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Grace – God’s favor, FREELY given us. God’s grace supernaturally empowers us to be and to live as He intended. It is an expression of His unconditional love. Experiencing God’s grace leaves us better than it found us!

Jesus revealed that God sits upon a throne of grace, not judgment. Hebrews 4:16. Some folk come short of God’s matchless grace by believing we are saved by grace, and now have to maintain our position with God through right-living, and commandment keeping. No.

True, we ARE saved by grace, through faith, Ephesians 2:8, but that is just the beginning, dear friend.

Dr Paul Ellis in writing of God’s grace, points out that it is God’s grace that saves us, forgives us, justifies us, and raise us to new life. His grace is not just for “sinners,” for His grace both saves us and KEEPS US. 1 Peter 5:10. His grace builds us up, empowers us to good works, makes us fruitful, prospers us and enables us to reign in life. Check it out in your Bible!

In the Gospels, we see Jesus preaching good news to the poor, loving sinners, forgiving and healing those who had done nothing to deserve God’s grace. He revealed a God who loves us like a Father and asks only that we trust Him.

Grace is a free gift. We can’t earn it but we can fall from it by trying to keep the law; those check boxes of “do’s and don’ts” we all have struggled with. I’ve heard it said many times that God gives us His grace to keep all His commandments. Starting with the big 10 that came through Moses. Moses? Really? The Law? This is a mixed grace message, for it puts the emphasis on you and what you do; not what Jesus has accomplished for you. If you think of yourself as a servant of God rather than His beloved son or daughter, then I suggest you are still short of the abundance of God’s grace available to you.

Does God gives us His grace in order to do good works? God gives us grace because He loves us. There is no pressure, only the freedom to be who God made us to be.

Are there limits to His grace? John 1:16 says, “For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace.” He is saying we are receiving limitless grace from the fullness of God’s supply. “Grace upon grace” means God can bless us with wave after wave of grace, like ocean waves, that will never run out!

If we think we have a handle on the grace of God, we don’t. His love and grace surpass all knowledge. Whatever we imagine His grace to be, His grace is greater still!

Allow God to flood your life with His grace. You’ll – COME ALIVE!

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In the first chapter of John’s gospel, he writes that Jesus came into the world but the world did not recognize Him; came to His own, but His own did not receive Him. His own people couldn’t see Him for who He really was, and neither did the world whom He created. Amazing.

Jesus, 2nd person of the Trinity; born to Mary. Theologians agree He was fully man but some have issues with His being fully God. Only human? Partly God? Fully God as well? Did He lay aside some/all/none of His divinity? Philippians 2:7 says Jesus ‘emptied Himself’ taking the form of a man. What’s that mean? Was Jesus less than fully God?

Thankfully other Scriptures provide clarification. In Colossians 1:19, Paul writes that “it was the Father’s good pleasure for ALL the FULLNESS to dwell in Him (Christ).” And in Colossians 2:9, Paul writes, “in Christ ALL the FULLNESS of the Deity lives in bodily form.”

So Jesus in the flesh was something like the king or prince in those movies where they off their royal robes and rings and dress like a commoner and they are not recognized for WHO THEY TRULY ARE — until later in the story. They remained fully the king or prince; it was the people who did not recognize them.

These passages powerfully affirm the fact that Jesus IS God. The fullness, or totality, of God is found in Christ. Everything that can be said of God can be said of Jesus Christ.

So what is this FULLNESS? The fullness of God is the totality of everything God is—His attributes, His character, His perfection, His holiness, His power, His love, and so forth. The fullness of God is His complete nature; it is who He is.

Now for the point of today’s message – and it is incredible..…

In Colossians 2:10, Paul says that in Christ, we OURSELVES have been “brought to fullness.” As Christians we find our completeness in Christ and no one else. Jesus, who is the fullness of God in bodily form, makes us WHOLE by His grace. The nature, the fullness, of GOD HIMSELF, has been given us.

Allow yourself to grow into Him. Paul in Ephesians 3:19 at the end of a lengthy prayer, Paul asks God, by His power, to grace the Ephesians. “…May (they) be filled to all the fullness of God,” he prays. Filled to ALL the fullness of God? Paul is praying we experience the FULL indwelling of God! Whoa!!!

