Author: Hank

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A children’s song begins with the phrase, “My God is so BIG! So strong and so mighty.…” It’s true! Out of nothing, in a moment of time – no wait – there was no time and there was not even “nothing” before Creation.

In 6 days He created the heavens, the earth, living plants and creatures – and then said, “Let us make man in our image.” Gen 1:26.

Most atheists embrace a popular theory called the Big Bang. Instantly, the stuff of the universe sprang into being from a single point – all of it – including space and time. How? “We can’t say,” they say. Then, over a great period of time life began on planet earth. By chance? Ha!

Molecular biologists (modern science increasingly supports Creationism) have looked into the ‘random chance’ required to form a single protein molecule from the 150 amino acids required – supposing a primordial ocean full of amino acids under perfect conditions. They calculate there would be one chance in 10 to the 164th power – assuming 6 thousand million billion trillion trillion trillion connection attempts per minute (perfect conditions).

That’s a big number! How much time is that? After all our universe is 4.6 Billion years old according to unbelievers. Well, the biologists ask us to consider an amoeba, moving a 1 foot/year, crossing the entire observable universe of 90 billion light years, carrying 1 atom from planet earth and back. You can see we have already passed the supposed age of the universe. Well, suppose that amoeba keeps going until all the earth is transported across the universe.

Then add our entire solar system including the sun. Then add the entire Milky Way galaxy. Don’t stop there, but add the entire universe being transported 90 billion light years, one atom at a time. Is that enough time for ‘chance’ to create a protein molecule? No! Do this 56 million more times!

That gives you an idea of how long it would take for a single protein to randomly form. And the simplest cell has over 300 proteins. And they all have to form, then come together, and work together, in a protective membrane (where did that come from?), simultaneously, to form a living cell.

By the way, for evolution to create a human – that’s chance over time, has been calculated as 1 in 10 to the 2,825,000 power. As Albert Einstein has said, “God does not play dice!” There is NO CHANCE of that having happened.

God created the heavens and earth. God placed LIFE upon the earth. His crowning achievement: making man in His image. You are precious, amazing, in His image, and so loved by God Himself that He was willing to die for YOU rather than live without you – think about that – rejoice – and COME ALIVE!

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Easter Sunday. We celebrate with great joy, for Christ is Risen, He has risen indeed! Just 3 days earlier, Jesus, upon Calvary’s Cross, declared, “It is finished.” “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” John 19:30, Lu 23:46. Although the Jews and Romans were instruments of Jesus death – in truth He surrendered His life to the Father, dying for the sins of humanity.

Sunday morning the women go to the tomb to anoint Jesus’ body – but Jesus is not there! He has RISEN! This resurrection from the dead is proof that we have been justified, reconciled to God. Hallelujah!

Lu 24:5-8 records some women terrified at the sight of angels at the tomb who asked, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? …He is not here, but He has risen. Remember He told you He would rise again on the 3rd day.” They thought someone had stolen Jesus’ body. We would have too.

As the women leave, Jesus makes a special appearance to Mary. She hugs Him like crazy! Jesus says, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, `I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’”  Jn 20:17.

To fully accomplish redemption Jesus had to ascend – to sprinkle the genuine Mercy Seat in heaven with His own blood – MERCY. How unlike the blood of Able that cried out for vengeance from the earth. 

“My Father and your Father.” Whoa! Islam has no Father God. Buddhists don’t. Hindus don’t. But you do!

“… God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace we have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace we have been saved through faith – it is the gift of God” Eph 2:4-9.  

GO, in the grace of God, let others know Christ is Risen – help them COME ALIVE!

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We’ve been talking about “knowing the will of God” – “doing God’s will” or, “being obedient to His will.” Last time we found in Hebrews 8:11 that God said “I will be their God, And they shall be My people. And they shall not teach everyone his fellow citizen, And everyone his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ For all will know Me.” 

The word ‘know’ used here conveys the same intimacy as between a husband and wife. My friend, that’s God’s desire for us – to know Him that well! Is that awesome or what? It totally flies in the face of all that religious talk that places God far away in heaven somewhere and us so weak, feeble, insignificant, and certainly unworthy of notice by the Almighty.

