1 John 1:7 – “The blood of Jesus, His Son, CONTINUALLY cleanses us from all sin.”

As I read, prayed, and meditated on the Word, the Holy Spirit made me laugh by depositing a phrase in my heart.  As I began reading 1 John, a phrase or declaration from verse 7 captured my attention with the word “continually.”

The thought made me laugh: I am careful not to appear irreverent, but I heard, “Jesus is our perpetual spot remover.”   When doing laundry, the bottle of spot remover is of no value and is sitting on the shelf.   We can even take it down and read the instructions and benefits, but it is of no value unless it is applied to the spot.

The Blood of Jesus “continually” cleanses us “if” we abide in Him. Knowing about the blood does not cleanse, applying the blood does.   In confession, repentance, and reception, we enjoy His “continual” cleansing.

Many claim to be followers of Christ but with no lifestyle or heart change. 1 John 1:6 – “We can be SURE (absolute certainly) that we’ve truly come to live in intimacy with God, not just saying, ‘I am intimate with God,’ but by walking in the footsteps of Jesus.”   It is in the walk, not the talk!

I John 3:1-3 is a fantastic revelation. “Beloved, we are God’s children RIGHT NOW; however, it’s not yet apparent what we will become. But we DO KNOW that when it is finally made visible, we will be JUST LIKE HIM, for we will see Him as He truly is. AND all who focus their hope on Him will always be purifying themselves, just as Jesus is pure.”  [Emphasis mine.]

1 John 4:12 gives us the promise of becoming God’s permanent home! We have our permanent residence in Him, and He makes us His permanent and perpetual residence.   If God is permanently “in” us, then we continually enjoy His life and have access to all He is.   Let your permanent spot remover do His work in you.

Surrender 100% of yourself to Him and receive 100% of Him.   No spots or blemishes can withstand the blood.   No demon in hell can overpower the blood.  No disease can survive the application of the blood. It’s time to apply the blood! Holy Spirit, we welcome you and invite you to sprinkle us with the blood of Jesus!   Victory is ours through that precious blood! Lord, I plead the blood!

I pray that your day will be victorious as you enjoy being continuously cleansed by the Blood of Jesus!   God bless you!

2 Peter 1:3 – “Everything we could ever need for life and godliness has already been deposited in us by His divine power…”

As I read, prayed, and contemplated the Word, a declaration in 2 Peter gripped my heart like a vice and would not let me go.  I have turned it over in my heart, and as I cried out for understanding, I saw a pathway to the promise of that declaration.

Notice in 2 Peter 1:3 – “Everything we could ever need for life and godliness has already been deposited in us by His divine power…”   There is more, but let’s pause and extract some keywords.

The Revelation begins with the word Everything!   It is all-encompassing, leaving nothing out.  The phrase “Could ever need” speaks to time and eternity.  It reaches beyond where we are to wherever we will be.  The eternality of that phrase is unmistakable.  “For” speaks to the goal.  “Has Already Been Deposited” reveals that it has been completed.    It is not earned or future, but a present reality in us.

Therefore, according to the Word, the Finished Work of Jesus has made us complete in every way.  We have all we could ever need for life, yet we fret.  That reality reveals that we either do not know what we have or do not believe it.

What has been deposited in us must somehow be discovered, uncovered, and extracted to be of any practical value.   Imagine standing before God and hearing Him ask, “Why did you not exercise your authority?  What did you need for Me to be that I was not?  I gave you access to Everything you needed, but you lived as though I had ignored or abandoned you.  Why?”

How do we extract that gold from the deposit inside us?  The Psalms speak to this.  Psalm 142:2 – “I cry aloud with my voice to Adonai (more than a thought or wish).  I pour out my complaint (problem, trial, or need) before Him; before Him I tell my trouble.”  Honest, open prayer is a catalyst to victory.

Psalm 143:5-10 reveals the needed intensity and focus.  Meditate on God and His provisions.  Praise Him (spread forth my hands to You).  Long and thirst for God.  He becomes the passion of our souls.   2 Peter 1:4 describes our life as a partnership with God’s divine nature.  It is not me and Jesus but Jesus IN and through me.  Out of that partnership, we can exhibit the qualities Peter described in 2 Peter 1:5-7.

Notice he says in verse 8, “Since or because these virtues are Already Planted deep within, and you Possess them in abundant supply, they Keep  you…”  They keep us from inactivity spiritually.  They keep us from being fruitless in our pursuit of knowing God intimately.