As God indwells believers, we become “partakers of the divine nature.” 2 Peter 1:4. The rich treasures of God are available to us, enabling us to live more like Christ.

That fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…. We have the fruit within, so let’s let it out!

Dear friend, may you be filled completely with His fullness, so that His character, His attributes, and His love define your existence. Believe it is possible; Paul prayed for it. Receive it — others will remark, “My, how you have…” – COME ALIVE!

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Jesus last words on the Cross: “It is finished.” John 19:30. The CROSS was the culmination of Jesus’ ministry on earth. Up to that time the Gospel accounts record a time when the OLD COVENANT was still in effect. Under the OLD there were a great many rules and regulations to observe before one could be ‘right with God.’

Because everyone was under this Old Covenant, one could reasonably expect Jesus would only heal, deliver, help, those who were right with God. Right? Those “A” students of the Law. Like scribes and Pharisees.

But wait! The Gospels show the weak, the failures, the “F” students receiving from Jesus. You and me, my friend. Jesus, was by His sacrifice at Calvary, would bring in the NEW COVENANT, a covenant full of God’s saving grace. A covenant where we are saved by grace, through faith in Jesus, not by being an “A” student of the Law. Ephesians 2:8-9.

Wherever Jesus went He offered the blessings, the grace, the benefits of the NEW COVENANT to anyone who would believe in Him. What a mixed up time! The Law in effect, holding everyone in bondage — except when the one greater than the Law was present.

For example, the woman with the issue of blood, therefore unclean, found in Matthew 9, Mark 5 and Luke 8, broke the Law to press through the crowd and touch Jesus. She was instantly healed. Her faith in Jesus superseded her breaking the Law.

And the lame man at the pool of Bethesda, John 5, believed Jesus and rose up healed. He must have been a sinner for Jesus told him to go and ‘sin no more.’ What happened to him was impossible under the Old Covenant.

Jesus was the embodiment of the Kingdom of God. In Luke 17:21 Jesus said the Kingdom of God was in their midst. The Kingdom of God was among them because the King was among them. The kingdom can be described as God’s reign and His rule over all things. Certainly demonstrated in the Gospels where time and again the ‘old’ was superseded by the ‘new.’ Why? Because of the presence of the King.

Point for today: where is the King? Many scriptures indicate He now dwells within believers, Col 1:27 for example. Where we go the Kingdom of God goes, just as it did with Jesus. The kingdom’s righteousness, peace, and joy, favor, blessings, grace, mercies go with us, and flow through us – to touch this suffering generation. BELIEVE IT – RECEIVE IT!

Then turn darkness into light, condemnation into liberty. Let the world know Jesus is alive, that God loves them and wants to help. If they will believe, they will be able to receive. Walk with great confidence for your King and His Kingdom indwells you. It’s time to help others – COME ALIVE!

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Mark’s gospel chapter 1, versus 14-15 describes the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. “Now after John was taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

The Message Bible has Jesus saying, “Time’s up! God’s kingdom is here. Change your life and believe the Message.”

Jesus came on the scene preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God; the message of God’s rule on earth. Most people wanted a political kingdom to replace the oppressive Romans. However, Jesus brought a kingdom of love, of grace, of humility. He offered it to everyone, not only the Jew; to be received voluntarily, not imposed by force.

Think of the wickedness seeking to be imposed upon us in America today. Words like oppressive, subjugation, law, and force come to mind. O God, raise up the righteous and cast down the wicked while America still exists!

When Jesus said, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand,” He wanted people to know that it was near – as close as your hand. It wasn’t distant. NOW was the time for them to encounter the kingdom of God. True, people could not be born again until after Calvary, but with Jesus present, right before you, it was time to change!

The word Jesus used for “time” in the Greek is ‘kairos,’ meaning “the strategic opportunity, the decisive time.” His idea, “The strategic time for the kingdom of God is now. NOW is your time of opportunity. Don’t let it pass you by.”

Hmmm. As Hank always says: Today, NOW, is Your day — to Come Alive!

The word “Repent” means change of direction. Jesus wanted people to know they could not enter the kingdom going the same way they’d been going. They had to change direction to experience the kingdom of God.

