Are You Ready To Meet Jesus?

SCRRIPTURE

Romans 8:22-25 (NRSV)

We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.


ADVENT DEVOTION

Advent means, "To come..." I love the imagery of a pregnant woman waiting to labor and meet her new baby. During pregnancy, you wait with great expectation. You can't wait to see the little one growing inside of you--or inside of the one whom you love. You sense signs of the impending birth--a kick here, a poke there. You begin to plan for the coming of the child, setting up the nursery, choosing names, or buying carseats. Your every minute is consummed with dreaming of the little one that will soon enter the Earth, as a gift from heaven.

Now, let's translate that into the second coming of Christ in glory. Are we waiting with the same glad anticipation? Are we excited to see him face to face? Do we notice the signs that the time is drawing near? Have we begun to plan to welcome him in glory? Is our every thought consummed with the soon coming of our Great and Glorious King?

Advent allows us to slow down. To wait. To pray. To hope. To dream. To anticipate. And to welcome Jesus Christ into our homes, hearts, and plans for CHRISTmas! Although we do not know the exact date of His coming, we know that we can expect him soon.

Are you ready to meet Jesus?


PRAYER

Dear God, help me to anticipate the coming of your Son in glory! Amen.

NO-thing Can Separate Us!

SCRIPTURE

Romans 8:31-39 (NRSV)
It is God who justifies

What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us, will he not with him also give us everything else? Who will bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written,
"For your sake we are being killed all day long;
we are accounted as sheep to be slaughtered."

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

DEVOTION

Ah! Don't you feel a HALLELUJAH PRAISE spilling out of your heart when you read today's good news scripture passage!

Isn't it beyond wonderful that there is nothing that we can do to make God stop loving us and there is nothing that we can do to make God love us more?

I am so glad that God has chosen to take complete responsibility for the unconditional love part of our relationship! Although I sin and fall short of God's glory, God still loves me. Although I sin and fail to love God with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength, God still loves me. Although I sin and fail to love God's children, God still loves me.

I have found that I can't out sin, out fox, or out run the love of God revealed to me in Christ Jesus--and neither can you!

No matter where we go, God's love will meet us. No matter how much we fail, God's love will still sustain us in the hug and smile of God.

It is Jesus, who has chosen to love us--living, dying, and living again in victory, interceding always on our behalf, ever our friend and our brother!

Because Jesus lives, we can face all of our tomorrows secure in the promise that, "neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord"

HALLELUJAH!

INVITATION

If you have questions about how to become a friend and follower of Jesus, please see the devotion entitled, “Come to Jesus” @ http://bit.ly/JVhaLta

You Are Not Condemned!

SCRIPTURE



Romans 8:1-11 (NRSV)

Life in the Spirit

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God's law - indeed it cannot, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you.



DEVOTION

I can never read Romans 8 without tears streaming down my face. I have always been profoundly moved by Romans 8:1 which states, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!”

When we really get a hold of the meaning of this verse it is transformative!

So many of us spend the majority of our lives beating ourselves up over one mistake or another.

Our internal voice reprimands us time and again saying things like, “You really messed that one up. You never get things right. I knew that you couldn’t do it. No wonder she doesn’t love you. Nobody has ever cared about you. You’re a screw up.”

I would hazard to guess that if we could record and playback our daily internal conversation, most of us would be horrified to “hear” how we talk to ourselves.

We certainly wouldn’t verbally abuse anyone else like that; so why do we do it to ourselves?

Today’s scripture reading reminds us that when we are in Christ we are no longer condemned. Because God loves us so much that God gave Jesus to die on the cross to save us from our sin and gift us with eternal life, we have been set free from the law of sin and death.

When we became Christians, the Holy Spirit of God took up residence inside of our hearts. As a consequence, we are the inheritors of eternal life and peace.

My dear friends, I need to speak Truth into your life today.

You are somebody. You are full of love, joy, and peace. You are capable of accomplishing great things for your great God!

You are not an accident. You are not a mistake. You are fearfully and wonderfully made. You are extraordinarily beautiful and you are a beloved child of God.

Anything else you may have heard inside of yourself—or from others—is a lie from the pit of hell.

I pray that God will rebuke that lie out of your life right now in the Strong Name of Jesus Christ!

If you have been living with low self esteem and drowning in the quicksand of self-condemnation and doubt, today you are set free!

The Holy Spirit is alive and at work in your life, raising your self esteem, granting you life and peace, and speaking The Truth into your heart and mind—Jesus loves you this I know, for the Bible tells me so!