 2 Peter 1:10b – “If you do (practice and embrace) these things (those listed in the verses), you will never stumble.”

We are the righteous of God in Christ.  We have everything we need for His abundant life and victory.  What is missing?  It is Recognition of His provision.  Reception of His provision.  It is Expectation of it being a manifested reality in us Now!

God asks, “Will you let Me Be what you need?”  What do we need that He has not already provided in heaven?  He is the eternal I AM!

A deposit in our bank accounts does us no good unless we make a withdrawal.  So, let’s use our ATM card and withdraw from our account, which He established, and do whatever we need!   It is done in heaven, deposited in us, and awaits for us to extract it.  I am headed to the spiritual bank now to make a needed withdrawal.  Victory is ours, in Him!

I pray you will have a victorious and prosperous day!

1 Peter 2:23 – “When He was verbally abused, He did not return with an insult; when He suffered, He would not threaten retaliation. Jesus faithfully entrusted Himself into the hands of God, who judges righteously.”

Peter’s description of Jesus in 1 Peter 2:23 filled my consciousness and gave me a longing and understanding of how we should live daily.  The next verse speaks of the full work of His atonement.  But the words, “He FULLY ENTRUSTED Himself to God,” drew my heart like a moth to a flame.   He Fully entrusted Himself.

How is that possible for us?  It is only possible through the new birth and faith.   It is facilitated by “seeing” God.    By that, I don’t mean having a supernatural vision where you literally see Him, but a revelation of Him. 

Psalm 139 is a powerful doorway to that revelation.   Psalm 139:2-4, God is everywhere and knows even our thoughts before we become aware of them.   Before we speak, He knows.   In verse 7, we discover that His presence is inescapable.

Psalm 139:13 – “For You have created my conscience. You knit me together in my mother’s womb.”   In verses 14-16, we discover that our lives, destinies, personalities, and features began before we were conceived in our mother’s womb.   This is the God we serve, the Father Jesus fully entrusted Himself to.   It becomes easy to fully entrust ourselves to a God like that.  He knows all, sees all, and is the creator and sustainer of all. He is undefeatable and unfailing. His love is unconditional. His grace is immeasurable. His gift of life is incomparable.

No wonder David would pray, verses 23-24, “Search me, O God, and know my heart. Examine me, and know my anxious thoughts, and see if there is any offensive (wicked) way within me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

This means seeing the Father as a loving Father who is seeking our best, not an ogre seeking to punish us. His love seeks to transform, not force us to conform to a set of rules. When we see Him, we know His heart, experience His grace, and are embraced by His love, and we desire to obey and be like Him.

Jesus fully entrusted Himself into the hands of God.  That is my heart’s desire: Full Surrender of Everything I have and Everything I am!    True victory is in full surrender.

Let’s make our objective to entrust ourselves to God and fully trust Him fully!

Psalm 119:66 – “Teach me good judgment, grace, and knowledge; for I have believed thy commandments.”

As I read Psalm 119 today, I was captivated by the emphasis and value the Psalmist placed on God’s Word. In verse 5, he expressed his objective to be steadfast so he could observe (obey and practice) God’s precepts. He then asked the penetrating question, “How can a young man keep his way pure?” (That applies to every gender and age.) The answer is only wholeheartedly guarding it with the Word. If we don’t know the Word, we cannot benefit from it.

In verse 18, he asked for “open eyes” to observe the wonders of the Word. That is a life of expectation. Then, in verses 26-27, he asked to be taught the Word to enable him to develop the spirit of discernment. Meditation on the Word was his source of strength.

In verses 36-37, the prayer is to turn his heart to God’s testimonies and not corruption—revival by the Word. In verse 66, I laughed and then cried, “Teach me good sense and knowledge, for I trusted your Word.” We have information but lack the wisdom of application.

In verse 73, the bedrock acknowledgment upon which our lives must be built, “Your hands have made me and formed me. Give me understanding that I may learn Your Word.” In verses 81-82, he revealed that no matter how difficult things get, the Hope of life is THE WORD! In verses 89-90, he declared the eternality of God’s Word and the impeccable character of God.

In verses 97-100, he gave insight into the power and benefit of meditation on the Word. The byproducts or fruit include wisdom, insight, and understanding. How we need those! They become our life GPS.