You see, repentance is NOT about feelings, feeling sorry for your sin. Repent isn’t a “feelings” word. It is an action word. Jesus tells us to make a change of mind, not merely to feel sorry for our sins. Change direction!

Now, this is important: repentance does not describe something we must do before we come to God. Repentance describes what coming to God is like. Example: if you are in New York, and I tell you to come to Denver, I don’t need to say “Leave New York and come to Denver.” To come to Denver is to leave New York, and if you haven’t left New York, you certainly can’t come to Denver. We can’t come to the kingdom of God unless we leave our sin and self-life.

And when Jesus said “believe in the gospel,” He used the word ‘pisteuo,’ speaking of a relationship of trust and dependence.

Today, if you are still seated upon the throne of your life, get off it! STOP living a life of “I will.” Change direction today. Put your trust in Jesus who died for you. Head to Denver from my example.

You’ll – COME ALIVE!

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By the Grace of God – His favor, blessings, mercies, lovingkindness — are ours — and to all who believe in Jesus and His mighty work at Calvary!

Colossians 1:22 tells us He has now reconciled us in His body of flesh through death, in order to present us before Him, holy, blameless and beyond reproach. That means we ALREADY ARE who we have been wanting to be, struggling to be! And someone who the devil whispers we will NEVER be!!!

The next verse may appear to add a condition to this truth, for it says, “if indeed we continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not shifting from the hope of the gospel.” Don’t freak out, dear friend! Paul is simply telling us to persevere in the truth of what Jesus Christ has already done for us, and not give heed to words, or thoughts from the accuser of the brethren, the devil.

Some devilish thoughts come from pulpits declaring WE must try harder, work harder, that we must, in our own strength, put off and put on. And until we succeed in all the areas of weakness we are ‘not there yet.’ This is NOT TRUE.

It is the Blood of Jesus that has already cleansed us from ALL unrighteousness. We already ARE that spotless Christian for we’ve been placed IN Christ and Christ is IN us. We rely now on His power to put off anything of darkness, be it habits, practices, addictions, fleshy desires, whatever. We RESIST the devil in God’s strength.

The third chapter of Colossians is amazing. It says if we have been born again, to keep seeking the things that are above, where Christ is. To set our minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth. For we HAVE died (to this world), and our life is hidden with Christ in God.

The result? We are to treat the parts of our earthly bodies as dead to sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which this is idolatry. Yes, at one time we walked in those evil deeds, and many others. But NOW, Paul says, let us rid ourselves of all of them — for we HAVE put on the new self, which is being renewed, to a true knowledge, according to the image of the One who created it.

Can you grasp this truth? We ARE NEW creations. We HAVE received Christ even as He has received us. We are learning by the Spirit more and more of who we really are, and no longer DOING those deeds of darkness we once did.

Paul closes the chapter saying, “Whatever we do in word or deed, let us do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.”

Today, let us live in the freedom Jesus purchased for us. Live according to the treasures of the Kingdom of God of which we are members.

Live life loving lavishly – COME ALIVE!

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In Matthew 28:18 Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations.” ALL authority Jesus said, has been given Him, in heaven and on earth. ALL means ALL. And with that authority Jesus commissioned ALL His followers, ordinary people including you and me, anyone and everyone who believes in Him, to proclaim the Gospel, as we go – everywhere.

Pay attention: The One having SUPREME Authority has spoken. To YOU. To ME. The One with ALL Authority has commissioned YOU, and ME. To share this Good News of Jesus Christ, God’s Savior, with the world.

Do you believe that? I doubt it. Do you see yourself as qualified to share it? I doubt it. Why? Because it is so rarely taught in churches. In many churches the Great Commission has been rephrased: GO – SIT in our pew. Contribute sacrificially to the local vision. You are not yet qualified for anything else. You’ll never be qualified. You do not have the credentials, the knowledge, the faith, whatever, to truly GO and share the Gospel. You are – inadequate. Keep sitting until you are old and gray and cannot GO, but keep on giving your time, your talent, and your treasure to our local vision of glory.

You say that cannot be? Ha! If your idea of proclaiming the Good News is to say, “come to my church,” then I suggest it is so for you. But that’s not the truth! Remember Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 3:5-6 “…but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit…”

We all are adequate to share the Gospel. Jesus has commissioned us; the Holy Spirit of the Living God, empowers us!