We are sons of God! In union with Jesus. Sealed with the Spirit. His blood has cleansed us from all unrighteousness. We are forever accepted in the beloved.

So desire to be in His will, for God has purposed GOOD for you. Don’t be afraid! And God is well able to cause you to be in His will – smile.

Things still a little cloudy you say? I understand. There’s enough junk in the world coming at us all the time seeking to distract us from Jesus, get us drawn away. Well, there is something you can do about it. PRAY  ABOUT  IT. Not any old way. But like Paul did for the Colossians..

In Col 1:9 Paul writes, “… we (he and timothy) have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.” There you go! Pray you be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.

The next verse tells us what happens: we will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, we will please Him in all respects, we will bear fruit in every good work and we will increase in the knowledge of God….” Pretty good, eh?

TODAY — PRAY that for yourself – it’s God’s word to you – and COME ALIVE!

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Knowing God’s will, knowing what He desires for us and from us – we all want to know that, right? Yet most Christians over “doing God’s will” or simply “be obedient.” And the BIG part of these struggles is finding out just what IS God’s will.

Little do they, and perhaps you too, know that the BIG part is really the LITTLE part! Check out Hebrews 8:10-11 “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel (that’s the New Covenant in Jesus’ blood), After those days, (when the Old Covenant has been superseded) says the Lord: I will put My laws into their minds, And I will write them on their hearts. And I will be their God, And they shall be My people. “And they shall not teach everyone his fellow citizen, And everyone his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ For all will know Me.” 

Whoa – this is HUGE. Under the New Covenant, everyone will know the Lord. God has placed ‘laws of living’ – in our minds. He has written it here – upon our hearts. It is saying we have understanding of His will; and a heart of obedience. Our performance or lack thereof cannot change it.

You say you have no idea of His will from day to day? Not so! Just this morning for example, as Mary and I were getting up, I gently massaged her forehead and head. She exclaimed, “That feels so good! How did you know that it was hurting? I didn’t even know it was hurting until you put you hand on my head.” It’s Spring here in Texas and all the pollens in the air can make heads pretty stuffy. 

 Well, I didn’t know her head hurt. She didn’t know her head hurt. But the Spirit knew. I didn’t have a vision about it, no angels appeared, no thunderous voice from heaven. Without thinking, without praying, without meditating on a Scripture, I just stretched out my hand to the woman I love so much, and touched her. 

Walking in the Spirit, walking in the will of God, is like this example. So be confident today my friend. Want to be in the will of God? Then you ARE in the will of God. Just walk it out – and COME ALIVE!

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Last time we looked at 1 Peter 5:7, “Casting all our cares upon Him for He cares for you.” Everything that steals our peace of mind – even the little things in our day to day life, matters very much to our Father!

Then we looked at the preceding verses, 5 & 6, and heard Peter telling us to put on humility, for God is opposed to the proud but gives GRACE to the humble. Let us humble ourselves – like the children of Israel in the Exodus from Egypt. At the proper time, God exalted them. They went out victorious and although some things went wrong in the desert (unbelief), Israel made it through by God’s hand, conquering over 30 kings in the process and possessing their Promised Land.

Peter warns that the proud, those who deal with life on their terms, will not have God’s help. And nor will those who worry, for both do not cast life’s cares over to God. He wants to help, is waiting to help, but they are resisting Him.

There’s more to learn about worry and fear. If we look at the following verses 8 & 9, we find Peter urging us to be on the alert for the devil is roaring like a lion! I’ve been to Africa, and there is nothing like a lion roaring to send a shiver up your back, fill your heart with fear and urge you to take action, any action, to get away from there.

In the Garden of Eden the devil suggested to Adam and Eve that God could not be trusted; that He had questionable motives. But if THEY took action – they could become as gods.

No different today, friends. We have mixed up messages all around: God is good, but He is going to beat the daylights out of you. He loves you but might send cancer on you to teach you a lesson. Untruths urging us to distrust God – to discount the precious blood of the Lamb.

We’ve all heard those evil thoughts, “Don’t wait for God – He can’t be trusted – YOU TAKE ACTION – now!”

