Grace Seeds # 26

2 Timothy 1:9

Who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,

10 Truths from Paul Ellis

Paul Ellis is the writer and owner of Escape to Reality an amazing website dedicated to Christ and the letting the world know the amazing grace of god.

Below are 10 of my favourite Paul Ellis quotes.

1. When you know how much your heavenly Father loves you, it empowers you to live life to the fullest, to be generous with your heart, and to draw others into the orbit of his great love.
2. Jesus died for Judas. What more could He do? There is nothing! There is no more sacrifice for sins other than the one Jesus provided. To reject Jesus as Lord is to trample the Son of God underfoot and treat the blood of the covenant as unholy.
3. I will never preach about men when I can preach about Jesus. You want a champion of persistence? You want a role model who never gave up? Don’t look to the widow – look to Jesus! He faced more injustice than anyone yet he was never discouraged. He was knocked down to the grave but he rose again in triumph. At the cross he conquered injustice. Now he sits vindicated and enthroned at the right hand of the Father.
4. It is simply not possible to overemphasize the goodness of God. You might just as well try and overemphasize His wisdom or try and grasp the breadth, width and depth of His love! God is good. All the time.
5. Jesus left the comforts of heaven to endure unimaginable suffering on the cross in order that we might be redeemed from the condemnation of the law. To act as if we could somehow attain that divine and perfect standard in our own strength is to insult a holy God who lives in unapproachable light. And to reject the free gift of his grace and righteousness that makes it possible for us to draw near, is to insult his Son.
6. Saint, you are one with the Lord. His future is your future. Since Jesus isn’t going to lose his salvation and go to hell, it can’t happen to you. You may fall asleep on the job, but the one who watches over you never slumbers (Ps 121:3-4). Be confident. Be secure. Be at peace.
7. That’s the key to Christian living right there. It’s not about sweating for Jesus or improving the flesh, but resting in His finished work. Reckon yourself dead to sin and alive to Christ and live!
8. You’ve got to love the math of the new covenant: How many sins did Jesus commit before He was made sin? None. And how many righteous acts did we do before we were made righteous? None. God did it all! We are merely the grateful beneficiaries of His mighty work.
9. Jesus’ came to set the captives free and give sight to the blind. The law sets nobody free. But the law does reveal your need for a Great Deliverer.
10. Christ has become for us wisdom from God. He is our righteousness! He is our holiness! He is our redemption! Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord!

From A Park Bench - Lesson From A Squirrel.

Just outside in our garden we have the amazing spectacle of tiny birds enjoying all the nuts and seed we provided for them. Every few weeks we fill up feeders so they always have a plentiful supply. Just recently a cheeky grey squirrel has discovered the free supply and he dances down the long garden fence, races across the lawn, up the apple trees and dangles upside down on the nut feeder. His own little free supply.

As I sit there watching the cheeky fellow, I am reminded of the grace of God and all that he has freely provided.  In some ways God’s grace can be the freely provided nut feeder. It is there, constantly; always filled up, abundant in provision, full of goodness and life.

I am like that squirrel, I can run into all the grace of God, but I can also just sit on the fence and look at the provision and never enjoy and partake of it. It is all free, all provided, all there I just need to run and eat it.

I can live from my spirit and let his power flood over me and dispel the lies of my old man. I can also enjoy and relax with his word, his love letter to me which shows me all his glorious grace has provided for me.  As I meditate on God’s word, my focus centers on Christ. The transformation is effortless, just a change of perspectives and shift from effort and works into rest and enjoyment. 

Like the squirrel I need never go hungry again as I enjoy and feast.

Grace Seeds # 25

Psalm 37:4

Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Grace Seeds # 24

Colossians 1 13-14

He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.

From A Park Bench - We Are The Temple of God.

There is no longer a stone, brick, man made temple that hosts the presence of God. The dwelling place of God is within every believer.

You can look back into the Old Covenant and read through the woven strands where God visited and dwelt with his people in tabernacles and stone built temples.  God’s presence and glory was confined to spaces and walls built by man.  It was during the dedication of Solomon’s temple that God’s glory like a cloud came and filled time and space.

