looking for contentment. I certainly thought when I became a Christian that the Church would be packed full of contented people, you can imagine my disappointment. It seemed to me that most folk that I met in the church were very much like the world when it came to contentment. The world makes every mistake possible while attempting to achieve contentment, yet so do many Christians. Many people in the world believe that contentment comes through material possessions and good personal relationships. While these things are nice, they could never possibly bring the deep kind of contentment that Paul is talking about.
Now some good Christian folk would argue that your personal relationship with Jesus brings you the kind of contentment Paul is speaking about in this particular Scripture, it’s simply not true but it makes it possible. In fact only through Jesus is it possible, but He aint doing it for you. Paul had to learn to be content. It was not a question of his relationship with Jesus, rather it was a question of enduring and overcoming as he walked through fire and flood. There are choices to be made as we move along the narrow path of life. We choose to endure. We choose to give thanks. We overcome much as Jesus did in the garden when He submits His will to the Father’s.
The key word I would argue in understanding this is “learned.” He had learned to be content, there was no magic wand. No one came along and laid hands on him and suddenly he was full of contentment. Paul, time and again had to walk through the fire and continue to praise God. We see in another Scripture that we are admonished not to be anxious at all but to pray and give thanks and make supplication to God and if we did that, something supernatural would happen, a supernatural peace that passes all understanding would actually stand guard over our hearts.
Can you praise God today in spite of your circumstances? If you learn to do this, if you walk through the fire with your hands held high, trusting in God, you will come to the place that Paul came to. You will discover that peace and contentment will have nothing to do with your circumstances, which are ever-changing, but have everything to do with praising and trusting in God who is never-changing. Choose to praise the Lord in the lower reaches of the dungeon, and you will learn to be content.
Posted in church, church of scotland, Daily devotional, Devotions, discernment, gifts of the spirit, hope, inspirational, New World Order, pentecostal, revival, spiritual growth, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
The glory and the majesty!
Posted by appolus on May 6, 2021
One day the Lord will rend the heavens and His glory will flow down the mountains and fill every valley with His majesty. The seas will flee away at His presence. The mountains will humbly bow and say ” Glory , glory to the risen King.” The sun will turn its face away in shame for it has been outdone by the brilliance of His illumination. A mere flickering candle in comparison to His unadulterated light. The moon and the stars will cry out ” Holy, Holy is He who was and is and forever shall be.”
And every voice from every tongue will say “Jesus,” and acknowledge the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. And the beasts of the earth will fall down and cover their faces and then the lion will rise up and approach the lamb and they will lay down together. And every knee shall bow in every tribe and in every nation and even the hordes of hell will fall silent as He approaches. The earth itself will grow silent and shall be still and then a glorious noise will begin to arise and will fill the earth, it will fill the sea it will fill the night skies and it will fill the whole universe.
And all that will be heard will be the choirs of angels, that heavenly choir and the glory of God will not only cover the earth but will fill up everything that there is or has ever been. Gods saints will rise on this glorious symphony, they will arise in the updrafts of His glory and majesty and it will carry them into the heart of God. And those who rejected this magnificent glory will fall and their cries will be heard as they fall into the depths of darkness forever.
Posted in christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Christianity, church of scotland, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, God's voice, hope, intimacy, Jesus, new wineskins, pentecostal, poetry, prophecy, revival, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, The presence of God, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
Rejecting the Nicolations.
Posted by appolus on May 6, 2021
Luther did not invent a new doctrine when he announced that we are saved by grace through faith and not of works. He rediscovered it and presented it to a church that had long ago forgotten this most fundamental and vital aspect of what it means to be saved. This most basic fundamental truth was lost in religiosity and liturgy many centuries before. The clergy had robbed the laity. Century after century Christendom slowly drifted away, each generation losing something from the previous generation until they were totally adrift from the Truth. Once they were totally adrift from the truth then with every passing century the errors solidified and grew in strength. Walls like Jericho rose up and stood, formidable.