The Gospel is summarized by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 “…that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” We were born again when we believed on this Jesus Christ and confessed Him with our mouths.

No one is more qualified to share your testimony of Jesus alive from the dead, of Jesus, God’s sacrificial lamb, of Jesus washing YOUR sins away, of Jesus by God’s grace giving you eternal life. Far from being unqualified dear friend, NO ONE IS MORE QUALIFIED than YOU to testify to this mighty Good News that is true for anyone who will believe.

You may not think you have the words, the Scriptures memorized – whatever. DON’T WORRY. Ask God to give you the words. Ask God to confirm your gospel testimony in the hearts of the hearers. He will. He will. HE WILL!!!

People will be set free, born again. They will – COME ALIVE!

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Episode 433 of Hank’s Place was entitled, “Resist the Devil.” The devil comes, either in person or via his underling demons, to everyone. To lead us astray, be consumed by various lusts and every evil thing. Blind us from the truth. However, believers are empowered – by God – with the ability to resist him. To reject those evil thoughts. To reject those desires. 1 Peter says if we will resist, the devil WILL flee from us!

And I pointed to the Great Commission, spoken by Jesus to ALL of His followers, including you and me, beginning in Mark 16:15, to GO and share with all creation the Good News. And get this; verse 17 undeniably states God’s AUTHORITY and POWER will accompany OUR proclaiming – assuming we actually believe it; for it says, “These signs WILL accompany those who have believed. And the first one given is: “IN MY NAME they will cast out demons….”

Demons to not have authority over or in the lives of believers. Believers have authority over demons to cast them out. Command them to GO as Jesus did and they must go! In fact, they WILL flee in terror from believers, even demons of fear!

But you must believe you have been redeemed from your past life of sin, believe Jesus’ blood has cleansed you, believe you have been given authority to preach Good News – just as the Bible declares! Start believing today if you haven’t already. Receive grace from heaven. Share the Gospel concerning Jesus Christ. Set the captive free, even those demonized to the point of possession. Demon possession, demons controlling people, occurs when a person has yielded their free will to the desires of demons for so long that they no longer have the strength to resist the devil.

I know this may be new ground to you, dear friend, so I urge you to read those gospel accounts of Jesus’ ministry, the accounts of people set free in the book of Acts. See yourself, Christian, little anointed one, ministering in like fashion. It is our inheritance, this godly authority. It’s by God’s grace that we can demonstrate the devil’s defeat, something Jesus did at Calvary, and something the devil tries very hard to conceal from the world. Some very common areas of demonic activity these days are fears, infirmities, sicknesses, and sexual sins.

Honor Jesus Christ. Keep seeking to know Him more, be like Him in your walking and talking. Summon the courage to ask Him to use you in demonstrating satan’s defeat. He will!

People will be set free – they will COME ALIVE!

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Here at Hank’s Place I enjoy sharing with you the benefits of living in the NEW COVENANT, free from the Law.

Under the old we had to take steps to get holy. Becoming holy was up to us; it was all on our shoulders to be holy, which God commanded. For God said in Leviticus 19:2, “Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy.” Peter in 1 Peter 1:15–16 stresses the importance of cultivating personal holiness by referring to this passage, telling us to no longer be conformed to the former lusts which were ours in ignorance.

But is it still all up to us? Please understand: in the new covenant there’s only one step, and it’s JESUS. JESUS is our holiness from God. That’s 1 Corinthians 1:30 which tells us Jesus became to us our sanctification. We ARE the holy temple of the Holy Spirit. It is all God’s doing, and it is DONE. 1 Corinthians 6:19.

Holiness is no longer something we should strive to attain; no, it is something we ‘work out.’ Philippians 2:12. We already are holy through Jesus; Scripture exhorts us to “be holy,” meaning we BE the holy saints we already are.

Today dear friend, live out of your TRUE IDENTITY in Christ instead of living in a false, half-holy and struggling to get holy notion perpetrated by theologians stuck in the old covenant, filled with unbelief that God could be so GOOD to those who believe in Christ Jesus! The Gospel is GOOD NEWS, remember?

