✋Stop Do You Know🕵️‍♂️

No matter how dark and hopeless a situation might seem, never stop praying. — Billy Graham

Colossians 2:18 (KJV) Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,

There’s that little phrase again “Let no man” if you remember we read that earlier in verse 16 and it was dealing with judging. Here it is dealing with deceiving. In the book of Matthew we read this.

Matthew 5:12 (KJV) Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. That is interesting, we are told to Rejoice, be Exceedingly Glad why? For Great is your Reward in Heaven. Then in  1 Corinthians 3:14 (KJV) If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. When we read the word “work” we are plainly told that our work has nothing to do with you and I going to heaven. But it has everything to do with our Christian lives. We all work for a living to put food and clothes and enjoyments in our lives. Have you ever noticed that some are better at what they do than others?  Have you ever stopped and asked yourself why? Here is what I have noticed, some work for a paycheck and that’s it. Others enjoy what they do and they work at learning more about what they do therefore they become better at what they do. Have you lost the excitement of your Salvation? Have you let someone else rob you of your moving forward in your Christian life? I love the hymn 

“More About Jesus” 

More about Jesus would I know,
More of His grace to other show;
More of His saving fullness see,
More of His love who died for me.

2

More about Jesus let me learn,
More of His holy will discern;
Spirit of God, my teacher be,
Showing the things of Christ to me. 

Let no man deceive you of your reward, don’t worship angels for in doing so you’ll forget about Jesus. I don’t know about you but I do want to know more about Jesus. It’s not because of an reward but of what Jesus did for me. There was this young girl one evening that smiled at me and I wanted to know more about her, I wanted to know more about her smile, I wanted to look into brown eyes. Oh my, it looked as if Vietnam would soon be my destination and I needed to act if I were to ever know this brown eyed girl and learn more of her smile. So I just asked her to marry me and she said yes and now for the last 55 years I have gotten to look into those brown eyes and learn more about that smile. We have laughed, shared our dreams and we still hold hands and I can’t imagine life without her oh what a smile can do. Jesus came by and I have never been the same and I’m not about to let someone rob me of my joys by deceiving me. That’s why I study His Word, tell others of His wonderful saving grace because I don’t want to be average, I want to know Him. In a crowd I can spot a brown eyed girl who one day smiled at me, you know why? Because I know her! I could write and write a lot about her and I can also write and write a lot about Jesus because I know Him.

🕧In The Middle With 🫵

 

There comes a moment when we all must realize that life is short, and in the end the only thing that really counts is not how others see us, but how God sees us. — Billy Graham -

Colossians 2:16 (KJV) Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:

It is so easy to judge others, we hear it all the time. If those were my kids I would…… If my wife or husband did that I would……. If my boss said that to me I would….. why in the world do they look like that…. I know I missed a bunch but you get the idea it is easy to judge others to make us look good. We should never forget what Jesus said in  Matthew 7:3 (KJV) And why  beholdest   thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

Let us not forget what we have already read in this chapter.  Verse 10  “ye are complete in him” complete meaning that you don’t need anything else. Some believe if you don’t go to church singing in the choir then you are hell bound. It didn’t read you are complete in him if you attend church and sing in the choir, or anything else added. I think you should attend a good Church because that is where you will learn more about your Savior, but church is not a requirement for heaven. How do I know that? Well the Bible says we are complete in Jesus. If you go and read in the book of Luke chapter 23 you’ll find that Jesus is being nailed to a cross on a hill called Calvary. On that hill called Calvary there are two other men. Now what is interesting is what happened to those two other men who were placed on crosses, one on each side of Jesus. Jesus in the middle of two thieves. One of those men never sees his sin while the other does. Both men are guilty of the same crime. Why is Jesus in the middle? Why not on the outside? Both men had the same distance to Jesus. The same is true today all of us are sinners and we, like those two men, have the same opportunity. Read it for yourself.

Luke 23:32 (KJV) And there were also two other, malefactors, led with him to be put to death.

Luke 23:33 (KJV) And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.

Luke 23:39 (KJV)  And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. Was he on the left or right side? I don’t know. Jesus doesn’t take sides.  Both needed Christ the same as you and I.  