In the New Covenant God has come to dwell inside his people. At the cross Christ’s death ended the separation between God and man. Christ’s death on the cross destroyed the veil in the temple and fulfilled the law and in the same way that there is no more temple there is no more law. The law has been made obsolete, now it is the very fullness of Christ that dwells inside of us.

Under the New Covenant we are completely released from the system of Old Covenant law and empowered through grace by the Spirit of God in our re-born spirit.

When we walk in the spirit and discover all that is available to us because of our identity in Christ we start to live with God’s power permeating and infiltrating filling our minds and flowing through our veins.

Every one of us is full of the fullness of Christ; we have been released from a system of obedience to obtaining right standing, acceptance and the blessings of God. Christ’s sacrifice was more that sufficient to give us all of God’s blessings and God’s righteousness by and through grace. 

Grace Seeds # 23

Isaiah 54 v 17

No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is from Me,” Says the Lord.

Grace Notes - John 9 v 2

John 9:2 "And his disciples asked him saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?"

Jesus Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, every curse was put onto Christ at the cross and was paid in full by His blood. We have been set free from its curse and now we live in the spirit through faith.

Faith is our positive response to everything God has provided for us in grace. Forgiveness of sin, all sin past, present and future sin and all our sicknesses and diseases. He became poor so that we could become rich, not just financially, but in every area of our life and existence.

Sickness is not from God, Jesus died so that we might live in fullness of life, his redemption was a once and for all time payment that redeemed us.

God wants us well, he wants us to enjoy all the lavish grace he has provided for us. It cost him everything to give us his all.

Just think of the story of the Prodigal Son, we now sit at the banqueting table enjoying all the delights of the Father, why would we choose to go back to the pig sty to live? 

Here Andrew Wommack explains that we are blessed through Christ and it is not God who makes us sick:-

The disciples asked a question that still puzzles many people today. Why is a child born with a physical defect? Is it a judgment of God upon the parents for some sin, or is it possibly God's judgment upon the child for sins that God knows he will commit?

Jesus Himself had previously linked sickness with sin. In this instance, however, Jesus said this blindness was not caused by this man's or his parents' sins.

This has led many people to interpret the rest of this verse as saying that God made this man blind just so that He could heal him and be glorified thereby. From this thinking, many doctrinal teachings have risen about how sickness and other problems in our lives are actually blessings from God, intended to bring glory to God and correction to us. This reasoning, however, does not line up with the other truths of God's Word.

It was not God who made this beggar blind. This man was not born blind because of any one person's sins but because sin in general had corrupted the perfect balance that God had created in nature. Therefore, some maladies happen, not as a direct result of an individual's sins but as an indirect result of sin in general.

Deuteronomy 28 settles forever the question of whether sickness, poverty, and oppression are really blessings in disguise. God says that sickness and poverty are curses - not blessings from God. Christ redeemed us from these curses of the law so that now the blessings may come upon us through Him (Galatians 3:13). God's curses have been placed on Jesus and removed from those who accept Jesus' sacrifice. You are blessed!

Grace Seeds # 24

2 Corinthians 4:7

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us

Love Stooped Down

Love stooped down

Kissed my tears

To where I was

Adrift in fears

His loving heart

Touched my soul

Made me rich

Made me whole

Set free by grace

In loves gaze

Forever blessed

Filled with praise

Now alive

In grace’s stream

Immersed in Christ

Released to dream.

Grace Seeds # 23

Isaiah 58:8

Then your light shall break forth like the morning, your healing shall spring forth speedily, and your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.

A Better Resurrection by Christina Georgina Rossetti

A Better Resurrection

I have no wit, no words, no tears;

     My heart within me like a stone

Is numbed too much for hopes or fears;

     Look right, look left, I dwell alone;

I lift mine eyes, but dimmed with grief

     No everlasting hills I see;

My life is in the falling leaf:

          O Jesus, quicken me!

My life is like a faded leaf,

     My harvest dwindled to a husk;

Truly my life is void and brief

     And tedious in the barren dusk;

My life is like a frozen thing,

     No bud nor greenness can I see:

Yet rise it shall,—the sap of Spring;

          O Jesus, rise in me!

My life is like a broken bowl,

     A broken bowl that cannot hold

One drop of water for my soul

     Or cordial in the searching cold;

Cast in the fire the perished thing,

     Melt and remould it, till it be

A royal cup for Him my King:

          O Jesus, drink of me!

by Christina Georgina Rossetti

Grace Seeds # 22

John 8:12

Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

Friday’s Five – Union with Christ.