Won’t you please pray with me?

Holy God, I come to you battered and broken by my own fears and condemnation. I never really believed that I was worthy of your love, forgiveness, and salvation. Today I recognize that you do love me and that there is nothing that I can do to outrun, outfox, or out-sin the love that you revealed to me through Christ Jesus! Today, I am placing all of my hope in you. I believe that Jesus died on the cross and I believe that he rose again on the third day. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit and with your love, joy, peace, and eternal life. Please allow these blessings to overflow out of my life and into the lives of others. I pray this in Jesus’ Name, Amen.


SPECIAL NOTE

If you just prayed that prayer for the first time, today, you are saved! Let me encourage you to tell a Christian friend that you just put all of your hope in Jesus. Ask him or her to help you find a Bible that is easy for you to understand and to find a good Bible believing church where you can be baptized and make new friends who will walk with you on your Christian journey!

I would be honored if you would take a moment to click “YES” in the poll located in the upper right hand corner of this blog in answer to the question, “Did God save you today?”

Congratulations and Happy Re-birthday! Your salvation is our GOOD NEWS, please go and share this GOOD NEWS with others!

WE CAN CHANGE THE WORLD!

SCRIPTURE

Romans 8:9-11 (NRSV)
The Spirit dwells in you

But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you.

DEVOTION

Today’s Bible passage is something that I have been giving a lot of thought to lately! All week we have been talking about the power of the Holy Spirit. In each of the verses we have read, Spirit comes to empower, enable, and equip us to share the GOOD NEWS that God loves the world so much that God gave Jesus to die on the cross to save us from our sin and gift us with eternal life!

When people put all of their hope in Jesus, they are gifted with the presence of the Holy Spirit in their hearts. I don’t know about you, but this blows my mind! We know that God is Alpha and Omega. We know that God is Almighty, All-Powerful, All-Knowing and All-Supreme.

Yet, when we become Christians, God sends forth the Holy Spirit to dwell in our hearts. Spirit operates in so many ways offering wisdom, comfort, instruction, counsel, boldness, conviction, power, intercession and ultimately--abundant life!

It absolutely amazes me that God sends God’s Self into our hearts in order to give us the power that we need to live holy and righteous lives that bear witness to the GOOD NEWS that Jesus saves and He saves to the utmost!

Isn't it grand that we are not left alone to try to be “good Christians” all by ourselves? God’s Holy Spirit gives us all of the Gospel (aka, good news) that we need in order to fulfill the sum of the Law which is to love God with all our hearts, minds, souls, and strength and love our neighbors as ourselves.

But, can I tell the Truth and shame the devil? Sometimes, even with the Holy Spirit living inside of us, we allow our flesh to cause us to miss the mark, don't we?

When this happens, Spirit convicts us, and then encourages us, to fall into the Amazing Grace that is our love relationship with God, through Jesus Christ. As we confess our sin, with truly repentant hearts, God is faithful and just to forgive our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

I love Proverbs 24:16 which reminds us that although a righteous person may fall down multiple times, s/he always gets back up with the help of God!

Aren’t you happy-glad that God has done such marvelous things for us? God created us--and sustains us--and our Earth. Jesus died on the cross for our sins reconciling our relationship with God, forgiving our sin, and gifting us with eternal life. And the Holy Spirit equips, empowers, and enables us to share the GOOD NEWS until Jesus comes again to the Earth!

Oh Hallelujah! What wonderful GOOD NEWS!

Today’s scripture reading reminds us that when we put all of our hope in Jesus, the same spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, takes up residence inside of us. As a result, we are pulsing with miracle working resurrection power!

Nothing—inside of the will of God--shall be impossible for us, my friends! With the Holy Spirit working inside of us we are well able to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, house the homeless, visit the sick and imprisoned, care for the widows and orphans, be peace-makers, do justice, love mercy, walk humbly before God and faithfully proclaim the GOOD NEWS message thereby making disciples of all people!

If you have been living beneath your high calling as a possessor of the Holy Spirit, it is time to come up a little higher my friend! The very spirit of GOD ALMIGHTY is alive and at work within you!

No longer do you need to cower, afraid to share your good news testimony with others. No longer do you need to anxiously worry that your words won’t make a difference. No longer do you have to stand aside and watch as your family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors try to make it without Jesus in their lives!

No! No! No!

You CAN make a difference! The same Spirit that resurrected Jesus from the dead is at work in you! God is ready to use your hands, feet, mouth, heart, and brain to work miracles in the lives of the people around you! Together, with the help and the love of God, we can change the world!