Luke 23:40 (KJV) But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation How bout it, death fastly approaching don’t you fear? 

Luke 23:41 (KJV)  And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.

Luke 23:42 (KJV)  And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. Ye have not because ye ask not.

Luke 23:43 (KJV)  And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.  

  What happened? One of those guilty men saw Jesus as his Savior and said “Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom” that was it. How did Jesus respond? “To day shalt thou be with me in paradise” that thief was complete in Jesus Christ which means he didn’t need anything else. Neither do you and I. Well what about going to Church? You don’t need a high School diploma to get a job. Later in life most will go get a GED and some will even go to college. Why? Because it helps them get better jobs and more money. What does that have to do with the Church? Church helps you learn more about Jesus. Why is that? Because the more one knows about Jesus the closer one walks with Jesus and not only that the more one knows about their Heavenly home where they will soon be. I will agree there are a lot of people that go to Church that do bad things. But I go to Church to learn and yes sometimes my feelings have been hurt like back in the 70’s I was bringing those to my church that were not the same color. Every Sunday I would take off in an old school bus and go pick up 40+ kids, many of a different race. One woman didn’t like it and she made a big deal about it, but you know what? I kept on doing what I was doing. What was that? going into the highway and hedges and bringing in boys and girls that needed to hear about Jesus and not only that I was talking to their parents too. I wish I could tell you more about the time and the nights I spent in the places where white people didn't go after dark. The houses I sat in and the friends I made. I still remember those days and often wonder what happened to those kids and their parents. None of those who hurt my feelings ever experienced anything close to that because they let fear get the best of them. Sometimes God sends you where others won’t go. Complete in Jesus no matter what Country, no matter what Color. Got Jesus? What could I want more!

🏦Our Debt Paid💸

 You can be born in a garage, but that doesn’t make you an automobile. You can be born in a Christian home, but that doesn’t make you a Christian.

—CLEVELAND, OHIO, BILLY GRAHAM CRUSADE, 1994

Colossians 2:12 (KJV) Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

Here we read of what Baptism is. It’s not salvation. Not long ago I was telling a man about my salvation and I didn’t tell him that I had been Baptized. Another man broke into our conversation and said this “Yes I was baptized a few weeks ago. Now what he didn’t say is of much importance; he didn’t say that he had been saved, trusted Jesus as his savior. Notice what the Apostle Paul says about baptism “Buried with him in baptism” We only bury those who are dead. Go to any cemetery you like and you’ll see a yard full of those who once walked where you walk, they talked, had families, they smiled and laughed but not now. Stand there as long as you want and you will never hear a word from any of those there. Is the Apostle Paul saying that I am dying to the old life by being buried in this water and when I come up from this watery grave you will see a new me. My talk will be different , my walk will be different, the places I go will be different because I’m dead to the old ways I once lived. Paul goes on in  Colossians 2:13 (KJV) And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

Being dead in your sins; what you once enjoyed doing you don’t anymore. Why? Because your uncircumcision flesh has now been circumcised you my friend have been made free from that which was destroying you. Then Paul goes on and used the word “quickened” which simply means "made alive.” You and I were dead in our sins, far away from the truth and knowing Christ Jesus as our personal Savior. Then we accepted Christ Jesus and were made alive. 

1 Peter 2:24 (KJV) Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

Paul goes on and writes “Blotting out” that which was against us, which was contrary to us. Our sin debt has been paid in full. Pauls says I want you to know that. 

Colossians 2:14 (KJV) Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

To be honest I at times feel how can God love me? He knows. Psalms 139:2 (KJV) Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.

Love goes far beyond the presence. When I was a teenager my dad and I would; let me say have disagreements. But his love for me went much further than that moment. Now God’s love is more than you or I can understand in our little tin cup minds. God knows and yet He still Loves us. 

💅It’s Not All About Me🙆‍♀️

Billy Graham said “Life without God is like an unsharpened pencil - it has no point.”

