Author: Hank

Welcome to Hank’s Place

Ephesians 2:8 is a marvelous verse. “For by GRACE we have been saved through faith; and this is not of ourselves, it is the gift of God.” Salvation is a gift of God, by His GRACE toward us. Faith is also a gift from God “as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.” Romans 12:3. Some theologians have used the illustration of a hose carrying water. The water is the important thing, but the hose, representing our faith, is what carries the water from God to us.

Faith in God, no matter the extent of God’s grace, is always needed. Take the example of the lame man at pool of Bethesda in John chapter 5. Jesus, the anointed one, came to one man, lying there for 38 years, waiting for the stirring of the waters. 38 years.

“Do you want to get well?” Jesus asked him. The lame man answered, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me.” 38 years of disappointment. 38 years of suffering. Yet his words show HOPE was still alive within him. And FAITH, for even without a man to help him, he kept trying to reach the waters.

Jesus said, “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.” Why pick up your pallet? Perhaps Jesus was indicating this was no longer the lame man’s home; he was free to move on, praise the Lord! From past experience of dealings with devils, I suggest the devil at this moment, tried to sow fear and doubt into the man, even as he felt strength coming into his limbs. Doubt that spoke, “you can’t be healed, it is hopeless – and you can’t pick up your mat; that is breaking the Law.” But the man’s faith triumphed, he received the grace of God in the form of a mighty miracle!

The rule keepers could care less about the miracle. They challenged the man immediately for breaking the Sabbath. The healed man did not back down, did not admit to wrong doing: “The one who healed me told me to do this,” he said. Put that in your pipe and smoke it! That’s an idiom I added.

My friend, what challenges do you face? Some long time challenges? Impossible things? Others get healed, promoted, whatever, but not you? TODAY, like this man, keep your hope alive; keep your faith alive. Look to Jesus, not your circumstances not the past. See His hand extended; hear His word of victory, and — COME ALIVE!

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Welcome to Hank’s Place – Coming to you from Venice, Florida

Last message, I shared that the Triune God dwelt in Jesus in bodily form fully; that Jesus dwells in us, and therefore so does the Godhead – by faith, not our efforts. A truth beyond human comprehension. We are growing day by day into what Paul calls the fullness of God. Not only a greater understanding of but an actual oneness with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. And, when Jesus returns, we shall know Him just as He is, fully, for we shall be like Him – is God’s promise to us! 1 John 3:2.

In every epistle of Paul’s, we find him exhorting believers to put off the old man, the carnal ways of living, for we have been made new creations, and the old no longer fits us. Instead we put on the new, the GOD ways.

Peter agrees, saying we …have purified our souls in obedience to the truth, ridding ourselves of all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, for we are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession. That’s 1 Peter 1:22, 2:1, and 2:9.

One new creation way of living is in the matter of giving. Paul described the Philippians as giving in 2 Corinthians 8 out of their deep poverty. Their giving was sacrificial. And in Philippians 4:19 Paul thanks the Philippians for their generous support of him through his difficulties, and lest any think that as a result they may have to go without, he assures them God is well aware, saying, “I am convinced that my God will fully satisfy every need you have, for I have seen the abundant riches of glory revealed to me through Jesus Christ!” Jubilee Translation.

What a promise dear friends, for us as well in OUR giving, for God’s promise – unbreakable promise, to His children, is to supply all our need out of HIS, riches in glory. And there are NO LIMITS TO THOSE RICHES.

So today, dear new creation believer, be not afraid to give to others. It’s in your new nature. It’s important to follow the prompting of the Spirit, although you can help the poor whenever you wish to, Mark 14:7. God has got you, He has got me, and will see that our needs are more than met, and in the unfolding we will —  COME ALIVE!

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Welcome to Hank’s Place – Coming to you from Paradise (Venice, FL)!

Last message, from Colossians chapter 1, we found that through faith, not works, Jesus, son of God, the Holy One, dwells in us, which is beyond comprehension.

It gets better, for in Colossians 2:9-10 Paul wrote, “… in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, that means ALL of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; and in Him you have been MADE COMPLETE, and He is the head over all rule and authority.”

Paul makes powerful revelations in a few words! All of God dwells in Jesus in bodily form. He who created and fills the universe, who holds it together fits into Jesus? If you can explain it please let me know! This is totally contrary to skeptics who said God despised material creation and had no part in it.