An example? Say you are a shovel, shoveling manure in the pigpen. And struggling to be that perfect, spotless silver spoon in the manor house that God said one day you’ll be, and already are, positionally. Or, say you already are that silver spoon, but spooning manure in the pigpen. And now letting go of the former manner of behavior, and entering into the manor house to function as the spoon you already are, period.

Think about it. “…prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control…live as God’s obedient children.” 1 Peter 1:13-14, for that is who you already are.

You’ll  COME ALIVE!

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Last Sunday we celebrated Resurrection Day – He is risen, He is risen indeed, hallelujah!

Today I invite you to do your own study on the word “POWER” as found in the New Testament. The Kingdom of God is full of God’s POWER. When Jesus walked the earth, He ministered the word of God in the POWER of God. Signs, wonders, miracles, healings — they were common in His ministry. In Matthew 13:54 the people of His hometown said, “Where did this man acquire this wisdom and these miraculous POWERS?” The word of God accompanied by the POWER of God.

In Mark 9:1 Jesus indicated the Kingdom of God was coming (to earth) with POWER, within the lifetime of those disciples. And in Luke 24:49, after His resurrection, He said, “And behold, I am sending the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with POWER from on high.” The promise of the Father was the Holy Spirit. He was absolutely needed to accomplish the mission of proclaiming the Good News to all creation – and the Spirit’s manifestation Jesus described as POWER from on high.

Luke again records Jesus speaking of this POWER in Acts 1:8, “but you will receive POWER when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and as far as the remotest part of the earth.”

This POWER in our own lives enables us to witness effectively. I am amazed at how theologians often are quick to deny this POWER as having value or even existence in the world today. Hey, “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one,” 1 John 5:19. Doesn’t it make sense that God would bestow the greater POWERS of heaven upon believers who believe it in order to make ruin of the devil and his works? It does to me!

The Apostles had it – Acts 4:33 says, “And with great POWER the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all.” That deacon Stephen had it, for Acts 6:8 says, “And Stephen, full of grace and POWER, was performing great wonders and signs among the people.”

Paul had it. In 1 Corinthians 2:4-5 Paul says, “and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of POWER so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of mankind, but on the POWER of God.” And Paul also said genuine preachers of the Gospel had it too. That’s 1 Corinthians 4:19-20, “But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I shall find out, not the words of those who are arrogant, but their POWER, for the kingdom of God is not in words, but in POWER.

Dear friend, I know you want to share the Good News with others. So ask Jesus for this same POWER to enhance your testimony — because the world – out there, needs to – COME ALIVE!

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Good News! The tomb – is empty. He is not there, He has risen just as He said. Our God keeps His promises!

He has carried our sin and shame away. He has given us new lives as His children. We are heirs of the Living, Almighty God! He has translated us out of the domain of darkness and into His marvelous light, the Kingdom where Jesus Christ is Lord! That is worth shouting about! Yes, our Savior has given us NEW LIVES totally worth living.

But many Christians, their new life is still on first base. They are treading water, rather than growing in Christ Jesus. They still think of themselves as sinners saved by grace, not righteous new creations. They are hoping prayers are being answered but not very sure, fearful they might not be in God’s will. The issue is they are still trying to serve God in oldness, not newness, of life.

My friend, it does not have to be that way; it is not supposed to be that way!

Romans 6 says we were baptized into the death of Jesus Christ, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

Newness of life doesn’t mean obeying the 10 Commandments by the help of the Holy Spirit. Newness of life means walking in the Spirit, by the power of the Spirit, with the gifts of the Spirit. Wow! In Romans 7:6, we find, “…now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.

The Law, was good but could only bring death, for the Law points out all our failures. One of the ‘old things’ that passed away with Jesus’ resurrection was adherence to the Law in our own strength. Now we walk in newness of life. By walking in the Spirit.

Friend, it is time for you to live thrillingly – by the Spirit! Read your bible, especially the New Testament. Let the Spirit speak to you, personally, through the words you read. Listen to the promptings of the Spirit and follow through on them. To pray for someone. Or call someone. Whatever it may be; be it a prompting or perhaps a clear prophetic word. It’s God’s new way of living. Living by faith in Him who does not disappoint. Who is always GOOD.

Jesus died and rose again to give us this new life, and give it abundantly! John 10:10. So live it this Resurrection Day – and COME ALIVE!

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