alimaespa

I imagine heaven as a glorious place where we shall still worship and serve our Lord, without any fatigue, distress, persecution, or affliction. We will be morally like the Lord Jesus Christ, and our bodies will be free from the possibility of defilement, sin, sickness, sorrow, and death. The process of becoming like Jesus will have been completed and we shall see Him as He is - for to see Him is to be like Him. Therefore, when I think of spending eternity in heaven, I most definitely look forward to being with my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. And He shall reign, And He shall reign, And He shall reign, He shall reign, And He shall reign forever and ever King of kings, forever and ever, And lord of lords, hallelujah, hallelujah, And He shall reign forever and ever King of kings and lord of lords, King of kings and lord of lords, And He shall reign forever and ever Forever and ever, forever and ever (King of kings and lord of lords) Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah Hallelujah.

Jesus purifies and refines His church by sanctifying it – that is setting it apart. This process of sanctification is one of moral and spiritual preparation. The lives of the believers are cleansed as they hear the Word of Christ and obey these Words. The church is purified and refined in a similar way as believers; being bathed, not with literal water, but with the cleansing agent of the Word of God. Just as the blood of Christ cleanses once for all from the guilt and penalty of sin, so the word of God cleanses continually from the defilement and pollution of sin. All my deeds will be like filthy rags. I will only have, by the love, grace, and mercy of my Saviour Jesus Christ, my salvation.

Through His Son, God made the universes. In Colossians 1:16 we read: “For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him.” This is also confirmed in Hebrews 1:2: “but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.” We recognise the majesty of the Son of God, who was present at creation and is the sovereign Lord of all created things. God appointed Jesus heir of all things, this we know from John 16:15, that “all that belongs to the Father is mine.” Here, Heir as applied to Christ means that as the Son of God, He is the possessor or Lord of all things – it all belongs to Him. Without Christ we are nothing, but as, believers, we share in His resurrection, and we share in His inheritance. Therefore, as believers, we become co-heirs with our Lord Jesus. This inheritance includes all that we will enjoy in heaven for eternity - it will be incorruptible (will never corrode, or decay), undefiled (will always be in perfect condition) and unfading (will last for eternity). Christ alone has the ultimate power, dominion, possession, and authority. And to think that He will share this with all who belong to Him!

These titles all tell us that He spans time and eternity, since He is before all things and will remain beyond all things. From Colossians 1:16-17 we read: For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. Therefore, He is the source and goal of creation. Since Jesus is both the Beginning and the End we know that He will have all authority over everything in-between. Meaning that Jesus has a plan for history, and He directs the path of human events toward His designed fulfilment. He began and He will end the Divine program of this world. His life on earth was a perfect example of what the life of faith is like. In this sense He is the Author, or pioneer, of our faith, but He is also the Perfecter of our faith, in that He also finished His life victoriously. He focused His life on the coming glory when all the redeemed would be gathered with Him eternally. Jesus Christ who is the First and Last, Alpha and Omega, Beginning and End, and the Author and Perfecter, directs all human history and even our individual lives. However, this does not mean our lives are given over to blind fate, or random meaningless.

Our Lord Jesus is the exact image of God’s essential being. All the perfections that are found in God the Father are also found in Him. On earth, all the moral and spiritual glories of God are seen in Him. Peter, James, and John were privileged to see our Saviour transfigured. Prior to this they only saw His glory veiled in a body of flesh, but now they were given the opportunity of seeing His face and clothes becoming radiant and bright like the sun. This was a visible manifestation of His deity - very similar to the glory cloud of the OT which symbolised the presence of God. Now, they could recognise Him as God the Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords. I think that our Lord Jesus will have His own definite appearance, and will bear the scars of Calvary throughout eternity. Just like us, as believers, we will have our own distinct features, but we will all be morally like the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are to remain loyal and obedient to the Word of Christ. Similar to an engaged bride to be married, there is the responsibility of the bride to remain pure to her pledged husband. In the same way that wives are commanded to submit to their own husbands, are we to submit to Christ’s authority. However, today it is extremely unfashionable for people to remain faithful or submit to a person. People like to be uncommitted often leading to sinful behaviour. A marriage relationship should be a place of patience, humility, joy, truth, peace, and hope. Within marriage fellowship is expressed in acts of love. It is not a place for abuse. Jesus as the Bridegroom will provide for His followers, just as any bridegroom assumes responsibility for taking care of His wife and children.

