Beware Of Tampering With The Truth Matthew 5:17-18 John 10:35 John 17:14-17 Luke 24:25-27 Revelation 22:18-21 Proverbs 30:5 Psalms 12:6 Psalms 119:89-91 2 Timothy 3:16-17 02.27.17

BEWARE OF TAMPERING WITH THE TRUTH

BREAD

17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.”   Matthew 5:17-18 (NIV)

--and the Scripture cannot be broken— John 10:35 (NIV)

14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.   John 17:14-17 (NIV)

25 He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.   Luke 24:25-27 (NIV)

18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. 19 And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. 20 He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. 21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen.   Revelation 22:18-21 (NIV)

5 “Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.”   Proverbs 30:5 (NIV)

6 And the words of the Lord are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times.   Psalms 12:6 (NIV)

89 Your word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. 90 Your faithfulness continues through all generations; you established the earth, and it endures. 91 Your laws endure to this day, for all things serve you.   Psalms 119:89-91 (NIV)

16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.   2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV)

BUTTER

“He that takes truth for his guide, and duty for his end, may safely trust to God’s providence to lead him aright.”   Blaise Pascal

“The Lord's words are pure (purified) and true. Their untarnished nature is compared to the process of refining silver; it is as if the words of the Lord had been refined... seven times, the number of completeness and perfection. What God says is true (flawless) and reliable. His words are not tainted with deceit and false flattery but are fully dependable.”  Bible Knowledge Commentary

“Truth and love are the characteristics which build up the church, especially in association with each other. Yet this combination is rare in the contemporary church. Some leaders are great champions of the truth and anxious to fight for it, but display little love. Others are great advocates of love, but have no equal commitment to truth...Truth is hard if it is not softened by love and love is soft if it is not strengthened by the truth.”   John Stott

“Beware of reasoning about God's Word - obey It.”  Oswald Chambers

“Our claim is that God has revealed Himself by speaking; that this divine (or God-breathed) speech has been written down and preserved in Scripture; and that Scripture is, in fact, God’s Word written, which therefore is true and reliable and has divine authority over men.”   John Stott

“His Word cannot be falsified, disqualified, modified or nullified. His Word cannot be distorted or inverted or reinvented or demerited or interpreted away. His Word is beauty, it is wooing, and it will all be accomplished absolutely.  The debate of the day may change, the crisis may change, the screaming headlines of the genuinely horrifying may change — but, in the entire heaving cosmos, this remains unchangeable, unstoppable, undaunted: The Word of God. His Word is absolute and resolute and it will remain until time concludes.  God’s Word is more permanent than any words written in granite — or in headlines or campaign slogans or PR statements or press releases or laws.  Mountain rock is fleetingly temporary compared to the forever permanence of the Rock of His Word.  Culture cannot shape it and society cannot silence it and scarred people cannot help but be wooed by it, healed by it, held by it.  And the Lover of the letter, He soothes: ‘The mountains may pass away, but my truth will not pass away, the grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever, and though the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but My steadfast love shall not depart from you.’”   Ann Voskamp

“Herod wanted to be the king of his own life, but he really was a slave. He ended up being not the King of the Jews but the king of fools. Herod ended up on the ash heap of history like dictators before and after him, reminding us that those who live wicked lives eventually will reap what they sow. Adolf Hitler went into his bunker and shot himself as his nation crumbled around him. Saddam Hussein was found hiding in a hole and was eventually executed by his own people. Muammar Gaddafi was hunted down by his own people, beaten, and shot to death.  All those who blaspheme God, fight with God, or try to stop the work of God eventually will fail. Yet God's Word ultimately will prevail.”   Greg Laurie

“Jesus said that we are to seek first the things of God and that God would respond by taking care of our needs. How can you be assured that you are praying for God's will, and not your own to be done?  Immerse yourself in the Word of God. The more you know the mind of God, the more you will begin to understand what He wants for your life. As you pray for specific requests, always check them against Scripture. You can be sure God's desires for you will never go against His Word. As you read God's Word and study it, ask the Lord to give you a greater awareness of specific promises that He wants you to pray about and believe. We must pray with praise on our lips, a confession of our sin, and a petition that God will act in the way that accomplishes His purposes and brings Him glory. Then, we must listen very closely to what God may lead us to say or do. God uses individual people to accomplish His purposes. Be willing to be used.”   Michael Youssef

“It is no small thing to be on terms of friendship with God.”   Cowman

“The shortest road to an understanding of the Bible is the acceptance of the fact that God is speaking in every line.”     Donald Grey Barnhouse

HEART SAVOR

• ·       God’s Word is Truth.  I am neither to add to it nor take away from it rather live it.
• ·       When pierced, do I bleed God’s Word?  When applauded by man do I yield to it?  It is to be my life.  Scripture tells me:  47 They are not just idle words for you--they are your life.  Deuteronomy 32:47 (NIV)
• ·       God’s Word is true Truth and it cannot be broken.  You can take that to the bank.

