Daily Bread - October 22, 2020 (The Fifth Day - Genesis 1:20-23)

Written by Pastor Mark Spitsbergen

Thursday, 22 October 2020 14:09

Galatians 3:3 - Are you so foolish, having begun by the Spirit, do you now finish up by the flesh. Part 1 ~ Born Of The Spirit For Relationship With God This is a question each one of us must ask ourselves. Have we allowed God to work the miracle of the new birth in our lives through the Spirit, only to turn to religious practices as a means of justification? (John 3:3; Titus 3:5; Ephesians 4:24). We were born of the Spirit of God so we can have a relationship with God - and live by the Spirit of God. God's people must learn the principles of walking out a relationship with the Holy Spirit. This relationship should be like that which existed between the disciples and the Lord Jesus when He walked this Earth. Jesus told the disciples He would send them the Holy Spirit: the Spirit of Truth (John 14:17, 15:26). The Spirit of Truth is to both accompany us and dwell in us, so we might know all the things that are freely given to us by the Father. He is the One Who guides us, even as Jesus guided the disciples; and showed them the Father and all the things pleasing to the Father (John 16:12-13). The Holy Spirit takes us beyond the restraints of our own understanding, and fills us with the revelation of the Father (John 16:12,14; 1 Corinthians 2:9-10; Ephesians 1:17-18). He takes us beyond the confinement of our own human strength, and gives to us the strength of the Lord and the power of His might (Ephesians 6:10, 3:16; Colossians 1:11).

 

Daily Bread - October 21, 2020 (The Fourth Day - Genesis 1:14-19)

Written by Pastor Mark Spitsbergen

Wednesday, 21 October 2020 07:00

2 Corinthians 13:5 - Test yourself to see if you are in the faith. Examine yourself; do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you? Otherwise, you are counterfeit. Part 2 ~ Acknowledging Christ Lives In Us It would have been difficult for Paul to use a more harsh word than "counterfeit" for those who failed the test of examining themselves as to whether they were in Christ Jesus or not. To say that one is "counterfeit" or "reprobate" means the person is both undiscerning and unfit. This word is used of those who have either rejected God, or have been rejected by God (Titus 1:16; Romans 1:28; 2 Timothy 3:8; 1 Corinthians 9:27). Such a one has failed to realize - much less confess - that Christ Jesus is in them. Certainly, Paul did not believe they would fail the test, but they indeed needed to be sobered up because they were drifting upon a sea of jeopardy. If we are going to receive the benefits of faith, then we must believe the Word of God! It is essential that we acknowledge the truth of the glorious mystery of God regarding Christ is indeed living in us - for this is the living faith of the living Savior Who has made us alive together with Him, and in Whose life we dwell (Colossians 2:2, 1:27; 1 Thessalonians 5:10; John 15:1-5)! In Chapter 11 Paul had warned how there were those who were preaching another Jesus (2 Corinthians 11:4). The Jesus Paul preached was One Who had both risen from the dead and was dwelling in the life of those who had received the miracle of salvation. There is no faith without Jesus - for He is the Author and Finisher (Leader and Perfecter) of faith!

 

Daily Bread - October 20, 2020 (The Third Day - Genesis 1:9-13)

Written by Pastor Mark Spitsbergen

Tuesday, 20 October 2020 07:00

2 Corinthians 13:5 - Test yourself to see if you are in the faith. Examine yourself; do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you? Otherwise, you are counterfeit. Part 1 ~ Is The Life Of Jesus In You? Paul set forth a test so those in the Church could determine whether they were born of God, or living in error. If you do not recognize Jesus Christ dwells in you, then you are not in the faith of the New Covenant. You have one of two choices as a person confessing Jesus Christ is God and Savior: either Christ Jesus is in you, or you are still outside the Covenant. A living faith has a living Jesus in it. A living faith is a faith that sees and knows with certainty. A living faith interacts in a very personal way with the living Savior, Christ Jesus. Do you realize that Jesus Christ is in you? The faith, which is in Christ Jesus, made it possible for Christ Jesus to be in us. When the Spirit of God came upon us, we received more than just a change of heart and spirit, we were given a new heart and a new spirit. Thus, we boldly proclaim we have been born of God Who formed His Son, Christ Jesus, in us (Galatians 4:19; 1 John 3:24). We, therefore, have both experienced and acknowledged that Christ Jesus lives in us! The miracle power of faith has brought forth the very life of Christ Jesus into our beings (Colossians 1:27, 3:4,16; John 17:23; Romans 8:11, 10:8, 13:14; and 2 Corinthians 1:21, 2:17, 5:14-15, 10:7, 13:3; 1 Corinthians 4:17, 6:15; and Galatians 2:20, 3:27, 4:19; Ephesians 3:17, 4:13; Philippians 1:21). The faith of God brought forth the life, nature, and acts of Jesus into our lives.