Then comes Luther and as he hammered that nail into the door, the whole of Christendom shook. A bloody revolution then ensued as the clergy, keepers of the error and the status quo, fought with all of their might against this upstart priest of no account who was challenging their religion and their liturgy. I believe a similar revolution would have to take place today in order to rediscover the truths of 1 Cor 14 and how we interact in gatherings. The sign gifts and their purpose of edifying the saints and the unsaved and the unlearned have fallen into disuse and have been forgotten. God help this starving and dying generation. If we do not have eyes to see then we cannot be fed. The walls of Jericho were rebuilt after the reformation. Brick upon brick, stone upon stone, error upon error.
We need to rediscover, once again, the fundamental truths of our faith as it is plainly written in the Scriptures. Who has dared to bypass or take away from the Holy Word of God? Do they not know that they shall be removed from the book of life? The walls of religion and the devastating clergy/laity divide need to come down. And if they will not then the saints need to abandon those strongholds. We need a mass exodus from behind those walls. We need to allow God Himself to be a wall of fire around us. Dear saint, you must follow the fire by night and the cloud by day and not the doctrines of the Nicolations. You cannot be immersed in the culture of religion, which is a mere reflection of the prevailing culture around us, and serve God at the same time.
Posted in Christian, Christianity, church of scotland, False Prophets, False Prophets and Teachers, false teachers, healing ministry, hope, intimacy, Jesus, pentecostal, revival, spiritual gifts, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
Provision versus work.
Posted by appolus on May 4, 2021
There is a great gulf between our perception of provision and what we think of when think of work. The Lord makes provision for His children. Does He have expectations? Yes. Yet, the context of duty must be in light of a proper understanding of His provision. As in all things, the Lord is interested in why we do a thing rather than what we do. Two identical actions, with different motivations, can be to one a blessing and light, and to another a curse and darkness. Let me try and illustrate.
I grew up in what is known as a tenement. It was a large Victorian stone building. My American friends would call it an apartment building or block but to me that seems much to modern a name for something rather dark and foreboding as a tenement building. Thick damp stone walls. Big families crammed into tiny one or two bedroom apartments, some only having one room, we would call that a “single end.” They were cold and drafty and full of mice, often times there would be mushrooms growing out of the walls. Outside toilets meant “pots,” under the bed. Old metal baths pulled out on a Sunday night for bathing. Now, that was when I grew up, imagine what it was like one hundred and fifty years before that?
Imagine living like that for generations and then making your way across a vast ocean and finding yourself in the new world. Now imagine that you find out that you can get 160 acres, for free! You could homestead. The deal you would make is that you would work the land. You would cut down trees, remove stumps, remove all stones,till the land, plant the seed, tend the fields, bring in the harvest. Store the harvest and sell what you could in town after having made provision for your family.
If that was me in those days, you would wonder what that singing was, even when the weather was terrible. It would be me, as I chopped down tree and dug up stumps. It would be me as I tilled the land. And every day I would be in wonder of how I came upon such good fortune. I would remember where I came from often. I would remember that I had been delivered from drudgery and poverty. My work would be a joy as I kept in mind where I came from. In that sense it would not be work at all, it would all be provision.
Now consider the lazy un-thankful man. Would you hear him singing in the field? Would he be angrily carrying out his “work?” Would he be constantly complaining about the nature of his work, the weather and his aching bones? In all, the homestead act in America would offer 500 million acres of land. Only 80 million acres were ever taken and of those who did take it, in many areas the failure rate was as high as 60% Now of course there would be multiple factors in the failures, but in the end it was, for many, simply too hard.
The saints of God do not fail. They know where they came from and they never forget. They know they were dead in their sins. They know they were bound and captive to them. They know that countless generations before them died in their sin. They know they have been delivered. They know how good their God is. And so, even on the hardest days, through the toughest trials, it’s all provision for the saint. He has been given this new life and no matter what, he knows it. None of it is “work,’ to the saint, rather it is a labor of love. Your life itself is a labor of love as unto God, your redeemer.