The Sweet Fellowship Of The Saints Philippians 2:1-4 Romans 12:3-5 Romans 12:9-18 Colossians 3:12-17 1 John 1:1-4 John 13:34-35 02.24.17

THE SWEET FELLOWSHIP OF THE SAINTS

BREAD

1 If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Philippians 2:1-4 (NIV)

3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. 4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.   Romans 12:3-5 (NIV)

9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.   Romans 12:9-18 (NIV)

12 Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. 15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.   Colossians 3:12-17 (NIV)

1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched--this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our joy complete.   1 John 1:1-4 (NIV)

34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”   John 13:34-35 (NIV)

BUTTER

“Every act of self-discipline by a Christian is also a service to the community. Conversely, there is no sin in thought, word, or deed, no matter how personal or secret, that does not harm the whole community. When the cause of an illness gets into one’s body, whether or not anyone knows where it comes from, or in what member it has lodged, the body is made ill. This is the appropriate metaphor for the Christian community. Every member serves the whole body, contributing either to its health or to its ruin, for we are members of one body not only when we want to be, but in our whole existence. This is not a theory, but a spiritual reality that is often experienced in the Christian community with shocking clarity, sometimes destructively and sometimes beneficially.”   Dietrich Bonhoeffer

“God employs His people to encourage one another.  We should delight that God usually works for human beings with other human beings.  It forms a bond of friendship, and being mutually dependent on one another, we are fused more completely into one family.  Work to help others, and especially strive to encourage them.  Talk cheerily to the young and anxious inquirer, lovingly try to remove obstacles out of his way.  When you find a spark of grace in the heart, kneel down and blow it into a flame.  Leave the young believer to discover the roughness of the road by degrees, but tell him of the strength which dwells in God, of the sureness of the promise, and of the charms of communion with Christ.  Aim to comfort the sorrowful, and to animate the hopeless.  Speak a word in season to him who is weary, and encourage those who are fearful to go on their way with gladness.  God encourages you by His promises; Christ encourages you as He points to the heaven He has won for you, and the Spirit encourages you as He works in you to will and to do of His own will and pleasure.  Imitate divine wisdom, and encourage others according to the Word.”   Charles H. Spurgeon 

“When sin penetrated the hearts of Adam and Eve, they not only became alienated from God, but they also became alienated from each other. When Jesus died on the Cross, He made it possible for all who believe in Him to be in fellowship with God—and also in godly fellowship with one another. Godly friendships are the evidence of our belonging to the Lord Jesus Christ. But godly friendships are not found; they are made. They are built up stone by stone. They are established on biblical principles.”  Michael Youssef

“I would say that the two greatest problems among Christians are a lack of understanding their position in Christ and a lack of knowing God as their Father.  They have no family image; therefore they feel cut off from other family members—members of the body of Christ, as well as feeling alienated from God. Our fellowship is made solid only as we renew our thinking about God…God made us to enjoy Him. It is difficult to always enjoy a teacher, or a lord, or a commander in an army. God is our Father, and we are to enjoy Him forever…What a comfort to enjoy God like that! I can act as a child and treat Him as a father. I am free to fail, free to speak what is a concern to me, free to be myself, free from fear, free from guilt. God, through the life, death and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ, has adopted you into His family through faith.”   Dan DeHaan

“Be occupied with acquainting yourself with My character and My person.  Revel in My fellowship.  Your very association with Me, if sufficiently consistent, will bring about changes in your personality that will surprise you when discovered, just as you have so often experienced the joy of finding a new bloom on a cherished plant.  Turn your face toward Me, and leave to Me the responsibility of probing your soul.  I am the Master Surgeon.  I am skilled in all the cures of the soul as well as those of the body.  Let Me care for your health.  Delight yourself in Me, and I will bring about what you desire to see in your character and personality.  Feed upon My Word.  It is there you will come to a clearer understanding of my Person.  Only as you know Me can you come to be more like Me.  In association with others, people take to themselves a measure of the mannerisms and ideologies of these other persons.  So will it be for those who spend much time in My company.  Silently, and without conscious effort, you will be changed.”   Frances J. Roberts