Having said goodbye to our former way of life, and having entered upon a completely new type of life, a life of the risen Lord Jesus Christ, we seek things which are above. Christ becomes the centre and focus of our life. Our union with Jesus has destroyed the power of sin over us. We are still on earth, and battle with sin, but our focus in on heavenly things. We acknowledge Him in everything we do; grateful for what the Lord Jesus has already done for us. With the help of the Holy Spirit we have His wisdom, power, and knowledge available to us; helping us to become day by day more like our Saviour. Our actions should be enough evidence that Christ is the centre of our life. The Holy Spirit will produce character traits that are found in the nature of Christ. It is by joining our life to His that the fruit of the Spirit grow in us, and will be visible for all to see. There must be a genuine repentance, one that will result in a changed life. There will be a sincere commitment to forsake sin, and to walk in obedience to Christ.

Jesus is the True Light since He is the full revelation of God’s Truth. Just as Jesus is the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world; He is also the Light of the World that brings Life. Since Jesus is the source of the True Light, we as Christians are to reflect His Light. Our lives are to display the teachings of the Word. Our world does not recognise Jesus, His Light, His Truth, His view of the Father, our world, and eternal life, because those who love sin hate Light. Jesus the True Light exposes their sinfulness. The world’s so called light is human righteousness, whereas Jesus’ Light is Divine righteousness. Human righteousness is based on human achievement with the help of Satan. Jesus has accomplished it all on the Cross. The world cannot see, understand or comprehend spiritual truths. Their minds are darkened, and there is no ability to understand the Truth. It is only when we receive the True Light that we suddenly see things we have never seen before. We are granted an understanding of life’s mysteries. Our light can fade if we do not persevere with our prayers, our study of the Word, and our fellowship with our Lord and Saviour, acknowledging Him in everything we do.

In our broken world Jesus is often used as a last resort to physically heal people. In desperation they might turn to Him. But to believers He is the Great Physician who heals not only physically but emotionally, mentally, and spiritually as well. The bottom line is that sin is our great illness, and we are in dire need of a Physician. It is the disease of the soul, and the remedy is the precious blood of Christ, the Spirit of Christ, and the Word of Christ

The world feels offended by Christians telling them about the only way to heaven, and often say we have no right to tell them this, since they have their own way. There are so many different religions in the world today but they are all based on human achievement, and human righteousness. We invent new religions that accommodate our shortcomings and set standards that are humanly achievable. The only righteousness that God will accept is the perfection that He imputes to those who accept His Son as Saviour. Only Christianity is based on this Divine accomplishment, and Divine righteousness. Jesus is Himself the way to heaven. He does not merely show us the way; He is the way. We can only spread the Word hoping that the Holy Spirit has opened their ears and hearts. But to the world spiritual things are foolishness to them. Why waste time on spiritual things when you could be making money or having fun?

In what ways do you see Jesus as a Rock, Stone, and Foundation in your own life? The images of rock, stone, and foundation depict solidness; something which is strong and stable and dependable. It is for this reason alone that these images might be attractive to our world. They do not associate Jesus with these images at all, in fact the world hates Jesus. We can talk about God but at the mention of Jesus most people become uncomfortable. In our world today, people not only reject Christ, but they stumble over Him. He is a stumbling stone and a rock that makes them fall. The world prefers their sins to having Jesus as Saviour, since He exposes their evil deeds. Also, they stumble because of their disobedience to the Word. We remember Jesus said that if you love me you will do as I command. By disobeying the Word of God, we reject Jesus, who is God’s gift of grace to save us from our sins. To every one of us, Jesus will be either the chief cornerstone, the Lord of our lives, or He will be a stumbling stone. We must make a choice, we cannot remain neutral, because to ignore Him is to reject Him.