Now if all the fullness of God dwells in Jesus, and as believers we are united to Him in a faith-relationship, then WE are also complete in Him. The completeness of Jesus, and our resultant completeness in Him, tells us that other philosophies, religious observances and traditions are unnecessary.

Totally unnecessary. Friend, if you are a believer, all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in you, through Jesus. YOU ARE COMPLETE IN HIM, Who is the head of all principality and power. This can only be true because Jesus is truly God. If He were not God, we couldn’t be complete in Him. Anything that says we are not complete in Him also takes away from the deity of Jesus. There is no need to go elsewhere to be fulfilled, be it for the Colossians, or us.

It may not look like it; it may not feel like it and the devil is sure to point out any inconsistencies in our walk or talk, but we are complete in Him.

Although we are complete in Him, we are continuing to GROW in Him. Col 3:10 says we, “… have put on the new self WHO IS BEING renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.” This process has been initiated by and is ongoing through God Himself.

Today, dwell on what Jesus has done for you; then stop letting the devil push you around, but — COME ALIVE!

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Welcome to Hank’s Place – Paradise Edition!

In Matthew 7:14 Jesus cautions that the path that leads to life is narrow and few find it! Right now we are on a narrow path leading to the Gulf. It leads to a beautiful setting!

And there’s no place like this setting to share with you from Colossians. In chapter 1 verse 19, Paul writes of Jesus, “For it pleased the Father that in Him ALL the fullness should dwell” – dwell – as in a permanent dwelling, ie, Jesus is permanently God. God did not make an appearance for a few years on earth in a temporary state that people could see and then go back somewhere. Jesus was fully God – Jesus is fully God, Jesus is eternally fully God.

And it is in Him that all the fullness dwells. In Jesus Christ. Not in a church; not in a priesthood; not in a building; not in a sacrament; not in the saints; not in a method or a program — but in Jesus Christ Himself. Jesus is the sole “distribution point” for humanity, of God. So should we want more of God and all that He is, we will find it in Jesus Christ — and ONLY in Jesus Christ.

Then Paul mentions the mystery that has been hidden from the ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. Hidden. But not like an Agatha Christie mystery story that we can puzzle through and solve. Not a riddle to fathom. No, in the Bible a mystery is a truth that can only be known by revelation, never by intellect or intuition. Now it can be known, because it now has been revealed to His saints.

The specific mystery Paul refers to is this: that God had designed to grant the Gentiles the same privileges with the Jews, and make them His people who were not His people. And these privileges, are obtained not through rituals, laws to obey, things to do, but solely through believing upon Jesus. And one more thing – something that to me is beyond comprehension: that Jesus would actually indwell all believers. Indwell you and me. That’s the riches of the glory of this mystery.

Today I invite you to well on this truth dear friend: Christ in you — and you will COME ALIVE!

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Welcome to Hank’s Place – Florida!

Friends, no matter how unimportant, useless, we may feel, we have GOD’s attention always – just like the Colossians. Colossae was a small and unimportant city in the Roman empire, but Paul wrote to them because they MATTERED to Paul and to God!

In Colossae, just like today, religious mixing was going on, with people borrowing from this religion and from that and getting mixed up. Paul’s solution: a better understanding of Jesus. Knowing the real Jesus helps us to stay away from the counterfeit, no matter how it may be packaged.

So Paul tells them salvation is ALL GOD. GOD has qualified us. GOD has made us partakers of the rich inheritance in Him; it’s not our works. GOD has delivered us from the powers of darkness. GOD has translated us into the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, the son of His love. It is GOD the Father who has created the greatest love story ever told: His son Jesus and His bride: US! 

Now JESUS has provided redemption, forgiveness of sin, through His blood. His doing. His work. Here at the beach there are some really misguided people. Some poor souls try to emulate Buddha, who was thought to have achieved god status, becoming one with the universe, by SELF-EFFORT. That’s total rubbish! Deception! What if a lifeguard yelled to a drowning man to swim to shore so the lifeguard could meet him?

Thankfully, God didn’t tell us to try anyhow as we were drowning in sin. And God didn’t meet us halfway. God met us all the way — and invites us to accept it. And that redemption was accomplished at the CROSS, through Jesus’ BODY, not in hell. The price for our release was the blood of Jesus. This is one reason why pleading the blood of Jesus – in the right sense, not in a magical or superstitious sense – has such great significance in spiritual warfare. It shows the “receipt” of our lawful purchase as redeemed people.