Colossians 2:11 (KJV) In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:

Circumcision once done can never be undone. Once we accept Christ as our personal savior it can never be undone. I owed a debt I could not pay and Jesus paid my debt which He did not owe. If accepting Christ Jesus as your savior didn’t have a BIG change in your life. I would ask myself what really happened? If I was asked if I would go to heaven when I die, what would be my answer? If you were to answer yes and the person said wonderful, tell me how you know that? How would you answer that question? If your answer doesn’t center around Christ Jesus then you may not have what you think you have. I have spent most of my Christian life getting people just to think. It’s not what you think you have done for the Lord nor how much you think you have given of your time and treasures. Neither how good you think you have been. Oh no, read what the Apostle Paul wrote 

Titus 3:5 (KJV) Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

When you and I realize it’s not about what we have done. Neither is it about what we have not done. It’s not about you and I, it's all about what Jesus Christ has already done.  Now read that verse slow                   

Colossians 2:11 (KJV) In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:

In Jesus we are changed forever when we understand that the sins of our flesh have been removed by the Lord Jesus sacrificial death on the cross. We can not personally fix our sin problem. Some call smoking a sin and it may be but without doubt it is an addictive habit. I used to smoke and I decide to quit, if you have ever done that you know that is not the easiest thing to quit. I wrote that to write this we all have sins that easily trip us up. We fight to keep from falling into their drawing power and we have tried but we fail and fail and fail. I’m not saying  to stop working at it what I am wanting you to see is that Jesus Christ Paid for all our sin not just a partial payment for our sin. Do you love Jesus with your heart or with you head? Are you working to please or are you praising Him for what He has already done. Yes sin should disturbed us, that's good and then we should go to our Heavenly Father and ask for forgiveness. 1 John 1:9 (KJV) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

ASK

Matthew 7:7 (KJV) Ask, and it shall be given you; Seek, and ye shall find; 

Knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

It’s not you and it’s not me it is all about HIM; JESUS! 

🌚Quickest Way To Get To Darkness👉🏿🌑

Colossians 2:9 (KJV) For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

Who is the pronoun “him” referring to? The end of verse 8 gives the answer, Christ; for in Christ dwelleth (To abide as a permanent resident) the “Godhead bodily” Who was Jesus Christ? Jesus was God in the flesh; but there is another word there “Godhead” If asked to explain God we would be lost for words. How can God be Jesus? We see God in Genesis and He creates all you and I know. But then we see God in the flesh as Jesus Christ steps out upon the pages of Scripture in Matthew. As Jesus leaves this world after He has won the battle against death we see the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit  lives within every person that has trusted in what Jesus did as He died on a cruel cross. We are introduced to what we call the trinity God the Father, God the Son and God the Spirit. 

Matthew 28:19 (KJV) Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

There are not 3, they are all 3 in 1. In Jesus dwell the fullness of the Godhead. You and I have a body, soul and a spirit therefore we are 3 in 1. As you and I walk around in the world all we see is a body we can’t see beyond that; but there is more to us than a body. When those who saw Jesus all they saw was a body. In the next verse we are taught

Colossians 2:10 (KJV) And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

Now we see that being complete is being in Jesus. How in the world can this be? Simple, believe that Jesus came to do what He said which is this.

Luke 19:10 (KJV) For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

In order to be found something needs to be lost. Once found it is no more lost but saved. Oh but you say Jesus is not here on this earth. You think not? 

Acts 6:5 (KJV) And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost,  Stephen one of the first deacons was full of faith and the Holy Ghost. Jesus at this point had already returned to Heaven. Yet we read of a man named Stephen who was full of the Holy Ghost which Jesus promised to everyone which trusted in Him. The question is does Jesus still walk the earth? Yes He does in everyone who has trusted in Jesus, been saved. But you say what about this man or woman I know that says they are saved but yet they lied, cheated and steal and who knows what else. Read closely why they chose Stephen “they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost” In order to be full you have to know what empty is. When your gage in your car tells you, you are almost out of gas, empty you go to the gas station and fill up. That gives you more gas to go more miles. The reason God’s children lie, steal, drink, use drugs, have an affair, use bad language and the list goes on and on. It’s because they are not full of the Holy Ghost. They quit reading their Bibles. They have not Prayed in who knows when. They are empty, their spirit in which we Worship God with is weak because of no nourishment from the Lord. As the Bible teaches us, men love darkness and the quickest way to get to darkness is to stay away from the light.