Every act of kindness and compassion done by man for his fellow Christian is done by Christ working within him – Julian of Norwich.

To want all that God wants, always to want it, for all occasions and without reservations, this is the kingdom of God which is all within – Francois Fenelon.

True religion is an union of God with the soul, a real participation of the divine nature, the very image of God drawn upon the soul, or in the Apostle’s phrase, it is Christ formed in us – Henry Scougal

The heart of Paul is Union with Christ. This, more than ever other conception – more than justification, more than sanctification, more than reconciliation – is the key that unlocks the secrets of his soul – James Stewart. 

Christ has become the very blood flowing within our veins and the breath within our lungs. This union is genuine and living! – Benjamin Dunn.

Grace Seeds # 21

Psalm 100:5

For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations.

Grace Seeds # 20

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.

Miss Marple - A Caribbean Mystery

Scary scenes

Cold blooded crimes

Mystery

Dangerous times

In paradise

Caribbean way

Sudden death

On a perfect day

Many suspects

Someone knows

Murders abound

Gossip grows

Gentle old lady

Fluffy she looks

Under her nose

Clues in the books

Always alert

Never misses a thing

The killer trapped

Justice she brings.

Last Sunday night Miss Marple – Caribbean Mystery was shown on ITV. This little poem was inspired as I watched this excellent production. 

Grace Seeds # 19

Psalm 23:6

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me. All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord,  Forever.

From A Park Bench - Psalm 107:20

Psalm 107:20 - He sent His word and healed them.

Jesus Christ was God’s word made flesh. He was the Godhead veiled in flesh, the divine human the exact representation and expression of everything God was and is. Whoever saw Jesus saw God in human flesh.  Since the beginning of time there has been no man like him. 

And as God in flesh, Jesus carried out perfectly the will of God, and Jesus healed everyone that came to him. There we no exceptions, everyone who came to Christ and believed was healed. This is God’s heart for us; it is one of love, goodness and healing.

I Peter 2:24 tells us “That by His stripes we were healed.”

Jesus’ death at the cross, not only paid the price for our sins, it also paid the price for our healing. Death is a consequence of sin and the root of sickness is death. Sickness holds our bodies in bondage, keeps us chained up in illness and locks us into captivity. Jesus came to give us victory over sin, to release all those that were captive and he healed all those that we sick. Jesus came to set the oppressed free.

Christ’s word to us is healing; he died and suffered so that we could receive healing in our soul, mind and body.  His grace is the abundant overflow of God’s love to us that united our spirit to him, cleanses our souls and heals our body. He died in our place so that we might live in fullness of life.

Christ’s word is forgiveness and it is healing. His word is health to our bodies and life to our souls.

Grace Seeds # 18

Philippians 1:6

Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Grace Notes - John 7 v 38

John 7:38 "He that believes on me, as the scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."

The overflow of the Holy Spirit living in us is the very life of the new birth. Christ in all his fullness is within every Christian, we are totally and utterly united the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and it is from this union that the fruit of God grows and ripens.

This is all by and through Christ and his grace overwhelming our lives. It has nothing to do with our effort, our works; it has everything to do with the blessings of God.

We are the good soil where the seed is planted and grows. The more we enjoy and revel in the spirit the more vibrant the spirit becomes to us and this ignites us with desire and passion for deeper communion with Christ.

As Andrew Wommack explains it is the Spirit that produces all that is good, all we do is yield and trust. Our faith is a positive response to all God has already provided through Christ’s finished work in grace.

“These rivers of living water are referring to the Holy Spirit and the effects He produces in the life of the believer. Galatians 5:22-23 says, "the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance." These qualities should flow out of us as an artesian well. They should not have to be pumped. They will flow as we conform our thinking to God's Word.

Jesus speaks of bearing fruit in John 15 and declares that ". . . without me ye can do nothing" (Jn. 15:5). This fruit is the product of the Holy Spirit, not our effort. However, since "he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit" (1 Cor. 6:17), then this fruit of the Spirit is also what our born- again spirit produces. Our spirit always has these attributes regardless of what we feel in our emotions. Failure to understand this has caused many Christians to think they would be hypocrites to express joy when the truth is, they are depressed. However, it's only our soulish part that gets depressed. Our spirit is always bearing the fruit of "love, joy, peace, etc."

