Hank’s Place

Welcome to Hank’s Place!

Remember, the Gospel is SIMPLE – if it is not simple, it’s probably NOT the GOSPEL.

At Hank’s Place we emphasize the New Covenant – it’s BETTER than the Old. “So what,” you say? “I don’t go around sacrificing bulls and goats and taking trips to Jerusalem. What’s it matter to me?”

My dear friend, do you try to keep the 10 Commandments? Then, your head, like so many other heads, especially most preacher’s heads, is filled with a mixture of the Old and the New. Sure, the 10 were God given and holy, but they were a ministry of DEATH (2 Cor 3:7). They were killers because they presented what God demanded, but without the POWER to keep or fulfill them! God required, and you tried your best—and failed.

In 70 AD the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans. This presented a huge problem for the Jews: now they couldn’t even attempt to fulfill God’s commandments about feasts and sacrifices in Jerusalem. So the leaders got together and came up with modern Jewish theology, rewriting God’s Old Covenant words to fit their situation; basically saying, “Try your best and God will reward you.”

Hey, you DO NOT go about rewriting God’s words! It WILL NOT WORK!

In the New Covenant, what the Lord requires, He PROVIDES for you, according to the riches of His GRACE in Christ Jesus!

God gave His best in the form of Jesus Christ. Jesus gave His perfect life for our redemption. Make your home in the New Covenant, my friend.

Believe it. Receive it. Rest from ‘trying harder.’ It’s time for you to  Come Alive!

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You are at Hank’s Place – in Medicine Park, OK, the nation’s only “Cobblestone Community”

The cobblestones are granite, mostly round, and everywhere. They are used throughout the town. Shops, homes, walls, walkways, even pavement.

But if you remove even a single stone, the community will fine you $500. Because these common stones are PRECIOUS to them!

Simon was given the title “Peter” meaning ‘small stone’ by Jesus. He understood he was not the only stone in town, for in 1 Peter 2 he writes of Jesus the Living Stone, the Capstone, the Cornerstone, and that we believers are also living stones, and are being built up as a spiritual house with Jesus as the Corner and Cap stone.

Peter indicates we are being fitted tightly together as God’s house, His holy habitation—each of us PRECIOUS in His sight!

My friend, YOU matter to God! YOU ARE PRECIOUS to Him. Don’t let the world or the devil try to tell you otherwise. Let the Holy Spirit complete His task of fitting you in His Body—and Come Alive!

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Mary and I recently visited Medicine Park, OK. Population 400. Having a history dating back hundreds of years, the Plains Native Americans visiting to find refreshment in the waters of Medicine Creek which they believed had healing and life giving powers.

We’ve been sharing about the New Covenant and how much BETTER it is than the Old. Jesus shared with a Samaritan women at Jacob’s well. He offered her Living Water that would quench one’s thirst forever, and for those who partook it would become a well of water springing up to eternal life.

And on the great day (eighth day) of the Feast of Booths, while the priest was pouring out an empty pitcher on dry ground (for the previous 7 days he would have poured out a pitcher filled with water from the pool at Bethesda), Jesus was shouting nearby, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” John 7:37-39

God never intended for you to live life apart from Him. Since Pentecost (Acts 2) the Holy Spirit has been ‘poured forth’ to indwell and empower us to live life to the full, in joy, the joy of Jesus. Friend, don’t delay, receive the Holy Spirit today—and Come Alive!

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God made promises to Abraham – read it in Genesis chapters 12-22. Abraham BELIEVED that God would keep His word, fulfill those promises, and Abraham was counted as righteous, approved, in God’s eyes. He, and those who follow Abraham in like faith INHERIT the promises, just as Abraham did.

INHERITANCE has nothing to do with performance. You could be serving time in prison and still inherit a fortune from your distant cousin twice removed! INHERITANCE has nothing to do with you, but EVERYTHING to do with who wrote the will and testament and what they have ordered to be done.

This New Covenant is so much better than the Old. The Old stated, “if you do this you will be blessed; if you fail or do that other thing you will be cursed.” It was up to you, friend, to GET IT RIGHT!

The New, as stated in 2 Peter 1:4, says “…He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them we may become partakers of the divine nature….”

Dear dear Christian, thanks to Jesus and Calvary, we have precious promises offered us by God, who cannot lie. To receive them, BELIEVE them, that they are true, and that the one who gave them is TRUE. Because it IS True!

Let go of your performance thinking – it’s not easy – it has pervaded the church – let it go. Then, BELIEVE, and RECEIVE, as a child of God, an heir according to the promises!

Do that, friend and you will find you have Come Alive!

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A friend recently expressed fear in reading Ps 91. That’s right, F E A R. They read verse 15, “He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.” And the fear? “What if I don’t call upon Him when I’m in trouble? Will He rescue me? Will I be lost? How can I be sure I will call on Him?”

Friend, the New Covenant is so much BETTER than the Old. God’s will (in this case that you call upon Him in time of trouble) is written upon our minds and our hearts. So in a time of trouble you KNOW to call upon the Lord, your heart WANTS to call upon the Lord, and thus you WILL call upon the Lord! No need to fear!