All believers in the Lord Jesus are formed into what is known as the body of Christ, or the church. And He is the Head of that body; both the universal Church and the local congregation. This concept looks at the church as a living organism, inseparably tied together by the living Christ. He controls every part of it and gives it life and direction. This affects the way we conceive of the church and the way we should conduct ourselves in the church. To function properly it is essential, therefore, that a church must have its Head in place and functioning. This means, supplying direction, maintaining order, giving it health, solving its difficulties, coordinating its activities, and supplying to every single member its own kind of life. All this is what our physical head does, and that is what Jesus, as Head of the body, desires to do. Each individual in the church is directly related to the Head and Jesus should be directing our activities at all times. Yet, despite the fact that we are to function as individuals, we must never forget that we belong to the whole, not only the local body but the whole body of Christ all over the world. As a church and as an individual believer, we are to be, as Jesus said, “the salt of the earth, and the light of the world”

The Good Shepherd always has great concern for His sheep. All that the Father has given Him will not go astray. He ensures that they are well cared for, fed and watered, and protected against predators by making sure they do not wander off. If they do He will rescue them. This all contrasts with the “hired hand” who serves for money. Their interest is only in the money they will receive. They do not own the sheep, so when danger comes they are more than likely to run away and leave the sheep to the mercy of the wolf. It is only by trying to emulate our Lord and Saviour can we demonstrate that we are good shepherds and not hired hands

1. In the New Testament, God sends Jesus to become a human, identify with us and our plight, and redeem us from the power of sin. He becomes our kinsman, our brother. And by the surrender of his own flesh and blood he redeems us (Ephesians 1:7; Hebrews 9:12). He buys back his kin who have fallen so far into debt that they cannot redeem themselves -- ever. 2. He becomes our kinsman, our brother. And by the surrender of his own flesh and blood he redeems us (Ephesians 1:7; Hebrews 9:12). He buys back his kin who have fallen so far into debt that they cannot redeem themselves -- ever. We were so far in sin and needed his help to redeem us from sin. 3. He came down here to be in flesh, shed his blood, and died on the cross for us.

Before a person comes to Jesus for salvation he must be aware of the fact that he has sinned (Rom 3:23), that the penalty for his sin is death (Rom 6:23), and that Jesus died to pay the penalty for those sins (Rom 5:8). By making people aware of these three basic facts we can assist our Lord in seeking and saving the lost. So, the Gospel must be heard, and explained. However, understanding and agreeing that these facts are true, is not enough for a person to be saved. There must be a response from the person to repent and trust our Lord Jesus Christ for their salvation. But at least we have made the person aware of their need and they can then respond personally to Jesus’ invitation: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30. Then, of course, there is the promise of forgiveness and eternal life: "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. John 3:16. When it comes to seeking the correct balance in telling our friends about the Gospel, I feel that I may back off too soon. Perhaps I can be a bit more assertive. So, prayer is important in evangelism. But I also feel that unless God works in a person’s heart, there will be no response, no matter how hard we try. Jesus Himself said: "No-one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:44

As a sinner I owe everything to my Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ. Without His love, grace, and mercy there would be no future for me after death. He perfectly fulfilled God's desire for mercy as well as sacrifice. Since we have all sinned (Rom 3:23) and deserve only death (Rom 6:23); yet for all who believe in Him, God offers us as a free gift of eternal life. We have to acknowledge that we are sinners, repent and put our trust in Him. We have to come in faith, getting rid of our pride, and self-righteousness trusting in Him with our whole being and not leaning on our own understanding (Prov 2:5-6). Having done this, I know I will be spending eternity with Him! What a glorious prospect! I don’t think people realise the danger they are in by not accepting the offer, or even perhaps that there is a free offer available. So, there is an urgent need to spread the Gospel

The lamb was a sacrificial animal among the Jews, and God had taught them to slay a lamb and to sprinkle its blood as a sacrifice. The lamb was killed as a substitute and its blood shed so that sins might be forgiven. However, the blood of the lambs slain during the OT period did not put away sin. God was pointing towards our Lord Jesus, the Lamb of God, who would actually take away sin. Jesus would take away all our sins – past, present, and future. The death of Christ was great enough in value to pay for the sins of the whole world, but only those sinners who receive the Lord Jesus as Saviour are forgiven. As a sinner saved by grace I responded in faith and repentance knowing that in being regenerated by the Holy Spirit all my sins have been forgiven

I think what Jesus had in mind for us as servants, He stated in Philippians 2:3: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” These are tough words, and hugely contradicts the self-centeredness we see expressed by most today. Our ultimate concern must be for others, and this does not allow much room for self-concern. We are to have the mind of Christ who emptied Himself, and became a Servant. However, not many of us want to humble ourselves as servants. Neither do we want to be obedient to His Word – rather we will do it our way. We want to be in charge and we will choose when and whom and how we will serve – if at all. A true servant demands humility and obedience to our Lord. We are to glorify God and become less and less while He becomes more and more.