For a person who is seeking to walk in the Spirit, it is actually hypocritical to let our soulish emotions dominate our spiritual emotions. The truth is, our spirit is never depressed, just our soul. Those who understand this have the choice of letting their soul depress them or letting the Holy Spirit, through their born-again spirit, release the joy and peace spoken of here.

The "fruit" is not produced by the believer, but by the Holy Spirit, as we live in union with Him. Our part is to yield and trust; God's part is to produce the fruit.”

Grace Seeds # 17

Psalm 91:9-10

Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge, even the most High, your dwelling place; no evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling

Father's Day - My Heavenly Father....

On Fathers Day, here are just a few thoughts of just who our Heavenly Father is, there are many more and you can add to the list, Our Heavenly Father is magnificent, wonderful, glorious overflowing in love, mercy and grace……

My Heavenly Father rejoices over me with dancing and singing

My Heavenly Father has promised he will NEVER be angry will me ever again.

My Heavenly Father fills me with sweet satisfaction.

My Heavenly Father embraces my failures.

My Heavenly Father fills me with good things.

My Heavenly Father showers me, overwhelms me, and overflows me with his free, wonderful grace.

My Heavenly Father runs to greet me.

My Heavenly Father places His ring on my finger.

My Heavenly Father fills me with his glory and presence.

My Heavenly Father is with me every moment of my life.

My Heavenly Father is the heart beat inside my chest.

My Heavenly Father is the blood flowing through my veins.

My Heavenly Father is heaven inside my frail body.

My Heaven Father is a waterfall of grace that immerses me.

My Heavenly Father has taken me off the naughty list and placed me on the good list.

My Heavenly Father has eradicated my old sinful nature and given me a new holy, righteous nature,

My Heavenly Father has forgiven all my sins and healed all my sickness.

My Heavenly Father declares me his son.

My Heavenly Father invites me to share with Him in His divine pleasures.

My Heavenly Father invites me to enjoy the fruits and provision of the Promised Land.

My Heavenly Father invites me to enter into His rest.

My Heavenly Father has through Christ plugged me into the wellspring of grace.

My Heavenly Father is the source of all bliss and fulfillment.

My Heavenly Father is the fire of love.

Grace Seeds # 16

Hebrews 13:5

He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Rejoice, the Lord is King - Charles Wesley

Rejoice, the Lord is King! Your Lord and King adore;

Mortals give thanks and sing, and triumph evermore;

Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;

Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!

Jesus, the Savior, reigns, the God of truth and love;

When He had purged our stains He took His seat above;

Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;

Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!

His kingdom cannot fail, He rules o’er earth and Heav’n,

The keys of death and hell are to our Jesus giv’n;

Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;

Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!

He sits at God’s right hand till all His foes submit,

And bow to His command, and fall beneath His feet:

Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;

Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!

He all His foes shall quell, shall all our sins destroy,

And every bosom swell with pure seraphic joy;

Lift up your heart, lift up your voice,

Rejoice, again I say, rejoice!

Rejoice in glorious hope! Jesus the Judge shall come,

And take His servants up to their eternal home.

We soon shall hear th’archangel’s voice;

The trump of God shall sound, rejoice!

by Charles Wesley

Grace Seeds # 15

Psalm 107:9

For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness.

Friday’s Five - Faith

Faith expects from God what is beyond all expectations – Andrew Murray

Faith is living and unshakable confidence, a belief in the grace of God so assured that a man would die a thousand deaths for its sake – Martin Luther

Faith is not belief without proof, but trust without reservations – Elton Trueblood

True faith is simply an effortless realization of the facts. Christ is the Fact. Faith doesn’t save you, the Fact did. You are not saved by faith. You are saved by free-gift grace. Faith is the simple recognition of the free gift that’s already been given to you. – John Crowder.

Faith is your positive response to what God has already provided by grace – Andrew Wommack

Grace Seeds # 14

Philippians 4:19

And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

From A Park Bench - The Rich Soil Of My Heart.

