Forgiveness

THIS IS A RESPONSE I GAVE TODAY TO A QUESTION REGARDING FORGIVENESS.

So now in response to your question, I offer the following. The particular Scripture (Luke 23:34) that you referenced regarding forgiveness is a bad reference to answer the question of “is forgiveness humanly possible?” In the New Testament alone the words forgave, forgive, forgiven or forgiveness is mentioned thirty-nine times. Usually, when a word is used so many times it means that it is a very important concept. In the particular Scripture that you referenced, Christ made the statement while He was on the cross. He was representing the Son-ship of the God-head, better known as the Triune God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Jesus had already proven during his lifetime that He has the authority to forgive sin in man. While on the cross He was verbalizing that although He had authority, He wanted to acknowledge that He was doing the work of He who sent Him-that being God the Father. Because of this, He asked for forgiveness for them through God the Father. Of course He could have said, I forgive them for what they know not what they do, but I believe He wanted to acknowledge that He was being submissive to the authority of God His Father. He had already stated that He had come to do the will of His Father who sent Him.

In what is called by many “The Lord’s Prayer” found in Matt. 6, there is specific language which states that we should ask God to forgive us as we also forgive others. (11-12). Also it states in verse 14-15, that if we don’t forgive others, God will not forgive us. This clearly indicates the danger if we “CHOOSE” not to forgive others. The reason I capitalized “choose” is because it is a choice that is made. Just like coming to Christ is a choice, forgiving others is a choice. I do not believe however, that anyone who calls himself a Christian and is filled (Eph. 5:18) with the Holy-Spirit can say that he chooses not to forgive others. Perhaps they do not know understand what Matt. 6 states.

Another Scripture reference regarding forgiveness in proper context for Christians is found in Col. 3:12-14- “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything in perfect harmony.” All Christians should follow the principles found in Scripture including “forgiveness”. Outside of Christ, I believe that it is impossible to follow these principles because the Holy Spirit is the agent which equips us to forgive.

I hope that this brings clarity.

Blessings,
Koralee

Happy New Year!!!

It is truly a New Year. 2010 is a year that we have never seen before. I pray that you have started your year off in triumph. We do set the tone for our year. If you get excited now, then you will stay excited. Of course there will be disappointments throughout the year, but they will pass. Is this the year that you will commit to strengthening your relationship with Christ? This decision will have to be purposeful. Each day you must determine that you will allow God to direct your footsteps. Ask Him to place people in your life who will help you and encourage you and then ask Him to allow you to help and encourage someonelse. I have observed that these groups of persons are usually different groups of people. Those that help you may not be those that you will need to help. Too many times we expect that those we help will also help us. Please know that this is hardly ever the case. Do what you do for others without expecting anything in return.(period) Do it unto the Lord for you will be blessed in doing so.

Each of us is expected to mature as we get older, but for this to happen we have to know how to mature. Those things that we used to do that were not good for us, we need to let those things go. We should not need anyone to tell us to "grow up", maturity should be something we seek. Just like children as we age maturity demonstrated in us tells us that if we know better, then we must do better. Pray to God and ask Him to reveal each and every area of your life that you need to mature in specifically, so that there is no hidden thing that can drag you back into oppression. Be encouraged that God can remove any desire to do wrong if we completely surrender to His will. Then, don't forget to thank Him for answered prayer as you see how He allows you to mature.

I thank Him everyday for the ability to walk with Him as His servant. I look forward to posting this year and for the new projects that I am working on. Stay tuned.

Matthew 24:13 - But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

Be encouraged and have a God-blessed year.

It is the Season

On December 25th each year the birthday of Christ is celebrated. Or is it? How often are you reminded of the reason for the season?

In case you did not know, the actual day of Christ birth is not known. What we do know is that He was born, He died, and He rose from the dead. That is the Gospel truth. In the current culture today, it is very unpopular to remind anyone that the reason for the celebration should never be overshadowed by the buying of gifts, trees, etc. When did this notion that you have to buy gifts for others for Christmas begin? Whoever started needs to explain it to me. If we understand what the Bible teaches, we would know that the best gift we can give Jesus is our heart. After doing this, then we should live lives that demonstrate that we have trusted in Him. This would be a joyful everlasting gift that I am sure He would be pleased to receive.

It is truly impossible to celebrate His birthday without reverencing the purpose of His life and death. He died that we might live.

Be Blessed and may God grant you peace everlasting.

"The Will of the Lord be done!"

Acts 21: 10-14 "As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11 And coming to us, he took Paul's belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, "This is what the Holy Spirit says: 'In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.' " 12 When we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him not to go up to Jerusalem. 13 Then Paul answered, "What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus." 14 And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, "The will of the Lord be done!"