What spirit do you have saint? Is your life a labor of love? Even when it rains, even when it snows, even when the stumps are refusing to yield as you labor to remove them? It is good to remind ourselves often of just what we were delivered from and who delivered us and gave us what we have now. Glory to God in the highest. He gives good things to His children and He knows how to train them and raise them for His will and His own good pleasure. Everything becomes a good thing when we see that it is all God’s provision.
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church, church of scotland, Daily devotional, Devotions, faith, God's love, inspirational, Jesus, revival, Spiritual warfare, Spirituality, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, The Psalms, the remnant, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
This kind of love
Posted by appolus on May 3, 2021
This is the kind of love that would wait for a thousand years The kind of love that would fill an ocean with tears The kind of love that was birthed in heavenly places The kind of love that shines upon a thousand faces. This is the kind of love that would die for you instead The kind of love that was crucified and bled The kind of love that redeems you from all wrong The kind of love that loved you all along This is the kind of love that will never let you go The kind of love that never says I told you so The kind of love that keeps no record of wrongs The kind of love that the birds sing in their songs This is the kind of love that never seeks its own The kind of love that never leaves you alone The kind of love that forever seeks your best The kind of love that gives your weary soul some rest This is the kind of love that for you was crucified The kind of love that was broken, beaten and died The kind of love that did all of this for you The kind of love that covers like the morning dew This is the kind of love that never ever fails The kind of love that would prove itself by nails The kind of love that is crowned by a crown of thorns The kind of love that will weather all of your storms And in the end it is love that shall remain It opened every door and has broken every chain That you may live for all the world to see That as a child of God the Son has set you free This kind of love sets my heart aflame This kind of love heals the blind and the lame This kind of love means you shall never be the same It is time to fall in love.
Posted in Christian poetry, Christianity, church of scotland, Daily devotional, Devotions, god, God's love, healing, hope, inspirational, Jesus, new wineskins, poetry, revival, spiritual poetry, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, The Psalms, the remnant, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
The kind of love that yields
Posted by appolus on May 3, 2021
Posted in christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church, church of scotland, Daily devotional, Devotions, healing, hope, inspirational, intimacy, Jesus, new wineskins, pentecostal, revival, spiritual gifts, spiritual growth, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, The Psalms, the remnant, The State of the Chuch and Manifest presence, the state of the church, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
The plateau of peace.
Posted by appolus on May 2, 2021
Recall the conception that you had of holiness before you stood, by the grace of God, where you stand today. It was the conception of a breathless standing on a pinnacle for a second at a time but never with thought of being able to live there. Yet when the Holy Spirit brought you there, you found it was not a pinnacle but a plateau, a broad way, where the provision of strength and peace comes all the time, a much easier place to live that lower down.
The security of the position into which God brings His saints is such that the life is maintained without ecstasy. There is no place for ecstasy and manifestations in a normal healthy spiritual life. The emotions that are beyond the control of the will are a sign that there is something not in the secure position, something undisciplined, untrained. (Oswald Chambers-Biblical ethics)
Brother Oswald just said a lot. And it would be worth just re-reading it a few times to see where he is coming from. It is in the context of the will and what part the will plays in our lives. If the emotions rule the will, or over-rule the will then there is a problem. Emotions are wonderful things and I fully embrace them. Yet, more often that not, they are like the waves of the sea driven by winds that we cannot see. The ocean becomes broiling and heaving and destruction is never far from hand in the midst of this kind of sea.
So brother Oswald contrasts a pinnacle to a plateau. A plateau or a Mesa. A mesa is an isolated flat topped elevation or ridge which is bounded from all sides by steep hills or rock faces and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. It stands above the plain. It is not so high as a pinnacle, but it is still high enough to separate it from its surroundings while still in the midst of its surrounding. You cannot last long on a pinnacle but you can live on the broad plain flats of an elevated plateau.