🙈Led Away By Error 🙊

 

The Apostle Paul has talked about “receiving Christ Jesus as Lord and walking in Him. He spoke of being built up and rooted in Christ Jesus. Paul wrote about abounding and thanksgiving. Sounds to me like these at Colosse have this Christian life down. What could go wrong? They have received Christ Jesus as their Savior. They have rooted themselves in Christ Jesus. They are walking in Christ Jesus. They are abounding in Christ Jesus and are thankful so what could possibly be a problem? How many people do you know that fits this description, but now they don’t even attend 

Church? I could name more than a few. What happened? They forgot, that all Christians have an enemy and at least one sin that easily trips them up. Matthew 13:25 (KJV) But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.

Who came? The enemy. When did the enemy come? “while men slept” or when men were not alert or watching or expecting, when men were overconfident. Who was this enemy? 

Acts 13:10 (KJV) And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? What is this enemy doing? Perverting the right ways of the Lord. Watch what Paul writes in  Colossians 2:8 (KJV) Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. Beware!!!! Beware of what? Men who want to spoil you. In other words rob you of the rich treasure of the Gospel, strip you of your spiritual armor, take away from you the truths and doctrines of Christ “philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men” Philosophy begins to destroy the root system. If the enemy can destroy the rood system then the spiritual nourishment stops. I can’t explain how important it is to trust Christ, because the traps of the enemy are everywhere. Oh this “philosophy and vain deceit” sounds great and if not careful it will get you to question the love of Christ. If God is love and if God loves us like He says He does then why does He allow such evil to happen? I like what Billy Graham said on this matter. “With so much soap, why are there so many dirty people in the world? Christianity, like soap, must be personally applied if it is to make a difference in our lives.”

I have a good friend and everyday he talks to people about Jesus, he would tell of God’s love for them. 1000’s  of people gave their life to Christ because of his love for others. But now he is unable to move. All he can do is lay in bed, he is dying and he knows it. You know what he is doing now that he can’t move or leave his home? Same thing, but now the Lord is bringing others to him. Who? Doctors, nurses, caretakers and the list goes on. Is he upset with his Heavenly Father? Course not he is still grateful he has his mind so he can tell others of the God who loves them. Have any given their heart to the Lord? What do you think? More than you could imagine. “He is no fool that gives away that which he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”Philip Henry/Jim Elliot 

Oh no the enemy doesn’t want you to do that. The Christian man, woman, boy or girl that isn’t aware that the enemy wants to destroy them will soon fail in their Christian life.  “BEWARE” means “to restrain or guard one's self from. Hence, to regard with caution; to restrain one's self from anything that may be dangerous, injurious or improper; to avoid” 2 Peter 3:17 (KJV) Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.

🚶🏻‍♂️‍➡️Walkers Always Pass By Those Sitting 🪑

Psalms 134:2 (KJV) Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the LORD.

Colossians 2:6 (KJV) As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:

This verse is about those who have “received Christ Jesus the Lord” and are moving forward in their walk for the Lord “walk ye in him” Walking is an act of moving forward. The steps of a 1000 miles begins with one step not a 1000. One receives Christ Jesus as their Savior step one. Then what?

Colossians 2:7 (KJV) Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Those that received Christ Jesus as Savior they become “Rooted” because of the strong roots they become

“built up in him” being built up they become “stablished in the faith” one learns all this by being “taught” It’s like any gift one receives, when opened up there is an instruction booklet inside. The more one knows about the instructions the better the gift is. If there’s someone there who can teach you about the gift you received, that's even better. Receive? There are those who do receive but they never walk and because they never walk they never really learn. Therefore they are not rooted, their faith is not established and they aren’t listening to their teachers. Their thanksgiving, well they don’t have anything to be thankful for because the gift of God has been set aside and the walk of faith has been crippled therefore having no roots to establish growth. There are those who sit and watch and there are those who walk and get established. Those who walk will always pass by those who sit.