Are you ready to get to work?

God, thank you for the power and presence of Holy Spirit at work inside of me! Please help me to hear and heed Spirit so that I might be helpful to Your Kingdom building work. I am amazed that the same Spirit that resurrected Jesus, is now working inside of me! I know that with your help, I am well able to share the GOOD NEWS message with everyone I meet. Please forgive me of my sin and fill me afresh with the Holy Spirit so that I can participate in changing the world with Your Love, one heart at a time! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.



ANNOUNCEMENTS

Congratulations to the people who have recently put all of their hope in Jesus! We celebrate your re-birth-day and promise to hold you in our prayers!

If you would like to put all of your hope in Jesus today, please visit my blog entitled, “Putting All Your Hope In Jesus” located at
http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com/2009/04/putting-all-your-hope-in-jesus.html

If you have additional questions about how to become a friend and follower of Jesus, please see the devotion entitled, "Come to Jesus"
http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com/2009/03/come-to-jesus.html

Pastor Yolanda is now publishing another blog entitled, “A Spoken WORD” in celebration of Holy Hip Hop, Gospel/Christian Rap and Spoken Word. Please check it out @ http://aspokenword.blogspot.com/

You are invited to follow Pastor Yolanda on Twitter www.twitter.com/PastorYolanda

Good News has now added a Prayer Ministry. http://www.kindlejoy.com/groups/goodnews

You are invited to leave comments or questions regarding today’s devotional. These comments are public.

EACH ONE--REACH ONE! To share GOOD NEWS with a friend please click the "Share With Friends" button to the right!

Thanks for reading and please come again. Pastor Yolanda extends a very special welcome to all of our friends reading outside of the United States of America! We are honored that you are sharing with us today.

From Pastor Yolanda's blog http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com

JUST AS I AM...

SCRIPTURE

Romans 8:1-8 (NRSV)

The Spirit is life and peace

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God's law - indeed it cannot, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

DEVOTION

I truly believe that when human beings get a-hold of a right understanding of this scripture it sets them free!

Specifically, it is Romans 8:1 that sets my heart to singing. It reads, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Wow! Isn’t that wonderful GOOD NEWS?! There is now no condemnation...

So, why is it that when non-Christians think of Christ, Christians, or the church, they immediately conjure images of condemnation?

My non-Christian friends say things like, “I can’t go to church, I don’t have anything to wear. I can’t go to church, people will talk about me. I can’t go to church, those folks are too judgmental. I can’t go to church, I’ll never measure up!” And here’s the saddest one, “I promise I’ll go to church, as soon as I get my life together…”

In all of these statements, I hear my non-Christian friends shouting out their fear of condemnation from God, or from God’s people.

I will be condemned because I don’t have modest attire. I will be condemned because people know that I am a sinner. I will be condemned because I don’t know how to be a Christian. I will be condemned because I’m not ready to let go of all of my idols and/or addictions.

My! My! This breaks my heart to no end…Especially because I also hear the whispers of my non-Christian friends’ hearts.

Their hearts are saying, “If only someone would love me for what is on the inside and not just what is on the outside. If only someone would accept me, despite my many faults and failures. If only someone would welcome me, although I am an outcast and a stranger. If only I could be saved from this life of darkness, doom, gloom, and despair!”

Oh! Doesn’t this break your heart? As I am writing, tears are streaming down my face because it makes me so sad to think of people who 1) do not know how much God loves them and 2) have not been loved well by God’s people here on the Earth!

The sum of the law is this, “Thou shalt love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength and love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:30-31)."

LOVE, my friends, is the greatest commandment. Yet, when our non-Christian friends think of the people in the church, they think “condemnation” rather than “love.”

Oh my! What terrible bad news! Jesus said, “He who is without sin, should cast the first stone (John 8:7)!” Who are we to stand in judgment of any human being? And yet we often do! Have mercy on us Jesus and please forgive us today!

Our judgmental spirits have barred the doors of the church to the very people who need You most. Our unwillingness to show unconditional love to all of Your children has poisoned the neighborhood well where people ought to be able to receive living water! Our self-righteous piety has been a terrible witness to those who need to know--and believe--that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God! There is none righteous, no not one!”

As Christians we have preached much Law, and very little Gospel! We have told our non-Christian friends all that they must do to be saved! But, we told a lie.

We told them that they would have to change the way they dress to be saved. Or amend the way they speak to be saved. Or alter their friendships and behaviors to be saved…

But, this is not Biblical my friends! The Bible says, “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, YOU ARE SAVED (Romans 10:9)!”

