Dirty Bible, Clean Heart

"He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering , and familiar with pain . Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem ." - Isaiah 53:3      I remember feeling extremely confused at first. Had I said something hurtful? Perhaps I had forgotten her birthday or broken a promise previously made? I did not remember having done/said anything to cause offense yet she refused to continue the friendship without so much as an explanation. I was around 8 maybe 9 years old when my one and only friend (for reasons unbeknownst to me as of this day) decided to call it quits! I had recently immigrated to the States with my family and spoke little English. This girl, being the only Spanish speaker in my grade, had quickly become my best  friend. Yet the friendship ended both quickly and abruptly. After replaying the days events and crying beyond consolation, I learned what rejection truly felt like. Whether it's the loss ...

  " For sin shall no longer be your master , because you are not under the law but under grace..." -Romans 6:14      There is a common unspoken belief amongst Christians that we cannot overcome sin. That somehow the victory that Jesus purchased is only enough to cleanse our sins yet not to give us power over them. I say unspoken because most would not openly admit to this belief, yet our actions agree to it. We go through life with this invisible sign on our backs that says  "I will try my best to live a godly Christian life because since I was born in sin, all I can really do is try and because God knows I'm only human, He won't expect anything more from me." Yet the death and resurrection of Jesus did more than just wipe our slate clean. God not only defeated death and sin but also gave us believers the power to overcome those very sins which once enslaved us (1 Cor 6:11). And not just some small sins either, the cross gives us power over all manner of...

  " And God confirmed the message by giving signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever He chose ." -Hebrews 2:4 Have you ever asked God for something big in your life? Maybe financial freedom, bodily healing, or the dream of having a child. The prayers that seem biggest to us are truly nothing for God. But many times we forget that. In the midst of our tear-filled prayers, we act as if our requests are too hard, complex, or big for even God Himself. And if this line of thinking is prolonged, our doubts will fool us into believing that perhaps God does not want to answer our prayers...that miracles are a thing of ages past. But the record of Scripture shows a different picture. All throughout God's Word we see a God who brings water from a rock (Ex 17:5-6), fights against our enemies (2 Kings 19:35), and heals those fighting illnesses and in bondage to evil spirits (Matt 8:16). We, through our own weakness and unbelief, oftentimes place G...

Jesus answered, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me." -John 21:22 Throughout Scripture, we see a recurring theme where God constantly addresses His followers as sheep and He as our Shepherd (Psalm 23 probably comes to mind). Though I often overlooked this symbolism, I believe that God wants us to know that there are certain characteristics of sheep that are true of us also. The primary one that comes to my mind is this: sheep live in tight-knit communities and often mimic each other's behaviors. Sheep tend to conform to what the rest of the pack does. The same can be true of us also.   So many of our day to day behaviors aren't unique to us but rather inherited from interaction with others. Yet we were designed to follow Jesus and it is only when we do that we find true fulfillment, protection, and blessings in life. However we aren't always good at following Him and many times experience unnecessary burdens ...

"If we think of the Holy Spirit only as an impersonal power or influence, then our thought will constantly be, how can I get hold of and use the Holy Spirit; but if we think of Him in the biblical way as a divine Person , infinitely wise, infinitely holy, infinitely tender, then our thought will constantly be, 'How can the Holy Spirit get hold of and use me?" -R.A. Torrey After reading Part I of this series, you should be well aware that the Holy Spirit is not an it but a Person . I repeatedly stress this point because so long as we subconsciously think of the Holy Spirit as an it or gift, we will never treat Him as a Person nor seek a relationship with Him. So long as we consider Him a "lesser god" or an experience, we will use Him instead of being used by Him. But the life that Jesus lived on Earth gives us a very different picture of what our attitude towards and relationship with the Holy Spirit should look like. 1 Peter 2:21 states that Jesus is the exam...

"You might as well try to see without eyes, hear without ears, or breathe without lungs, as to try to live the Christian life without the Holy Spirit". -D.L. Moody Who is the Holy Spirit? The answer to this question has brought much confusion to the church (and even the secular world) in recent decades. Many have limited the Holy Spirit to speaking in tongues and outward manifestations of God's power. The Holy Spirit has become an  it  in some Christian circles while in others He is completely neglected and regarded as unnecessary. It is somewhat shocking how far we have strayed from God's plan for the Holy Spirit in our lives. A quick read of the book of Acts alone shows us the importance of this wonderful Person in our Christian walk. Apart from our salvation, which the Holy Spirit guarantees, there is nothing so important in our lives as knowing, loving, and yielding to the Holy Spirit. Though countless books, teachings, and sermons could be produced on Him...