It is a memorial service for all believers in Jesus Christ. We are to remember the work Jesus did on the Cross for us – His death and His resurrection. We are to partake often until He comes, as this strengthens our faith through fellowship with our Saviour. We need to be reminded of what Jesus did in His life and death to earn our salvation – we often seem to take it for granted – not realizing the magnitude of the suffering

The lamb was a sacrificial animal among the Jews, and God had taught them to slay a lamb and to sprinkle its blood as a sacrifice. The lamb was killed as a substitute and its blood shed so that sins might be forgiven. However, the blood of the lambs slain during the OT period did not put away sin. God was pointing towards our Lord Jesus, the Lamb of God, who would actually take away sin. Jesus would take away all our sins – past, present, and future. The death of Christ was great enough in value to pay for the sins of the whole world, but only those sinners who receive the Lord Jesus as Saviour are forgiven. As a sinner saved by grace I responded in faith and repentance knowing that in being regenerated by the Holy Spirit all my sins have been forgiven

Jesus was perfect in holiness before He came to earth, and because of His close relationship with God the Father, He resisted sin throughout His entire life here on earth. He is the only sinless person who ever and is still living. As believers we will never achieve complete holiness in this life; for there will always be a struggle between temptation and our sinful nature. Jesus is our source of holiness and righteousness, and if we are to become holy and righteous, we must recognize Him as the source. To do this we must know Him, love Him, obey Him, and walk in fellowship with Him – only then will we become more and more like Him. His holiness and righteousness should increasingly replace our natural character of **** and evil desires; resulting in a spiritual transformation. The parable of the Sheep and the Goats uses the sheep as symbolic of believers, and the goats as symbolic of unbelievers

Jesus is declaring His divinity and oneness with the Father – claiming equality with Jehovah. “I am the good shepherd” is the one that means most to me. Jesus is the good Shepherd because He gives His life for the sheep. As well as caring for the sheep daily, watching, feeding, and protecting them. This has been true for my life. He has always been there for me. Not only does He care for His sheep, but he knows His sheep and they know Him. So there is a loving intimacy between Shepherd and sheep. The Shepherd also knows the weak and the strong, the stubborn ones; as well as the hurts and the needs of every sheep. He knows all my weaknesses and all my sinfulness as well. And the sheep know and trust their Shepherd. As believers we trust Him fully.

Q. Is Jesus our Lord if we don't obey him immediately? A. No. Q. Is he our Lord if we don't follow his teachings? A. No Q. What areas of your life do you need to surrender to his Lordship? A. Area of obedience

​Lord comes from the Greek kyrios which means "owner, one who is in charge by virtue of possession", then anyone in a position of authority, lord master. So the title Lord Jesus means He is the owner of all, He has all power, He is in charge of all, He has the power to save us from our sins. Only God can save us from our sins so it tells us of His divinity. Our words cannot do justice even a little to who Jesus is. There is something heartfelt about this so that it cannot be communicated fully in words, but only in heart talk with our God. I believe for all eternity we will have "heart talk with Jesus" and those of us who have studied now will be filled with an awesome awareness of what we have studied and unable to put into mere words

Q. How does the title "Only Begotten God" signify Jesus' divinity? A. Jesus was not created but was and is God born by the power and Spirit of God through Mary without any union with man. He is Unique! Q. How does the Only Begotten Son differ from you and me as sons and daughters of God? A. Jesus the Only Begotten Son was not created while other brothers and sisters like me were created and are children of God only by adoption or spiritual birth. Q. What does "only-begotten" say about Jesus' status with the Father? A. Jesus being the “only-begotten” means that He is the only One being born of God while we are created by God or adopted. Q. About the costliness of the cross? A. It took the death of God’s only begotten Son to die on the cross for the redemption of mankind. My salvation was at the painful cost of life of the only begotten Son of God