Jesus is our plateau. When our eyes are upon Jesus then we are elevated above the noise and the din and the waves of the roiling sea. Peter discovered that it was not good enough for Jesus do walk upon the water, to be elevated above the storm just for a moment, we were born from above to occupy the high ground. And our focus on Jesus is the answer. Consider these things from Scriptures that describe Jesus. He is our High Tower. He is our Rock and our Fortress. These are all places of deliverance. The righteous run into these places and they are safe.
Can you say that you live above the fray of your emotions? What wind drives you? The gales of insecurity and fears? The hurricane force winds of disaster and persecution and loss? Or are you driven by the wind of the Holy Spirit? Do you stand upon the plateau, the broad place that elevates you above the storms of the plains below? You will notice that Chambers is talking about the way that our lives are “maintained.” The everyday life. He is not denying that people have emotions or that even men and woman can have ecstatic moments in their lives, but he describe them as pinnacles as opposed to plateaus.
The Lord Himself said in John 14 that He would not leave us as orphans but rather He would send us the Holy Spirit. He begins the chapter by addressing the troubles that we would undoubtedly face in our lives. “Let not you hearts be troubled.” And again in verse 27 He says ” Let not your hearts be troubled, neither be afraid.,” because “my peace I give unto you, not as the world does.” Jesus gives us His peace. His peace is our plateau. It is quite apart from anything the world has to offer and it is very much apart from the troubles of this world.
If you find yourself without this peace brothers and sisters, then look up. Look up into Jesus. Come away with Him above the troubles of this world. He has prepared a place for us, not just in eternity, but now, it is the plateau of peace. It takes discipline and obedience and trust to climb the high walls that lead to this place. It is not for the faint of heart and it is not for the nominal Christian, whatever that means. The will, your will, must yield to His will and you must trust Jesus implicitly.
Every foothold is a victory. Every ledge is a place of rest. Looking up and not looking down is a must. Who will find themselves scaling these heights? Who among us will master their emotions by the power that the Lord has given us? When we come to this place we will find that the emotions have found their proper place. The broad place of God’s peace that surpasses all understanding gives us standing on a firm foundation, on the Rock, upon the mighty fortress of our God. High atop the high tower in the midst of the plains for all the world to see. In it, but not of it. This is our place saints, this is our place, this is His peace. Journey on my fellow pilgrims.
Posted in Christian, christian living, Christianity, church of scotland, discernment, God's love, healing, inspirational, intimacy, Jesus, new wineskins, revival, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
In the beginning.
Posted by appolus on April 30, 2021
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.(Joh 1:1-5)
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All praise to God, the Word was made flesh. The love of God, the wisdom of God, the power of God, the mercy of God, the glory of God, the plan of God, the long suffering of God. All of this and much more manifested in the Word made flesh. The very representation of the God-head, manifested in the Son of God and walking among us. God commanded that light would shine out of darkness, and so into the darkness of our world stepped the Word of God made flesh, Jesus. Life, overcoming death. In death He would bring forth life. Out of the darkness of Calvary, the greatest darkness ever known, shone the greatest light ever known. The culmination of the sin of man was overcome by the one without sin. This great light than shone out of the darkness of Calvary is the life of men. Men may be dead in their sin but the light that shines in the darkness brings life to those who are dead. This is the work of the Lord and it is a marvel to behold. In Him is life and those who know Him walk in the newness of that life and it dwells within them. This light beckons to those who are dead in the darkness of their sin to come to Him and let His light shine upon them. Man will do one of two things, he will run to it or he will run from it. Those who run to it are consumed by it. It overwhelms them and transforms them and fills them with unspeakable glory. They have penetrated and have been penetrated by impenetrable light. The glory of God and the redemption of man, purified as His own special people. |
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church of scotland, Daily devotional, Devotions, new wineskins, religion, revival, spiritual gifts, spiritual growth, Spiritual warfare, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, The Psalms, the remnant, theology, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
The boy with the broken wing.