In verse 105, we see that the Word is a lamp that enables us to see the path and pitfalls. In verse 114, we realize that abiding in the Word gives us God’s protection as our hiding place and shield. In verse 130, he revealed that the Word provides the light of understanding to the simple.

In verse 133, we have a needed revelation in a prayer, “Direct my footsteps (life) in Your Word, AND let no iniquity get mastery over me.” In verse 154, he cried, “Restore my life through Your Word.” In verse 160, we read, “Truth is the essence of Your Word, AND all Your righteous rulings are eternal.” Remember the words of Jesus, “You shall know the truth, and the truth will make you free, and man cannot live by bread alone but by God’s Word.

We need the Word because the Word is Jesus, and He is the way, truth, and life. Counterfeiters succeed because many don’t have a thorough knowledge of the genuine. We don’t study error to defeat error. Instead, we become so acquainted with the genuine (truth) error that stands out like a sore thumb. Truth is the prize!

If we abide (become one with) in Jesus and His Words, abide (become so much a part of who we are, there is no distinguishing between us) in us, we are not only free but also have the promise of the answer coming. The life of victory is established in Jesus as we are anchored in His Word. The Holy Spirit came to teach us His Word.

We have the source of unlimited victory at your disposal. Make it like a hot tub and soak in it. Become like a sponge and soak it up. Then, when you speak to your problems, you speak with the authority of God.

The Word is Invaluable! Embrace it and allow it to embrace you!

Psalm 103:1 – “Praise the Lord, O my soul.  With all that is within me, praise his holy name.”

Psalm 103 begins with the entreaty to praise God unceasingly and excessively in the minds of some.  (It is not possible to praise God too much.)  It reminds us of God’s awesomeness and extravagant love and blessings.

We are enjoined to praise Him with our entire being (body, soul, and spirit) and to keep His blessings and benefits in the forefront of our minds. How can we not express gratitude when we remember who He is and all He has done?

The “All” inclusion is to be kept in our consciousness day and night. Forgiveness of ALL our sins.  Healing of ALL our diseases.  Redemption, protection, provision, revelation, and guidance are our constant companions. In that Oneness with Him, our grateful hearts and sacrificial offerings from our lips open the door to a coronation where we have permanent residence in His loving-kindness and compassion.   

In that condition, we are satisfied with His goodness and tangible blessings in everyday life. The cherry on the top of the ice cream Sunday is the renewal of our youth (vigor, vitality, strength, energy, enthusiasm, and daring).

Psalm 104:15 is intriguing. God gives His children “wine that makes man’s heart glad, oil to make his face shine, and bread that sustains man’s heart.”

Let me suggest that, among other things, this is a revelation and invitation to Kingdom life!

• Wine (the blood of Jesus, remember the communication service) to make our hearts glad (free, forgiven, fellowship). Salvation is referred to as containing Joy throughout the Scriptures.
• Oil to make man’s face shine. (Oil is symbolic of the Holy Spirit and the anointing.)   We receive the atoning of the Blood transforming us, then the Holy Spirit to make us glow with His presence and open the door to the revelation and power of God.
• Bread that sustains man’s heart.  (Man can’t live by natural food (bread) alone but by every Word God speaks)

We enter the family by the Blood, are empowered by the Spirit, and are sustained by the Word.   None of the three can be omitted.  I suggest one more thing that is not a gift but an action that is needful if not indispensable.  That is Prayer!   

Prayer keeps us in constant contact with God. It keeps the efficacy of the blood fresh in our hearts. It keeps the pipeline of the anointing open and enables us to feast on the banquet of the Word, which continually instructs us in the pathway of life.

Psalm 107:33-39 contrasts two lifestyles—the barrenness of ungodliness and the fruitfulness of godliness.

In Psalm 108:3, the Psalmist gives us a picture of how to begin each day: “I will awaken the dawn! I will give thanks to You, Adonai, among the peoples; I will sing praises to You among the nations.”   Begin the day with praise and thanksgiving.

Psalm 111:10 – “The fear (reverence) of Adonai is the beginning of wisdom. (Beginning is a starting place) ALL who follow His precepts have good understanding.”   Do you want to know what to do?   Be covered with the blood, filled with the Spirit, and saturated with the Word.   Awaken each day with gratitude and praise.  Reverence Him and pursue His precepts. Good understanding is a natural byproduct of that life! Victory is ours; seize!

Learn the Power of Unceasing Praise and enjoy the fullness of the Holy Spirit at work in your life!