In this passage of Scripture, Paul hears a prophecy that he will be bound and instead of relenting, he stated that he was even willing to die. The people then responded "The will of the Lord be done." If only this were the response of Christians today. Instead of praying that the Lord's will be done, there is a teaching today that encourages Christians to say, "I won't receive that." Many Christians believe that all they have to do is say "I don't receive that nothing bad will happen to me." This troubles me because I wonder if we truly understand what this means. Are we saying to God that we have the power to dictate what He wills for our lives? Are we really saying to the God of the Universe that we do not accept the path that He has chosen for our lives? Do we feel that sickness, poverty, or any other suffering is okay for others, but not for us? God forbid. But, that is indeed what we are saying,when we say "I won't receive that." In addition to Paul, we have biblical examples such as David, Job, & Esther and many others who understood that God was indeed in control of their situation. As a matter of fact, the entire Bible is replete with examples of how we are to govern ourselves as Christians. We are to pray for God's will to be done.

Prov. 3:5-6 states, "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight." This Scripture affirms that we are to acknowledge God in everything and perhaps we really do not know,what is best for us. As an example, let me share a personal testimony. Two years ago, my husband and I put our house up for sale and were going to build a new home. After six months we took the house off the market. We were not disappointed in this process, because we had prayed for God's will to be done. We do nothing without acknowledging God's guidance through the Holy Spirit. As you all may know, the housing market has crashed and that same house that we were going to build would have depreciated by $75,000. Further, the interest rate has dropped from 7.5% to 5.1%. I thank God that there is nothing that I desire more than Him. I fully understand that each and every time that He has allowed me to go through something, that it was for a purpose. Sometimes we cause our suffering because of bad decisions, and sometimes God allows our suffering for a specific purpose.

Paul went so far in His commitment to God that he stated that he was not afraid to be bound or even die in the name of the Lord Jesus. I pray that each of us can be confident enough in our faith that we too can say "the will of the Lord be done."

Be blessed.

What a Great Day!

Hello All:

I had a great day today and I pray that you did as well. I had a conversation with someone that I had not spoken to in over 25 years. He is now a Pastor and lives right here in Georgia and was equally as excited to hear that I was also a Minister. It is always wonderful to hear how God has called so many to proclaim the Gospel. This however does not absolve all Christians from sharing the Gospel of Christ. Just remind others of why He died, for whom He died, that He is risen, and that He is coming back again.

Be Blessed

Breathe

On each day and everyday that God gives us, we must allow ourselves time to breathe. Sounds easy enough, yet many of us are so busy "doing," that there is hardly time to breathe. Is it possible for us to realize that whatever we don't complete today will be there to do tomorrow? I am thankful to God that I have lived long enough to realize that I cannot be so busy that I forget to breathe. It is necessary for us to take time to breathe. This may come in the form of doing something as simple as taking a bubble bath.....yeah, remember when we wouldn't think twice of buying a house without a soaking tub? The purpose of the tub was to take actual tub baths...... What about a picnic in the park, or sitting on the porch or deck and read a book ?? I am being practical regarding the need to breathe. God needs us to be engaged in life, but not so engaged that we don't take time to refresh. To be effective, rest is necessary!!!

Be encouraged today and breathe!!!

Reflection on Michael Jackson- "This is it" Movie

Today I had the opportunity to be at the first viewing of the Michael Jackson movie and I would like to share my reflections.

I attended the movie with my 22 year old daughter who really didn't want to see the movie. She works at the theater, so naturally she was my ticket in. (She was forced--LOL) Anyway, she remarked after the movie that she was glad that she had seen it.

What I found most remarkable about the film is the fact that Michael Jackson is dead. What I was watching, was indeed the last recorded film of his life. It finally hit home that all that talent was forever silenced. A very long time ago Michael was a star to me that could never be measured against any other. He was more that a singer, he was an entertainer with talent. He did more with his life in 50 years than most people do in 75 years of life. He definitely had many issues to face in his life, but did he really ask to be any one person's Hero or did he ever ask anyone to idolize him? I would think not. He did appreciate the love that was shown towards him, but I don't believe that he ever wanted the "worship" that he received throughout his lifetime. For those of you who don't agree that it was "worship," you have not seen too many his concerts. Regardless of how Michael lived his life, I can truly say today that his death is a loss to the world because of his talent. I also reflect on the possibility that now perhaps the world would never put anyone on a pedestal as they did Michael. Although it is quite possible to love celebrities and appreciate their talent, we must never place them is such high regard that it causes us to "worship" them in anyway. So my final reflection on the movie is to say that I totally enjoyed seeing Michael perform because I appreciated and loved seeing how talented he was. But, I also reflect on the fact that he believed in God, and as such, had to have recognized that God is a jealous God. I pray that all of us would consider that God alone deserves Worship. Moreover, HE wants us to Worship Him in Spirit and in Truth. You must know Him to Worship Him in Spirit and in Truth.

Be Blessed.