Posted by appolus on April 26, 2021
It has been almost seven years now since our grandson was taken from his mother and given to our family. He was a very broken child when he came to us. Have you ever tried to help a bird with a broken wing? It panics and is freaked out as it sees you hand approach. It cannot possibly know that you are driven by love and compassion until your hand closes tightly, not too tightly, around him and he is safe in your hand. This was what it was like when Mason first came to us as a little five year old. The power of the Lord is felt in the power of His love. His ability and patience to take that which is broken, and heal it, is truly supernatural. Here is a wee poem I wrote about that.
The boy with the broken wing.
You were a bird with a broken wing A nightingale that could not sing A frightened broken bird that had no choice Little bird, who has stolen you voice .....I hear your cries. Can't you see, can't you understand Come to me, there is healing in my hand I will hold you and never let you go, until your wing is healed and love begins to flow You may have broken this little birds wing Yet you will hear this little bird sing Love has put him back together And he will now be whole...forever A beautiful bird that love has made whole You only ever took from him and stole But he has risen with the morning sun and now he sings And flies for all the world to see with two beautiful wings I see you flying son and I can hear you sing And to the depths of my heart it is such a beautiful thing Touched by the Hand of God and made complete Now fly where eagles fly and sing your songs so sweet.
Posted in bible, Charisma Magazine, christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Christianity, church of scotland, Devotions, gifts of the spirit, God's love, healing, intimacy, Jesus, poetry, revival, spiritual gifts, spiritual poetry, Spirituality, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, the remnant, Uncategorized | 5 Comments »
Glorified obedience
Posted by appolus on April 26, 2021
1Jn 2:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
Imagine you are crossing a great river. The world is on one side and you are headed toward the other side, the heavenly side. Each time you are obedient, each time you turn your back on sin, another stepping stone appears before you and you move forward towards your goal. One step at a time on the road to glory. It is by obedience that we make forward progress towards a deeper walk with the Lord and we overcome.
Now, there are two main categories of obedience. One is a legalistic obedience and the other is glorified obedience. Brokenness, submission, surrender and love must be the building blocks of our obedience. If we simply try to be obedient without first taking these steps, revealed to us through the word and the Holy Spirit, we will discover that there is an obedience that binds us in chains and the weight of these chains will drag us down and drown us. Yet, obedience born out of love and a desire to please the one that we love frees us and fulfills us and propels us on.
Glorified obedience, one motivated by love and awe of a righteous holy God and a revelation of Calvary is like the watering of a tree. There can be no fruit produced unless that tree is watered by the living waters of obedience. Striving to be obedient without the fruits of brokenness will lead to a desert landscape in which nothing can live. The motivations of our heart, the seat of our affections that sets our eyes upon Jesus and the Holiness of God takes us from glory to glory.
Posted in bible, Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church of scotland, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, healing, intimacy, Jesus, religion, religious, revival, sanctification, spiritual growth, Spirituality, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, the remnant, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
The deadly virus.
Posted by appolus on April 23, 2021
Posted in bible, Charisma Magazine, Choo Thomas, Christian, christian blog, Christianity, church, church of scotland, churches, consequences of sin, deception, end times, God's voice, healing, inspirational, intimacy, new wineskins, pentecostal, religious, revival, Spirituality, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the remnant, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »
Miracles, a by-product of His glory
Posted by appolus on April 21, 2021
Posted in christian blog, christian living, Christianity, church of scotland, churches, Daily devotional, Devotions, God's love, inspirational, Jesus, new wineskins, revival, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, the remnant, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
Freedom in our chains.