Also, the blood of His cross has given us peace with God. We don’t make our own peace with God, but Jesus made peace for us through His work on the cross. The blood of the cross speaks to us of the real, physical death of Jesus Christ in our place, on our behalf, before God. That literal death in our place, and the literal judgment He bore on our behalf, is what saves us.

So believe upon Jesus dear friend! He makes us holy, and blameless, and above reproach; approved by God, and far beyond merely escaping the fires of hell, we COME ALIVE!

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Welcome to Hank’s Place – FLORIDA EDITION

Coming to you from Venice, Florida, which the locals refer to as Paradise. The epistle to the Philippians may be the Apostle Paul’s first letter. Paul began the church at Philippi 11 years earlier – that’s in Acts 16 where Paul and Silas were beaten and tossed in jail – and God delivered them. Now Paul, this time in a Roman jail, missing his beloved Philippians, writes them a letter. What should he write? GRACE and PEACE to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

GRACE and PEACE to you, dear friends, the GRACE and PEACE that only comes from the Father and Son. We need both in these tumultuous days!

Then Paul reminds them that this Christian life of ours came from God. It was begun by God, it is carried on by God and it will be completed by God on the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:7. Friends, the Christian life is not a ‘to do’ list, not instructions for godly living and working as if we were employees of some heavenly corporation. It is LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS, Glorious Life – Living In Him. Him living in us. Colossians 1:27.

Spurgeon comments, “It was indeed a good work begun in the Philippians and in all believers. The work of grace has its root in the DIVINE GOODNESS of the Father, it is planted by the SELF-DENYING GOODNESS of the Son, and it is daily watered by the GOODNESS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT; it springs from good and leads to good, and so is altogether good.”

So how do we partake of this goodness of God who is altogether good? We simply, well, not so simply maybe, YIELD to the Holy Spirit – Remember Steven in Acts 7? He summed up the rebellious actions of Israel in the days of Moses, through whom the Holy Spirit was speaking, saying in verse 51 “You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always resisting the Holy Spirit; as your ancestors did, so do you.” The natural man isn’t interested in responding to the Holy Spirit. But you and I are SUPER-natural now!

The Spirit will lead us into Goodness, Self-denying Goodness – as demonstrated by Jesus Christ. Don’t fear. Inwardly you want to yield to the Spirit for you have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus. Do it. Forget what is behind. Reach forward to what is ahead, the goal — the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus  — COME ALIVE!

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Welcome to Hank’s Place – FLORIDA EDITION

This episode of Hank’s Place is coming to you from Venice, Florida. And so will many future episodes, because the Lord has done Amazing Things for us; indeed, Amazing Grace-filled things.

For about 2 years Mary and I had a Holy Spirit ‘feeling’ that our work based out of Cedar Park Texas was coming to an end, and that the Lord had another place for us. As we began praying about this, the sense we had was that when it was time to move, things would happen very quickly, ’suddenly.’

I’m sharing this with you that you, my dear friend, may have encouragement and fresh hope. For I believe many are in a similar situation: the Spirit has been whispering ‘future things’ to you, but absolutely nothing is changing, nothing is different.

‘So where is His promise,’ the devil questions. Doubts arise; did God even speak to me? Was that my imagination? Friend, HOLD FAST the word of the Spirit. BELIEVE that word. Speak it ALOUD as something GOD has said to you, and that HE will accomplish it for you. His part is to MAKE it happen; your part is to BELIEVE it will happen! We can run into trouble when WE try to make the God thing happen by our own efforts. Check out king Saul for example in 1 Samuel 13.

Long story short, in a matter of days, from May 12th to July 1st, that’s 50 days, and 50 is God’s JUBILEE number, when debts are canceled, work is canceled, and lost goods and land restored, we sold our home in Cedar Park, retired from work at Apple, and moved into an apartment in Venice, Florida while our new home there was being completed.

That is a SUDDENLY my friend, a SUDDEN demonstration and outpouring of God’s Amazing Grace, Grace, Grace!

Today, if you have a promise or promises from God concerning you or loved ones; HOLD FAST your believing, HOLD FAST your confession of what He has promised. Yes, HOLD FAST to these truths, for your day of fulfillment is coming, the day that you will — COME ALIVE!

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Welcome to Hank’s Place  – CLASSIC SERIES – #67

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Welcome to Hank’s Place

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Welcome to Hank’s Place

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