The Richness of His Love

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Eph 3:16-19 NIV)

How deep the love of God is in Christ Jesus! Until one can begin to grasp this love of God one cannot fathom how marvelous He is; how marvelous His love is!

May God grant that we should all know the fullness that comes with being reconciled to our Father in heaven through Jesus Christ, by the power of His Spirit!

God's Peace - Pr. J

Children of God

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children."  (Gal 4:4-5)

Children are an awesome blessing. They can be a lot of work, though. Our our attempts to bring them up in the way they should be going doesn't always work the way that we planned.

We have a Father in heaven. We have been adopted as His own children; redeemed by His only begotten Son to be His children. I have often wondered what God, my Father, thought when I really did stuff that were not in His plans. Does he get as frustrated as I do when the children I care for are straying? I am sure that He is not all that pleased when we do things to our neighbors' and our own detriment; when we do not love as He loves us. As children of God we try to please Him even as our own children try to please us. We all fall short. We don't always do what we ought to be doing. We don't and our children don't always do what is best for us and for the people around us. But, we keep on loving even as our heavenly Father loves us.

All who believe are the children of God. May He help us to follow in His Way.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Children Of God

"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children."                                                                                                               (Gal 4:4-5)

Children are an awesome blessing. They can be a lot of work, though. Our attempts to bring them up in the way they should be going doesn't always work the way that we planned.

We have a Father in heaven. We have been adopted as His own children; redeemed by His only begotten Son to be His children. I have often wondered what God, my Father, thought when I did stuff that were so opposite from His plans. Does he get as frustrated as I do when the children I care for are straying? I am sure that He is not all that pleased when we do things to our and our neighbors detriment; when we do not love as He loves us. As children of God we try to please Him even as our own children try to please us. We all fall short. We don't always do what we ought to be doing. We don't and our children don't. But, we keep on loving even as our heavenly Father loves us.

All who believe are the children of God. May He help us to follow in His Way.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Love That Surpasses Understanding

"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." (Eph 3:16-19 NIV)

Is not Paul's prayer for the Ephesians the same prayer that Christian parents around the world pray for their children and grandchildren? Is it not the same prayer that we pray for our neighbors and for all whom we love?

What greater gift could we ask for than that those whom we love should know the love that surpasses all knowledge and understanding? What greater gift is there than for all whom we love to be filled with the fullness of God?

May you be filled with the Spirit of Christ, that he might dwell in your hearts, establishing you; establishing your life, in the love and in the power of God. 

God's Peace - Pr. J

One Body

"There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." (Eph 4:4-6)

We may be many; yet, we are one in Christ. We are united in His Body as we abide in him and he in us. We, who are members of this Body of Christ have been called and equipped for service in order that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

Do you see what that means? Although our good works contributes nothing toward our salvation; we are called to serve the whole body according to the gifts that have been given to us as individuals for the edification and growth of the body of Christ, who is the Church, who is Jesus the Christ. (Eph 4:12-13)

We must all serve in unity, according to the will of God, with the mind of Christ, who is our head, in order for this maturity to happen. What I've witnessed all too often is that when one person tries to do it all nothing much gets accomplished. Too many frying pans in the fire at one time being handled by one person and something is liable to get left undone or burned. Many congregations and even denominations are like that. We equip only a few for service and growth. If there is any growth, is slow. 

Consider the times that you may have injured an arm or a leg, maybe you had a lung infection or other illness that affected one part of your body. Did that one member of your body not slow you down; maybe, even stop you from doing anything? 

We are all members of one body, meant to work in unity and unison so that the whole body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and knowledge and Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

So lets get with it and equip all of the saints! Train the members of the body so that together we might grow in Christ.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Jesus Is The One We Proclaim

He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. Col 1:28 NIV

Is he? Is Jesus the one we proclaim as the Christ? We cannot have any other gods. We cannot lift up anyone or anything else above him. As a church; as members of the Body of Christ, we can proclaim only Jesus as our savior. No one and nothing else can save us from ourselves or from any other power that comes to deceive and destroy us. Without the Messiah, we are lost.

It is only in Christ that we have real life. May God help us to teach and to learn with all due diligence and wisdom so that together we may fully mature in Christ.

Put away your teachings of false gods so that everyone may grow into the fullness of Christ.

God's Peace - Pr. J