Don’t listen to those evil words. Humble yourself by rolling your cares onto God’s big big shoulders. Wait patiently for His deliverance – for He is faithful – and COME ALIVE!

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1 Peter 5:7 says, “Casting all our cares upon Him for He cares for you. This versus has a play on words in the Greek, where your care becomes God’s care. The words care and cares here are two entirely different words. Looking closely at their meanings makes this promise even more precious to us.

In the Greek text this word care is merimna. (Mer’-im-nah) It has to do with anxiety, stress, distractions, insecurities, worries – the kind of thoughts that rob peace of mind. Jesus used the word in Mt 6:25 when He said, “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?”

The second word, translated cares, is melo (mel’-o). It is a verb meaning to be concerned about or interested in. God is not only aware of us, but He is interested in us. Even more, He cares for us with deepest affection, and watches over us very carefully!

We can cast all our worries, insecurities, doubts, concerns – everything that steals our peace of mind – upon Him, for our well-being in day to day life matters very much to Almighty God, our Father!

Now, get this: in the 2 preceding verses Peter tell us to put on humility, for God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble. Let us humble ourselves – under God’s Mighty Hand, he says – which is a reference to the Exodus from Egypt. God WILL exalt us at the proper time, he assures us.

However, the proud, the disdainful, the presumptuous, when life comes at them – POW! – DEAL with it themselves. But, did you know that worry is also form of pride because it involves taking concerns upon ourselves instead of entrusting them to God. “I” have to take care of these things, “I” will figure this out, and so on. We get anxious, depressed, and wonder why God is not helping. Now you know!

So today, my friend, it’s time to roll those cares onto God’s shoulders – and COME ALIVE!

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The Gospel is good news – always. There is never any bad news in the Good News!

I’ve spoken many times about the pitfalls of mixing the 2 primary covenants found in Scripture: Old Covenant from Mt Sinai – where the LAW was handed down. And the New Covenant, begun at Calvary – where GRACE was rained down upon us, and continues to rain.

Mix them together – and most people do – and it is easy to get confused. Double-minded, says James. The Law made nothing perfect. The Law did not take away sin. The Law did not enable us to overcome sin. Law did not help us do right – not in the very least little bit!

It just told us right from wrong – and commanded us to do ‘right.’ With punishment in store for failure. The Law was given through Moses, but grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. John 1:17.

Law had a good purpose, described in Gal 2:24-27. To lead us to despair of our own abilities and to place our trust in Christ. With our trust in Christ, we are justified by FAITH. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under that tutor, the Law. We have become sons of God. That’s more than a nice expression: it is the TRUTH!

The Law has expired for we who have clothed ourselves with Christ. So then, why do we all tend to mix them together at times? Well, God leaves us IN the world, which has a 100% total mindset of performance. Perform. Achieve. Attain. The Law at work – driving men to Christ if they will only open their hearts to listen.

Although we are in the world, let us as Gal 5:1 declares, stand firm in the Spirit. Reminding ourselves that we have been crucified with Christ and already risen with Him in new life. We choose to walk by faith and the Spirit, and not by obedient performances to some standard.

Today my friend, may the Spirit of the Living God help you to walk IN this world, by FAITH in Christ Jesus, in His finished work – and COME ALIVE!

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The Gospel is good news – always. Never any bad news in the Good News!

When we see Jesus in the Gospels we see God. We study Jesus in the Gospels, we come to understand the character, nature, of God, for Jesus is the exact representation of God. To see Jesus is the see God. Hebrews 1:3, John 1:18 & 14:9. 

Puzzled over the will of God? Just look at Jesus. Don’t let religious thinking, mixed covenant thinking, worldly or demonic thinking get you confused.

We know sickness is not from God. Ever. How do we know? We look at Jesus! Who did Jesus make sick or refuse to heal? To whom did He say “This sickness is from God teaching you a valuable lesson that God’s grace and mercy and kindness could not.”

What about crushing? You know, the parallel comparing us with an olive – where we are told that just like an olive we need to be squeezed, crushed, before the oil of the Spirit, the good stuff, will be revealed to the world.