“The love for equals is a human thing–of friend for friend, brother for brother. It is to love what is loving and lovely. The world smiles.  The love for the less fortunate is a beautiful thing–the love for those who suffer, for those who are poor, the sick, the failures, the unlovely. This is compassion, and it touches the heart of the world.  The love for the more fortunate is a rare thing–to love those who succeed where we fail, to rejoice without envy with those who rejoice, the love of the poor for the rich, of the black man for the white man. The world is always bewildered by its saints.  And then there is the love for the enemy–love for the one who does not love you but mocks, threatens, and inflicts pain. The tortured’s love for the torturer. This is God’s love. It conquers the world.”  I echo that.  This is God’s love. It conquers the world.”  Frederick Buechner

“One of the highest of human duties is the duty of encouragement…It is easy to laugh at men’s ideals; it is easy to pour cold water on their enthusiasm; it is easy to discourage others.  The world is full of discouragers.  We have a Christian duty to encourage one another.  Many a time a word of praise or thanks or appreciation or cheer has kept a man on his feet.  Blessed is the man who speaks such a word.”   William Barclay

“A heart drop is when a person, either directly or in a cryptic way, gives you a tiny glimpse into their heart…Hearing a heart drop is a way of listening between the lines, gaining a glimpse into another soul’s longings…Hearing a heart drop is an art we can intentionally cultivate. It can lead to the most wonderful times of encouragement as we make it our habit to listen and to love…But Jesus is calling us to stop and notice. To live alert. To give a special touch that may heal a heart or cheer a weary soul…I once heard it said that Jesus’ real ministry was the person He found standing in front of Him…Who is that for you today?”   Karen Ehman

HEART SAVOR

• ·      We, as the body of Christ – the Church – need each other.  We were not made to be an island.  We are to flesh out Jesus to others.  Study His life.  Walk as He walked, through His power, for His glory alone.
• ·      Christian love entails dying to self.  Dying to self is never easy but it is the doorway to abundant life.  You never really live unless you are willing to die.  23 Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.  Luke 9:23-24 (NIV)
• ·      Christian love never fails.    

Everlasting Love Psalms 103:8-18 Jeremiah 31:3 Zephaniah 3:17 Lamentations 3:21-26 Deuteronomy 33:27 Romans 5:6-8 John 15:9-14 1 John 4:10-12 1 Corinthians 13:8 02.22.17

EVERLASTING LOVE

BREAD

8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. 9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; 10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; 12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. 13 As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; 14 for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. 15 As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; 16 the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. 17 But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children-- 18 with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.  Psalms 103:8-18 (NIV)

3 The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.”   Jeremiah 31:3 (NIV)

17 “The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”   Zephaniah 3:17 (NIV)

21 Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: 22 Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. 23 They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” 25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; 26 it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.   Lamentations 3:21-26 (NIV)

27 The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.   Deuteronomy 33:27 (NIV)

6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.   Romans 5:6-8 (NIV)

9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command.”   John 15:9-14 (NIV)

10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.   1 John 4:10-12 (NIV)

8 Love never fails.   1 Corinthians 13:8 (NIV)

BUTTER

“How can we but love Him when we know that He numbers the very hairs of our head, marks our path, and orders our ways?  Specially is the great truth brought near to our heart, when we recollect how attentive He is, not merely to the temporal interests of His creatures, but to their spiritual concerns.  Though leagues of distance lie between the finite creature and the infinite Creator, yet there are links uniting both.  When a tear is wept by thee, think not that God doth not behold; for, ‘Like a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him.’  Thy sigh is able to move the heart of Jehovah; thy whisper can incline His ear unto thee; thy prayer can stay His hand; thy faith can move His arm.  Think not that God sits on high taking no account of thee.  Remember that however poor and needy thou art, yet the Lord thinketh upon thee.  For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect towards Him.”   Charles H. Spurgeon