Posted by appolus on April 20, 2021
To be chained in Christ Is to be free indeed Free to die and free to bleed Free to walk the pilgrim way Free to die to self each day
To be lost in Christ
Is to be found
To feel His presence all around
To plunge into the Father’s love
To walk with Him with grace from above
To be dead in Christ
Is to truly live
To truly love and to forgive
To live this life and so much more
To honor, worship and adore
To live in Christ
Is to surely die
To walk with Him who dwells on high
Alive to Christ and dead to sin
Gloriously filled from deep within
To reign with Christ
Is to surely serve
A testimony to preserve
Of the glorious King who reigns on high
Whose glory fills the earth and sky
To walk with Christ
Is to surely run
To know the journey’s just begun
To run and run and never tire
To soar with wings and ever higher
To dwell with Christ
Is to surely roam
We’ll never settle till we’re home
Pilgrim saints along the way
Ever closer every day
The paradoxes that we find
In Christ alone renews the mind
The way that seems so right to man
Is opposite to our God’s plan
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Christianity, church of scotland, Devotions, God's love, God's voice, healing, inspirational, intimacy, Jesus, new wineskins, poetry, praise and worship, revival, spiritual growth, spiritual poetry, Spiritual warfare, Spirituality, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the remnant, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
When He speaks.
Posted by appolus on April 19, 2021
Posted in bible, christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Christianity, church of scotland, Daily devotional, Devotions, healing, hope, intimacy, Jesus, new wineskins, pentecostal, religious, revival, spiritual gifts, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the remnant, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
He who walks upon the sea of tears.
Posted by appolus on April 18, 2021
A poem for all the people who grew up in less than perfect households . He who walks upon the sea of tears. I am fragile I can be broken Broken by the words spoken Can't you see your words are clawing me apart? Can't you see how you're crushing my heart? How my heart longed to hear warm words spoken To be warm and whole and not to be broken Why didn't you just reach out and touch me? And cover me and hold me in love. The broken child in you Now breaks the child that you can see Two broken children collide Only wanting to be free I am fragile I can be broken Broken by the words left unspoken And this brokenness is now a void in me That is deeper and wider than the deepest sea What can fix a broken heart? And fill this vast expanse in me What can fill an endless void? That's deeper than the deepest sea So many tears, enough to fill an ocean Shed by all the children, broken A Saviour comes and walks upon this sea of tears He calms the stormy sea and quells the fears I have come to mend the broken heart To heal the wounds where you were torn apart I have come to set the captive free To dry up every tear that fills the deepest sea I hold the universe in the palm of my hand I cause the blind to see and the lame to stand And all the stars in the heavens, I know them all by name And I will touch you and you shall never be the same The words I speak they are life and they are love I know every sparrow that falls from above I created the sun and the moon and the pouring rain I still the stormy seas and I take away the pain Come and bring your emptiness to me And I will fill you with a love that's deeper than the sea Come all you that are broken and contrite And I will heal you and set you free this night And so I came and took my Saviour's hand Out of the pit on the solid Rock I stand A broken heart replaced and reconciled Standing whole and new, I am my Father's child And every word spoken, they are life to me Your love and Your kindness, they have set me free And by thy Spirit my eternity is sealed And by thy love my broken heart was healed.
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Christianity, church, church of scotland, Devotions, God's love, God's voice, healing ministry, inspirational, intimacy, Jesus, manifest presence, new wineskins, pentecostal, poetry, religious, revival, spiritual growth, spiritual poetry, Spirituality, testimony, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, the persectuted church, The presence of God, The Psalms, the remnant, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »
That Still, Small Voice.
Posted by appolus on April 18, 2021
There is a voice that penetrates the veil, that pierces the darkness of my flesh and my mind. It is amazing how something so still and so gentle, can be heard above all the noise. In a storm it is almost impossible to hear anything, as the mind is tossed by wave after wave of thoughts that comes crashing down. Then suddenly through it all, through the darkness of the storm, comes a piercing shaft of light that illuminates a treacherous sea. Life and light has penetrated darkness and death. The still small voice of God almighty says “peace be still,” and the wind ceases and suddenly there is great calm. Thank you Father for that still, small voice that rescues me.
Posted in Christian, christian blog, christian living, Christian poetry, Christianity, church of scotland, churches, God's love, God's voice, inspirational, intimacy, manifest presence, new wineskins, poetry, revival, spiritual poetry, the crucified life, the deeper life, the gospel, The Psalms, the remnant, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
A Call To The Remnant 