Not true! It presumes you are still filled with pride and wickedness and it has to be crushed out of you. My friend, you have died with Jesus and risen with Him. He is in you; you are in Him. A new creation! To whom did Jesus say the terrible stuff they were experiencing was crushing by His father to cleanse them from unrighteousness and sin, stuff His blood could not do. Ridiculous! Who did Jesus advise when they came to Him for help that He had to leave them alone for the crushing to be completed? No one!

The storms of life REVEAL our faith – they do not build faith. Check out the disciples in the storm on the lake in Mk 4. Jesus said to His disciples, “Where is your faith?” NOT this storm is building your faith, aren’t you glad to be in it? And He immediately stopped it, right?

Faith comes from hearing the word of God concerning Jesus! Ro 10:17.

Yes, in this world we WILL have tribulations – BUT Jesus didn’t say “The Father has sent them to grow us up.” He said, “Take courage for I have overcome the world.” Jn 16:33. It’s time to believe the truth, my friend, and COME ALIVE – for the Good News IS Good News!

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What is heaven like? John 14:1-2 provides a clue – it says, “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places (mansions in the King James). If it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you.”

Jesus told His disciples he would go and prepare homes, mansions, places in His Father’s house for us. The Father’s house is heaven, and we each have our own place there, prepared by Jesus.

Out of the economic depression of the 1930’s there arose a ‘mansion mentality.’ God’s people, having lost hope of ever prospering in this life, began to dream of one day living in a lovely mansion in heaven. Numerous songs were written about our mansion just over the hilltop in heaven. I’m sure you’ve heard one or two. 

Is that heaven then, a nice home and people to invite over for choir practice? Is there more to be found with the Creator of the universe?

Ahhh…. The Greek word used for mansion is ‘mone’ – which has a number of possibilities. ‘Mone,’ according to lexicographers – those are the people who put together dictionaries, has the sense of mobility and stability. Stability in your mobility. Thus these ‘mansions’ – can be thought of like stopping places, way stations, along the path of the righteous. 

Carrying this a bit further, we might imagine heaven as a place of unfolding vistas, new horizons, new sights to be seen – from our awesome Father – wonders that never cease, oh hallelujah! 

‘Mone’ also brings with it a sense of rest. Our mansion, this way-station is also solid, stable. Restful. There is rest for us in the midst of the continuous unfolding of God’s eternal purpose.

God’s plans are far beyond what we could ever imagine – the future laid up for us is fantastic. But you don’t have to wait, for Col 1:13 states we have already been translated, like Enoch, into the Kingdom of Jesus Christ.

So live this earthly life today – as a resident of the Kingdom – with a confident assurance of your future, and COME ALIVE!

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This is a place–of GRACE.

Col 1:13-14 For He (the Father) rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” We believed – God performed the rescue, the forgiving, the translating into the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. That’s GRACE in action.

How about Col 1:27 “to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” The fullness of God, living in us, never to leave us, never to forsake us. True! It’s GRACE again! No wait! That’s nothing less than HYPER GRACE and it’s from our Father!

Because of the GRACE of God “… the life which we now live in the flesh we can live by FAITH IN the Son of God.…” Gal 2:20.

By Grace we have been made complete in Him (Col 2:10). And made alive together with Him (Col 2:13). By grace we’ve been raised up with Him and hidden IN HIM (Col 3:3). It’s time for us to throw off the cloak of rejection and unworthiness and darkness and walk in the Light and Love of God, for we are accepted in Him.

Consider a homeless beggar on the streets. Suppose by amazing chance he is chosen to be prince. He did not earn it; it was bestowed upon him. New clothes, new hairstyle, new living quarters: a palace. With attendants for his every need. With authority in the realm. With royal opportunities everywhere. There’s only one thing: he has to believe it and walk in it. If old friends ask him to booze or shoot it up and sleep in the gutters – he could, but in no way should – for he is a new man; time to walk in the truth. The old man has passed away – all things have become new. That formerly homeless individual will need to renew his mind to the truth.

It’s the same for us my friend. Isn’t it time we stopped believing who we once were? It’s time to proudly wear those fancy duds of the Kingdom: righteousness, grace, truth, integrity – and COME ALIVE!

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