“Lean hard upon Me, for I bring you through to new victories, and restoration shall follow what seems now to be a wind of destruction.  Hold fast to My hand, and rest in My love, for of this you may be very certain:  My love is unaltered; yes, I have you in My own intensive care.  My concern for you is deeper now than when things are normal.  Draw upon the resources of My grace, and so shall you be equipped to communicate peace and confidence to your dear ones.  Heaven rejoices when you go through trials with a singing spirit.  Your Father’s heart is cheered when you endure the test and do not question His mercy.  Be like a beacon light.  His own glorious radiance shall shine through you, and Christ Himself will be revealed.”   Frances J. Roberts

“To be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all of our lives-the good as well as the bad, the moments of joy as well as the moments of sorrow, the successes as well as the failures, the rewards as well as the rejections-that requires hard spiritual work. Still, we are only truly grateful people when we can say thank you to all that has brought us to the present moment. As long as we keep dividing our lives between events and people we would like to remember and those we would rather forget, we cannot claim the fullness of our beings as a gift of God to be grateful for.  Let's not be afraid to look at everything that has brought us to where we are now and trust that we will soon see in it the guiding hand of a loving God.”     Henri Nouwen

“When God doesn’t prevent suffering, He gives us perspective on suffering. Sometimes you just have to get a ‘God’s-eye’ view to see that the master potter is scooping up all the rubble and ruin from your low place to mold and create good in your life. His love reaches down into the dirt – what you may think is utter defeat or hopeless – and lifts you to see that He can turn what you may view as worthless into something worthwhile.  God can take what we think is worthless and turn it into something worthwhile. Often, when we’re down, all we can see is the valley, the wasteland – we feel like our lives are a mess. But our loving God does not see us and our low places that way. The stuff you think may be just too messy, too ugly, too far gone is the stuff God is infusing with purpose.  The sorrow that hurts you? God fashions it into faith that sustains you.  The sin you’re ashamed of?  God uses it to create beautiful humility. The failures you regret? God turns them into wisdom.  The grief that shattered your heart? God crafts that into unshakeable faith.  The missed opportunities? God uses those to make you reflect His grace.  The loss you never expected? God molds that into strength you can’t explain.  God can make your low place a stepping stone to climb higher with Him.  He can take even the worst things in your life – the injustice, defeat, abandonment or failure – to create the best for you, His beloved child.”   Jennifer Rothschild

Beauty From Ashes:  “As I look back, I see a row of soil just like in my garden.  All kinds of seeds are being dropped into the groove of earth, some that feel good, some that feel bad.  Right behind them, are these big manly, powerful hands gently covering each seed with rich, warm, healthy soil and patting it down to perfection. That's what God does. He doesn't stop the stuff that feels bad from happening, but He covers it up with good things and then waters it with His own tears.  Losing my first husband was a horrible thing. God covered this with my second husband’s invitation to join him in Alabama and become his wife. My adult daughter moved nearby and her life has been changed forever, her marriage on track, her health restored. My lastborn was taken from a scattered life with no future, to live near us and find a career and start a family. His new son, was created from the entire situation. Only a good and loving God could accomplish those things. Now I feel like I’m observing another “bad-feeling seed” being planted; and only God knows what good things He is conjuring to cover it up with.”   Anonymous

“My hope is not in a cure today. My hope is not the absence of suffering and comfort returned. My hope is in the presence of the One who promises never to leave or forsake, the One who declares nothing “will be able to separate us from the love of God.” (Romans 8:39). Nothing. Your story is a good story. In the grief, pain and hard, the Author has a plan. It may feel like a desperate breaking of your very heart, but suffering is not the absence of God or good.”  Kara Tippetts

HEART SAVOR

• ·       God is love.  His dealings with His children are always motivated by pure love whether we are able to discern that or not.
• ·       Love is demonstrative.
• ·       I am called to love as God loves through His powered for His glory.  

