Receiving the Real Stuff-God

How great a God is He who gives God! —AUGUSTINE

The Real God is the only One who can give Himself graciously and freely! 

Where would your life be if God withheld himself from you? What if you truly believed you were getting God and instead got a counterfeit? What if you were given ‘less than’ when you were simply and humbly asking for his help. Think of any aspect of God and how disappointed or disillusioned you would be if what you got was even partial. Take forgiveness for example-could you live with partial or fraudulent forgiveness? I don’t think so! God graciously gives Himself freely!

And how great a God who has within Himself inexhaustible Grace and absolutely loves to share it with any and all who ask him for it! By asking in simple faith they receive all that He is! They receive the Grace and Glory of adoption into the Father’s heart! Thus activating and living by/in the image and likeness of the One and Only True God!

“He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he (the) power to become the sons (and daughters) of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born (spoken/brought into existence; given a particular status or condition by birth; coming from a particular origin and having the qualities or character that represent that origin) not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”-JOHN 1: 11-14 (KJV)

 “Grace is God loving, God stooping, God coming to the rescue, God giving himself generously in and through Jesus Christ.” —JOHN STOTT 

His Grace is the inexhaustible origin, source and power of the lifestyle of all who believe upon His name! Grace upon Grace! We are not asking for help, ideas, suggestions, tools, input, technological savvy, paradigm shifts or new skill sets. That’s cool stuff; but it’s not enough. 

We (I) will not survive another second without the Great Shepherd, the Great Physician, and the Great High Priest! The Lord Jesus Christ; who is the Baptizer of Holy Spirit and Fire, the Only Begotten Son of God and is seated at the right hand of Heavenly Father in Overcoming Victory! Only in and through Him is what follows a moment by moment reality. It is not by our finally getting it right!

“We will be confident when we stand before the Lord, even if our hearts condemn us.” (The obvious question is; why and how?) (The obvious answer-for those who are more than just acquainted with Him) “God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.” —1 JOHN 3: 19-20 (NLT)

(Hey Guys) “Brethren, this means that through what the blood of Jesus communicates and represents, we are now welcome to access this ultimate place of sacred encounter with unashamed confidence. A brand new way of life has been introduced. Because of his flesh torn on the cross (our own flesh can no longer be a valid excuse to interrupt the expression of the life of our design).” 

“We have a High Priest in the house!  We are free to approach him with absolute confidence, fully persuaded in our hearts that nothing can any longer separate us from him. We are invited to draw near now! We are thoroughly cleansed, inside and out, with no trace of sin’s stains on our conscience or conduct. The sprinkled blood purges our inner thought-patterns; our bodies also are bathed in clean water.  (Our behavior bears witness to this.) Our conversation echoes his persuasion; his faithfulness backs his promises.”  (His integrity inspires our confession.)

(So Guys) “Let us also think of creative ways by which we can influence one another to find inspired expression in doing things that benefit others. Good actions give voice and volume to the love of God. In the light of our free access to the Father, let us extend that embrace to one another. 

Our gatherings are no longer a repetition of tradition but an essential fellowship where we remind one another of our true identity. Let us do so with greater urgency now the day has dawned in our understanding. (The prophetic shadow has been replaced by the light of day.”) Hebrews 10: 19-25, (The Mirror)

“Righteousness by faith realized means unlimited 1friendship with God; this is the ultimate conclusion of the Gospel. Jesus Christ is the legal authority (Lord) of our testimony. 1Peace is a place of unhindered enjoyment of friendship beyond guilt, suspicion, blame or inferiority.” (1The word, eirene, peace, to join, the “dove-tail” joint in carpentry. The Sabbath rest celebrates God’s unhindered enjoyment of man and our unhindered enjoyment of him!) 

(Now, right now!) “He has welcomed us with open arms and reinforced the fact that our access into this grace-gift is guaranteed by faith. We stand fully established in grace while we boldly rejoice in everything God’s opinion communicates and 1anticipates for us.  Our joyful boasting in him remains uninterrupted in times of trouble; we know that pressure reveals patience.”

“Tribulation doesn’t have what it takes to nullify what hope knows we’ve got! Patience 1proves legal tender; which buys more positive expectation.” (1dokimos, proof. Thayer Definition: scrutinized and accepted, particularly of coins and money.) 

“This kind of hope does not disappoint; the gift of the Holy Spirit completes our every expectation and ignites the love of God within us like an artesian well.”(Ekxeo, to pour out. The Holy Spirit is an outpouring not an in-pouring! See John 7:37-39, also Titus 3:6) God’s timing was absolutely perfect; humanity was at their weakest when Christ died their death. (We were bankrupt in our efforts to save ourselves.) 

“It is most unlikely that someone will die for another man, even if he is righteous; yet it is remotely possible that someone can brave such devotion that he would actually lay down his own life in an effort to save the life of an extraordinary good person.” 

(Guys: We Are the Light of the World! They can’t see The Gospel of Grace without us showing up for our part! Also, through us they are awakened to an insatiable taste for the Kingdom of Jesus!)

“Herein is the extremity of God’s love gift: mankind was rotten to the core when Christ died their death. If God could love us that much when we were ungodly and guilty, how much more are we free to realize his love now that we are declared innocent by his blood?” (God does not love us more now that we are reconciled to him; we are now free to realize how much he loved us all along!)

“Our hostility and indifference towards God did not reduce his love for us; he saw equal value in us when he exchanged the life of his Son for ours. Now that the act of reconciliation is complete, his life in us saves us from the gutter-most to the uttermost. Thus, our joyful boasting in God continues; Jesus Christ has made reconciliation a reality.” Romans 5, (The Mirror, editing and emphasis mine)

From this point forward our lifestyle is a mirror image of His Lifestyle! Receiving the real stuff and sharing the real stuff-Jesus! Ron Ross