Posted on May 11, 2017
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:13)
Christian Agape Love
The first outgoing of the renewed soul to God
We love because He first loved us. (1 John 4:19)
The sure evidence of a saving work of grace in the soul
The fruit of the Spirit is love. (Galatians 5:22)
We may desire to see visions of God to satisfy our own sensual curiousity, pride, insecurity, and other impure motives – without an understanding of what visions are all about.
1. Are we willing to make a sacrifice?
God’s appearances are not for the fainthearted or unfaithful. God’s admonishments, reassurances, and instructions through visions can come at a high personal cost. Many of the prophets who have seen God, for example, were called to speak up for God and were persecuted or endured great suffering as a result. Some met with terrible deaths. (Please scroll down to the table “Examples of people who have seen God from the Bible” below for 15 examples of people who have seen God.)
Colossians 3:5 NIV Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
2. Are we willing to obey?
Moreover, seeing God in visions will be meaningless if we do not revere and obey Him. King Solomon saw God in visions twice and flippantly disobeyed Him towards the end of his life, bringing disaster on the nation and his own family. If God appears to us and reveals His will for us, we cannot ignore it without paying a price for our complete disregard of God’s call on our lives.
1 Kings 11:9-10 ESV And the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what the Lord commanded.
3. Are we simply chasing signs and wonders?
There are those who will be fascinated with signs and wonders, such as the miracle of seeing God. This is dangerous and can easily lead us to spiritual error. Jesus has warned us that there will be many false signs and wonders in our time and that even some of God’s elect people will be led astray. When we desire to see God more than fear and love Him, we will be readily deceived.
Matthew 24:24 ESV For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.
This weekend I heard a sermon that touched on a few of the biggest disasters throughout history, one of them being the sinking of the Titanic.
Of the 1,347 people who perished, something close to 90% were men who gave up their lives so women and children could live.
In another story, the sinking of a ship called “The Empress of Ireland” in 1914, there were 130 Salvation Army officers on board — some of them old women — who gave up their life preservers, even to strong men, saying, “I can die better than you can.”
What the pastor said made me think: If you were one of the survivors and someone gave his or her life up to save yours, wouldn’t it change the way you lived from that day forward?
Most of us would agree — Yes, definitely!
And yet Jesus gave up His life for us. We have all been on that sinking ship (and maybe still are), but Jesus gave us a life preserver — one he paid for with his life. We have been saved, ultimately, from the greatest disaster.
Has if profoundly changed the way we live? Are we living a true Christian life, or are we only walking with God when it’s convenient?
The following is excerpted from article link HERE! “Under West Virginia Code §16-3-4, children entering state-regulated childcare centers or public, private, or parochial schools must be vaccinated against 10 diseases; chickenpox, hepatitis B, measles, meningitis, mumps, diphtheria, polio, rubella, tetanus, and whooping cough.“ (Author’s commentary – Hepatitis B is a sexually transmitted disease. Now little […]
No Religious Exemptions!
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, “hate” is defined as intense hostility and aversion, usually deriving from fear, anger, or sense of injury. If Jesus boiled down the 10 commandments to two laws, which were “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength and all your mind,” and “Love your neighbor as yourself,” how can we find it OK to disobey?
If we ever find an excuse to justify hating on another, especially someone who is innocent of the attack, we directly refuse the teaching of Jesus Christ.
Welcome to part 4 of the Going By Faith series “Uncovering Sin and Finding Forgiveness.” For last week’s confession on cowardice, click here.
How it works: First pray with the Bible verse and then read the questions one by one — answer them truthfully. This is between you and God.
Every “yes” answer means sin in your life, so spend time confessing it. Name it to God. Let there be no excuse for it — just admit it and ask forgiveness.
Verse: John 13:35 (NLV)
“Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
—————————————————————————
We already know that whatever is in our hearts determines what we say (Matt 12:34), so take it a step further and question the secret thoughts that no one hears. They are still things we say, just not aloud.
Luke 5:45 tells us:
A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.
It doesn’t matter what others do or how others act, let’s leave nothing undone on our part. We’re not perfect, and we need God’s Holy Spirit to help us turn the tide of negative thoughts, feelings and words, but hating on other people is sin at work displayed for all to see. We know it’s not the right way.
An armed robbery this week at a South Carolina convenience store apparently wasn’t as “armed” as the clerk thought. CNN reports on the Tuesday incident at a Kwik Stop in the small town of Sharon, where a man donning a hoodie, wig, and mask entered the store around 5:45pm, per a release from the York County Sheriff’s Office. According to authorities, the suspect pointed to the gun in his waistband and ordered the clerk to hand over whatever cash was in the register—about $300.
Not quite. Law & Crime notes that in South Carolina, even “the mere representation of possessing a deadly weapon that a witness reasonably believed to be a real gun is enough” to hit someone with those charges. Per the sheriff’s office, Dalesandro—who was charged with armed robbery with a deadly weapon, petty larceny of less than $2,000, and “wearing masks and the like”—is being held without bond in the York County Detention Center. (Read more weird crimes stories.)
Most of us don’t think of ourselves as haters, but most of us also turn a blind eye to activities we enjoy — especially when it comes to hearing about the misfortune of others.
While there’s a clear difference between spreading malicious gossip and listening to the latest news, it’s how we process the information that matters.
If you feel put off by it, you already realize the destruction it causes enough to stay away. But if you find yourself encouraging it… enjoying it… that’s a whole different issue.
Welcome to part 6 of the Going By Faith series “Uncovering Going By Faith and Finding Faith.” For the previous confession, click “confessions of greed.”
If you feel like you’ve been living like a part-time Christian, living for God sometimes and turning away other times, take a moment to repent. You can do this by praying with the Bible verse below. Next, read the questions one by one — answer them truthfully. Confess it if you’ve been irresponsible toward God. Be honest — this is between you and Him.
Every “yes” answer means sin in your life. Name it, and let there be no excuse — admit it and ask forgiveness.
Below are three translations of 1 Corinthians 4:2. Reading all three can give us a special glimpse into the true meaning of being responsible with our saved life in God’s eyes.
“Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.” (NIV)
“Now, a person who is put in charge as a manager must be faithful.” (NLV)
“Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.” (ESV)
—————————————————————————
Keeping faith in everyday Christian life helps us get through trials, but it also helps us to live, think and trust like Christ — keeping our hearts open to God to do His work in us, through us and around us. In other words, we become responsible and trustworthy stewards of our faith.
Heavenly Father, shine the light of your love into our hearts so that it can pour out to others. Help us walk with you full-time, in every area of this life you have given us to live. May our life show your glory.
Thank you Christ Life Ministries for granting permission to use your content (concept and confession questions).
Grace For Purpose
3.96M subscribers
13,164 views
Jul 29, 2026
📚Grace For Purpose Prayer Book now available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Grace-Purpos…
A Christian motivational video that aims to leave you blessed, inspired and encouraged as well as strengthening your prayer life and daily walk with God. As you listen to this daily devotional video may Jesus Christ light up your life!
►An original video created by Grace for Purpose and delivered by our team speakers. Our faith based content aims to bring biblical teachings to life! Our team aims to produce content that is focused on the scriptures, encouraging prayers, and insightful teachings
For any enquiries, contact us: teamg4p@gmail.com