In my tradition we sing, “Just as I am without one plea, but that your blood was shed for me and that thou bidst me come to thee, O Lamb of God, I come, I come.”

My friends, we must allow people to come to Jesus “just as they are,” with the expectation that GOD will not allow them to stay that way! As they experience the GOOD NEWS that God loves them so much that God gave Jesus to die on the cross to save them from their sins and gift them with eternal life, they will be transformed! As mature Christians walk along side of them on the journey of life, they will learn new and holy ways of living in the Light of Jesus!

Sometimes, this transformation is instantaneous, but more often it is a slow and steady process of worship, Bible study, prayer, and fellowship with other believers.

But, who reading this blog today has already attained perfection? Not a one of us!

All of us are passionately pursuing perfection—day by day—and with the help of God!

This is the joy of the Gospel—or GOOD NEWS message—my friends!

It is GOD who does ALL OF THE WORK!

Yesterday, on Twitter, someone wrote, “The law is everything that God commands. The gospel is everything that God gives. God gives in the gospel everything God commands in the law (Johnny Helms).”

HALLELUJAH!!

GOD gives in the GOSPEL everything GOD commands in the law.

My friends, GOD loves. GOD gave. GOD saves. Salvation is entirely the work of God’s love for humanity!

If you are not a Christian, it is probably because you are under the mistaken notion that you need to do something to be saved. I want to apologize to you on behalf of all of us church folks who gave you that crazy idea.

You don’t have to do anything to be saved except put all of your hope in Jesus. You do this by saying with your mouth--and believing with all your heart--that God loves you, sent Jesus to die on the cross for you, and raised Jesus on the third day for you, all because God loves you so very much! When you put all of your hope in Jesus, you are saved!

Beloved, you are loved. You are accepted. You are welcomed. You are forgiven. You are saved!

Today, I want to welcome you into the family of God! Won’t you come in? God is waiting for you—RIGHT NOW—with outstretched arms. Just walk into the bear hug of Jesus!

Please pray with me…

Dear Lord, here I am! I come to you because I know you understand. I’ve tried so hard but I can’t change myself, that’s why I know I need your help…So here I am. You are my only hope. I know you love me. You proved it when you gave Jesus to die on the cross and resurrected him on the third day. Your love is so wonderful and Your grace is amazing! Please forgive me of my sin and fill my heart with your Holy Spirit. I want to become more like Jesus, day by day. I pray this in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

SPECIAL NOTE

If you just prayed that prayer for the first time, today, you are saved! I would be so honored if you would let me know about your decision by clicking “Yes” in the poll located at the top/right of today’s devotional! I am so happy for you! Happy Spiritual Re-Birth-Day!

Next steps: In response to what God did for you just now, let me suggest that you consider telling another Christian so that they can celebrate with you! Ask them to help you find a Bible that is easy for you to understand so that you can learn more about your new-found faith! Ask them to help you find a good Bible believing church where you can make new friends who will walk with you on your new journey! You are already saved; now let God mature you by faith! Congratulations!

PLEASE CONSIDER FORWARDING TODAY’S DEVOTION TO ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS WHO HAVE NOT YET PUT ALL OF THEIR HOPE IN JESUS!

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Congratulations to the people who have recently put all of their hope in Jesus! We celebrate your re-birth-day and promise to hold you in our prayers!

If you would like to put all of your hope in Jesus today, please visit my blog entitled, “Putting All Your Hope In Jesus” located at
http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com/2009/04/putting-all-your-hope-in-jesus.html

If you have additional questions about how to become a friend and follower of Jesus, please see the devotion entitled, "Come to Jesus"
http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com/2009/03/come-to-jesus.html

Pastor Yolanda is now publishing another blog entitled, “A Spoken WORD” in celebration of Holy Hip Hop, Gospel/Christian Rap and Spoken Word. Please check it out @ http://aspokenword.blogspot.com/

You are invited to follow Pastor Yolanda on Twitter www.twitter.com/PastorYolanda

Good News has now added a Prayer Ministry. http://www.kindlejoy.com/groups/goodnews

You are invited to leave comments or questions regarding today’s devotional. These comments are public.

EACH ONE--REACH ONE! To share GOOD NEWS with a friend please click the "Share With Friends" button to the right!

Thanks for reading and please come again. Pastor Yolanda extends a very special welcome to all of our friends reading outside of the United States of America! We are honored that you are sharing with us today.

From Pastor Yolanda's blog http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com