“This spring the dirt was turned over and the smell and deepness gave me heart. It is just black-rich and feels good in the hand. You boys know how it is,”

“My daddy was up there,” Riley said. His thin face bright with recollection. “He was up there once long ago, long ago, way before they hung him. He said the dirt was so rich you could eat it like porridge.”

“They have very good dirt up there,” Jack Bull said. “But a short grow season.”

In his novel “Woe to live on,” Daniel Woodrell paints a wonderful, vivid picture of the turmoil and horror of the American Civil War as the Jayhawkers and Bushwhackers wage their own war against each other. In this passage, young teenage Bushwhackers contemplate life and normality as they read stolen Union letters.

These teenagers had grown up in the mid west of America and most were farmers who knew that the quality of soil was an intricate part of the success of the crop. The deeper and richer the soil the greater the chance and success of the crop.

I have a rich soil inside my heart, a soil that has been redeemed and been made anew by the power of God. It is the best soil, the most precious soil, because God has placed it there. I don’t have to add anything to it, it is perfect because of Christ. The only thing that can harm this soil is pollution, from the lies and the influences of the world and Satan. The more access I give to unbelief the more weeds start to invade the soil of my heart.

It is God’s word, the seed that produces the fruit, not the soil. The soil is just the place it germinates. Christ in me, is the seed, He is the source of my fruit, by His grace working in my life and not by my own effort. As I look  and focus my attention on Him, I keep my soil free from unbelief and give the seed all the soil it needs to take root, grow and bear fruit. This is all by and through grace as I consider Him and trust in the finished work of the cross.

I cannot make the seed grow and bear fruit only Christ by his grace can do that; however I can believe and receive in all he has provided for me and fill my heart with seed as I focus on Him.

Grace Seeds # 13

Habakkuk 3:19

The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, And He will make me walk on my high hills

Excursions Into Grace

Love is found in little acts

Not the bluster of the self righteous

The thunder belched from rooftops

Flamboyant demonstrations of the famous

But in the gentle moments of unaware treasure

Tender eulogies at funerals

The smuggled purpose of the reluctant

In silent footsteps towards sacrifice,

The realize worth of commitment

Faithful signatures upon life,

An unseen touch on a shoulder

Playful glance through shadows

The wiping of a dying brow

The care of a fragile heart

Excursions into grace

A smile

A hug

A moment of reassurance

Knowing that you will be there.

Grace Seeds # 12

John 10:10

The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly

From A Park Bench - Let The Things of The World Grow Dim

Every now and then I get the urge to throw caution to the win and subscribe to the Ice Hockey channel. I love watching Ice Hockey and since the 1990’s I have followed, - at a very long distance – the Vancouver Canucks. The closest I ever get, is watching the highlights on my laptop. The temptation I know deep down inside would completely distract me. It would start to focus my attention onto a sport I love and away from the saviour I love. Now there is nothing wrong with watching Ice Hockey, but there is something unhelpful about that love of the sport diminishing the flow of grace in my life.

The cares of the world, the business of life, the amusement of the mind all these things can rise up and distract us away from Christ in us. We don’t lose our salvation, we don’t lose the blessing of God, we are still accepted, forgiven, righteous and holy but we can lose our focus and drift into dulling our spirit to the flow of grace.

It takes time for the word of God to be established and rooted in our lives, the more we fall in love with Christ the greater his presence and grace transforms our consciousness and overflows into our daily walk. Give his spirit time to invade and permeate our hearts, mediate on his words of truth and let the truth fill your mind. Be consumed by his presence, soaked in his spirit and wallow in his love. Let the things of the world grow dim and let his light shine in your heart.

Enjoy God, cherish the son, be immersed in the spirit and let the grace of God overflow and drench your life. Say thank you to Christ for all his wonderful promises and blessing and receive all he has provided for you from his storehouse of his treasure. It is all free, all unmerited, all available, just believe and receive.

Grace Seeds # 11

Psalm 23:1

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.

Grace Notes - John 6 v 9

John 6:9, "There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?"

God wants to be involved in every moment of our daily life. He is interested in every breath we take and he desires to use our natural, everyday gifts for the glory of his kingdom.

God in His fullness is with us, alive in all his power inside us, with our every heart beat. Nothing is mundane, nothing is ordinary, and everything in us is alive to the power of God working in and through us. We are God’s channel of provision to everyone we meet.