The Waging War Within Genesis 4:6-7 Romans 6:15-23 Romans 7:21-25 Colossians 3:5-10 Galatians 5:1 John 15:5 Philippians 4:13 02.20.17

THE WAGING WAR WITHIN

BREAD

6 Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.”   Genesis 4:6-7 (NIV)

15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! 16 Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey--whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. 18 You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness. 19 I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. 20 When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. 21 What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.   Romans 6:15-23 (NIV)

21 So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God's law; 23 but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God--through Jesus Christ our Lord!   Romans 7:21-25 (NIV)

5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.  Colossians 3:5-10 (NIV)

1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.   Galatians 5:1 (NIV)

5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”   John 15:5 (NIV)

13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength.  Philippians 4:13 (NIV)

BUTTER

“The heart is constituted such that the only way to dispossess it of an old affection is by the expulsive power of a new one…and when God stands revealed as an object of confidence to sinners—and where our desire after Him is not chilled into apathy by that barrier of human guilt which intercepts every approach that is not made to Him through the appointed Mediator…it is when released from the spirit of bondage…and admitted into the number of God’s children, through the faith that is in Christ Jesus, the Spirit of adoption is poured upon us—it is then that the heart, brought under the mastery of one great and predominant affection, is delivered from the tyranny of its former desires and  the only way in which deliverance is possible”.   Scottish Pastor, Thomas Chalmers, 1780-1847

“If we suffer the good to grow weaker, the evil will surely gather strength and struggle desperately for the mastery over us; and so, mayhap, a painful desolation, and a lamentable disgrace may follow.”  Charles Spurgeon

“We must be aware of the various ways sin pulls us to wrong thoughts about God, righteousness, grace, ourselves and sin itself. Only the truth of God’s word and meditation in prayer can reveal the deceitfulness of sin.110 Sin works against God. Sin will either deceive us into thinking God is a cruel taskmaster, or, if that will not work, will deceive us into thinking He is like a doting grandfather who really does not care what we do. Sin affects every Christian’s view of God and leads us to worship idols, figments of our own imaginations, and not the true God. Sin will deceive us concerning grace. We will either be deceived into thinking it is too good to be true, or we will buy into cheap grace and think that ethics are unimportant.”  Dr. Bob Flayhart

“What are believers saved from?  From their former position under the wrath of God, the dominion of sin, and the power of death; from their natural condition of being mastered by the world, the flesh and the devil; from the fears that a sinful life engenders, and from the many vicious habits that were part of it.  How are believers saved from these things?  Through Christ, and in Christ.  Our salvation involves first, Christ dying for us and second, Christ living in us and we living in Christ, united with Him in His death and risen life.  This vital union, which is sustained by the Spirit from the divine side and by faith from our side, and which is formed in and through our new birth, presupposes covenantal union in the sense of our eternal election in Christ.”   J I Packer

“Contrary to the world's beliefs, the spiritual fruit of self-control does not come about through the discipline of self-mastery, but rather through surrendering ourselves to God's control. None of us fully have the power, capability, or wisdom to master our own lives. You cannot resist all the temptations that are hurled at you, control the behavior of those closest to you, or limit the ideas that pop into your mind. What you can do is surrender your life to the Holy Spirit. You can control how you respond, yield, and submit to Him.”    Michael Youssef

“Oh! That I had a trumpet voice to warn you.  Oh! While you are dying, while you are sinking into perdition, may I not cry to you; may not these eyes weep for you!  Take to heart, I beseech you, the realities of eternity.  Oh, turn, turn!  Why will you die?  Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and ye shall be saved.”   Charles H. Spurgeon

“By continually abiding in Christ, the one who has been pruned to bring forth much fruit will bring forth much fruit.”   Elmer Towns

“I have continually to mourn that I follow at such a distance and learn so slowly to imitate my precious Master.”   Hudson Taylor

“It is a bad world, Donatus, an incredibly bad world.  But I have discovered in the midst of it a quiet and good people who have learned the great secret of life.  They have found a joy and a wisdom which is a thousand times better than any of the pleasures of our sinful life.  They are despised and persecuted, but they care not.  They are masters of their souls.  They have overcome the world.  These people, Donatus, are Christians…and I am one of them.”   St. Cyprian, 200-258

HEART SAVOR

• ·       I can do all things through Christ Who gives me strength.  It is not me – I cannot muster up the ability within myself to walk as Jesus walked.  In my flesh, I do not possess the power and I will fail dismally.  I must willingly allow His control over my own weaknesses.  This is a moment by moment prayer which, btw, He delights to answer.  It is the Holy Spirit within me who accomplishes this task as I release my grip on the right to my life.  I am not my own – He has bought me with an enormously high price.  I honor Him with my body as I relinquish control to the Holy Spirit.  True freedom is only found there.
• ·       The most amazing miracle the world will ever see is a transformed life through the power of Christ.
• ·       I am not to be mastered by sin which leads to death, rather Jesus which leads to life and life to the full.