 

Daily Bread - October 19, 2020 (The Second Day - Genesis 1:6-8)

Written by Pastor Mark Spitsbergen

Monday, 19 October 2020 09:05

2 Corinthians 11:4 - For if one comes proclaiming another Jesus who we have not proclaimed, or you receive another Spirit who you have not received, or another Gospel who you have not accepted - you are all amazingly tolerant! Paul, who had worked so hard to establish the Corinthians in Christ Jesus, was having to fight for their respect. There were those who were coming into the community of the Church preaching another Jesus, another Spirit, and another Gospel. As it has been pointed out by others, Jesus/Spirit/Gospel is a good summary of the New Covenant. What people believe about Jesus will extend over into what they believe and accept about the Holy Spirit and the Gospel message. What we can be certain of is Paul relied upon the Holy Spirit to be the One to reveal Jesus. The Holy Spirit is the One Who came to make known Jesus, the Savior, Healer, Deliverer, and Baptizer. Those who Paul was opposing were perverting the truth, and making Jesus someone different than He was revealed to be. The ministry of Jesus was established in His earthly sojourn, to which Paul made absolutely no alterations. He, like the others anointed to preach the Gospel, picked up the mantle and continued on in the ministry and works which Jesus Himself did (John 14:12; Ephesians 4:13; Acts 1:8; 1 Corinthians 2:4; Romans 15:19). There cannot be two concepts of Jesus and both be correct. There cannot be two concepts of the working and ministry of the Holy Spirit; there cannot be two Gospels. The Corinthian Church had to decide which Jesus they would follow: the one Paul preached, or the one that these outsiders were proclaiming. The message of salvation Paul delivered to the Church at Corinth had produced the glorious manifestations of the Holy Spirit that we read about in 1 Corinthians Chapters 12 through 14. The results of these outsiders produced fruits of a different kind: quarreling, jealousy, anger, selfishness, slander, gossip, conceit, disorder, impurity, sexual immorality, and lustfulness (2 Corinthians 12:21; 2 Timothy 3:13; 1 John 2:26; 1 Timothy 4:1). One thing is for certain: Paul was not going to turn a blind eye. If need be, he would come with a rod - as would any good shepherd (1 Corinthians 4:21). The one way each person can know for certain whether or not a person is preaching the same Jesus Paul preached is by the fruits it produces in the lives of the hearers. If the preacher turns men from their sin and iniquity unto a life of righteousness and purity, then it is the same Jesus Paul preached. Otherwise, they are these types that Paul described here: they are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as the apostles of Christ. They, just like Satan, are disguised as angels of light; but they are ministers of unrighteousness (2 Corinthians 11:13-15). Their message of the cross does not free men from their sins and give them power over Satan. Their message of the Holy Spirit does not produce the fruits of righteousness, holiness, and purity. Their message of the Gospel does not liberate the hearers to walk in the freedom and liberty of Christ Jesus; but instead holds the hearers in bondage to sin, and justifies acts of iniquity. Their deception is a lie that will bring damnation; and their heresy - it is nothing less than doctrines of devils, that will ensnare those who had completely escaped the power of sin and death; and leave them defenseless against all that belongs to the dominion of the devil.

 

Daily Bread - October 17, 2020 (The Seventh Day - Genesis 2:1-3)

Written by Pastor Mark Spitsbergen

Saturday, 17 October 2020 07:00

Romans 6:22 - But now, having been set free from sin and being servants to God, you now have your fruit unto holiness and the end eternal life. Part 2 ~ Fruits of Holiness - God's Nature and Character Recognizing that the fruits of holiness are in our lives as an act of submission and obedience to God is essential. When we recognize that we are coming under the influence of unholy emotions, we must submit ourselves to God and bring it to an end. For example, the contrast between the fruit of sorrow and the fruit of joy is easy to discern. When we find our members taken over by the cares and concerns of the world and sorrow begins to dominate us, we must recognize we are not yielding ourselves to the Spirit of God. At the very moment we recognize it happening, we must choose to dwell in Jesus by turning to Him as our Savior and Lord. As we look unto the One Who has come to provide for us, Who is the Author and Finisher of our faith, He comes and rescues us. As we yield our members to God, the joy of the Lord begins to spring up and flow out of us as rivers of living water. Holiness is defined by that which is consistent with God's nature and character. God, Himself, is the personification of holiness; and thus, is the standard of it. The people of God were placed under a strict command to maintain the honor, reputation, and glory of the holiness conferred upon them by God (Leviticus 10:3, 11:44, 45, 19:2, 20:26, 22:32; and Numbers 15:40-41, 20:12-13, 27:14; and Deuteronomy 7:6, 14:2, 32:51; Isaiah 63:10,11; Psalms 51:11). In the Old Testament, the holiness of God was emulated in His people's lives by them obeying His commands. In the New Testament, the Holiness of God has come to life by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit - Who brings the manifest holiness of God's own Person into our lives as we yield to Him and walk according to His leadership (Galatians 5:16; Romans 8:4,14).