And it gets BETTER still! For He has given us the Holy Spirit to help us in our weaknesses and infirmities. There is no way you will fail because it’s not about you, it’s all about JESUS! And there is no telling what other GOOD THINGS Jesus will do on our behalf when trouble comes around, dear friend.

In Jesus you are seated in heavenly places: you rule, bro! You rule, sis!

Isn’t it wonderful to Come Alive?

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In the previous blog I’d spoken of Jeremiah’s prophecy: a new and much better covenant was coming!

The OLD: full of fleshly conditions to be fulfilled in our own strength.
The NEW: unconditional. God would be OUR God, We would be HIS people. A covenant of mercy and grace. He would remember our sins no more, and forever.

And there’s more GOOD NEWS! It says,
“I will put My laws into their minds,
And I will write them on their hearts.”

This is beyond awesome, friends! It answers those questions, “What is the will of God for my life? What am I supposed to be doing?”

Meaning what? Instead of a rulebook to follow to the best of our abilities and subject to various interpretation and application, what He desires is already IN OUR MINDS, perfectly applied to each situation. And even better, our hearts cry out “Yes, Lord! We WANT to do your will!” And even better beyond that, He has given us the Holy Spirit to empower us to accomplish His will despite the odds or demons or whatever.

I think that’s pretty good, don’t you? Forget trying to keep the Commandments; stop losing sleep over the will of God. Just do what He has written upon you – with GUSTO.

Feels good to Come Alive, doesn’t it?!!!

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Most Christians are aware that the new covenant in Jesus’ blood is far superior to the old. The old, aka The LAW, was CONDITIONAL. It depended upon US doing OUR part. Check out Deut 28:1 and 13. IF we did OUR part, God would bless us. IF we FAILED to do our part, we would be cursed.

Plain and simple.

The old covenant, INCLUDING THE 10 COMMANDMENTS, was a ministry of DEATH. Check out 2 Cor 3:7. It inflamed sin, gave sin its power, then condemned us when we sinned. Don’t ever say Christians should follow the 10 Commandments; you are putting a death sentence on those who hear you.

Read on.

After centuries of failure by mankind to ‘get it right,’ the prophet Jeremiah was given a hint of the future: a better covenant was coming!

“Behold, days are coming, says the Lord,
When I will effect a new covenant…
Not like the covenant which I made with their fathers….
“For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
After those days, 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,
From the least to the greatest of them.
“For I will be merciful to their iniquities,
And I will remember their sins no more.”
(Heb 8:7-12)

For this blog, catch “I will be their God, and they shall be My people” Do you see? NO CONDITIONS! There are no IF’s. He IS our God; He IS merciful to our iniquities, and He remembers our sins NO MORE. No wonder Paul calls it the Gospel of this grace (Acts 20:24). The Gospel is not about you measuring up to God’s standards; it’s about who He is and His nature, full of grace, mercy, and truth, who came and rescued you and translated you into his kingdom.

Call upon Jesus! He will be your God and you will belong to Him who is merciful to our iniquities and remembers our sins no more!

You are forever free from condemnation: you have Come Alive!

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Seems like EVERYWHERE we go, Mary and I encounter sad, struggling Christians, full of sin consciousness, ever striving to do better. They are working hard, but it’s NOT WORKING!

Remember those Israelites who kept themselves out of the Promised Land? Sure you do! They could not enter because (see Heb 3&4) they refused God’s rest. They kept up with their own works.

Today Jesus has one work for us to do: “This is the work of God—that you believe in the One He has sent.” Jn 6:29

Want some peace with God? Joy? Confidence? Believe in Jesus! Here’s the part we so easily miss because our world is so caught up in performance: Jesus did His work, and SAT DOWN.

Some misinformed leaders might tell you that the rest is up to you—but wait—I am talking about THE REST of God. It is written He has “raised us up with Him, and SEATED US with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” Eph 2:6

Don’t you  see? Working religious stuff to please God does not cut it. It will not give you a moment of peace, favor, blessing: NOTHING. Believe on His sacrifice: JESUS, then enter His rest.

Stop worrying about getting it right. JESUS got it all right. Follow Him; your life will fall into place. It will ALL be all right, my friend!

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Want to make America GREAT again?
Want to RESIST all things Trumpish?

Is one right and the other wrong?

WWJD?

This one doesn’t take lots of prayer and intercession to find the answer. Check that Bible out, folks!

“First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.” [1 Tim 2:1-3]

Our rulers don’t need to be saints: whoever they are: pray and thank God for them!

“Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.” …Render to all what is due them…. Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. [Ro 13:1-2, 7-8]

Rebellion against authority: not a good idea.

Remind them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed, to malign no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing every consideration for all men. For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. [Titus 3:1-3]

That last verse sound like our media today: let us pray they get the real picture!

Today, why not practice Paul’s words? I bet you’ll get your joy back in no time!

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