God’s grace is an overflowing reservoir of abundant life that is available; we have entered the Promised Land, a land overflowing with all that God has provided in Christ. He has blessed us and He wants to work through us, with every day items to show His love and mercy.

As Andrew Wommack explains Jesus could have just made the miraculous happen on his own, but Jesus involved the disciples to plant the seed of faith into their hearts and demonstrate that God blesses the ordinary and uses it to produce the supernatural.

“Notice that Jesus didn't just turn some of the stones into bread (as Satan had tempted Him to do in Lk. 4:3). We find only one instance in scripture where God created a supply to meet a need (Num. 11:21-23). Usually, the Lord simply blesses what we set our hand to do. The resources were totally inadequate to meet the need in this instance, but when the Lord blessed it, there was more than enough.

Jesus didn't just teach the disciples, but He trained them also. He was constantly trying to involve them in these miracles. Just a matter of days later, He again asked His disciples what they could do to feed the multitude of four thousand men. It was like He was saying "You missed this question when I asked you how we could feed the five thousand men. Now, here are less people and more food. What would you suggest this time?"

Instead of remembering the previous miracle, they acted like they had never seen Jesus feed the multitude and they looked at their own resources again (Mt. 15:32; Mk. 8:1). Likewise, we all too often try everything we can do first and forget God's supernatural power until all we can do is pray. Many people have missed their miracle because they never took that first step of faith and used what they had. This young lad was certainly credited with part of this miracle for offering what he had. When in need, we should seek God's direction for something to set our hand to, and then trust Him to bless it and multiply the results of our work.”

Grace Seeds # 10

1 John 4:4

You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

Seven Steps to Success

Focus on the grace and love of Christ.

Soak in the grace and love of Christ.

Be consumed by the grace and love of Christ.

Be Immersed into the grace and love of Christ.

Let the grace and love of Christ fill your mind and thoughts.

Overflow with the grace and love of Christ.

Desire Christ in all his grace and love.

Because grace is not a doctrine it is person, fall in love with Jesus.

Grace Seeds # 9

Psalm 118:17

I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.

Beneath the Cross of Jesus by Elizabeth Clephane

Beneath the cross of Jesus 

I fain would take my stand, 

The shadow of a mighty rock 

Within a weary land; 

A home within the wilderness, 

A rest upon the way, 

From the burning of the noontide heat, 

And the burden of the day.

Upon that cross of Jesus 

Mine eye at times can see 

The very dying form of One 

Who suffered there for me; 

And from my stricken heart with tears 

Two wonders I confess: 

The wonders of redeeming love 

And my unworthiness.

I take, O cross, thy shadow 

For my abiding place; 

I ask no other sunshine than 

The sunshine of his face; 

Content to let the world go by, 

To know no gain nor loss, 

My sinful self my only shame, 

My glory all the cross.

by Elizabeth Cecilia Clephane

Grace Seeds # 8

2 Timothy 1:7

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

Friday's Five - The Cross

The Cross

God gives us the cross, and the cross gives us God. – Madame Guyon.

That terrible tree, which is the death of God and the life of man. – G.K. Chesteron.

There are some sciences that may be learned by the head, but the science of Christ crucified can only be learned by the heart. – C.H. Spurgeon.

By the cross we know the gravity of sin and the greatness of God’s love towards us. – John Chrysostom.

The cross is a tree set on fire with an invisible flame, that illumineth all the world. The flame is love. – Thomas Traherne

Grace Seeds # 7

Psalm 107:20

He sent His word and healed them,
And delivered them from their destructions.

From A Park Bench - Keep It Simple.

A few years back I worked for a local environmental charity in Wigan, Lancashire. My boss, the Chief Executive of the charity had a saying, “Keep it simple.” The charity world culture was interwoven with the intricacies of Local Government and all the bureaucratic jargon that clung to it. Everything was either strategic, holistic or inclusive, so much in house language that no one from the outside had any idea what was actual being said.

This can also be the trap of Christianity; we are so wanting to impress each other with deep theological ideas and understanding that the simplicity of the Gospel is almost by passed as we argue over the Greek or Hebrew interpretation.  My Mother’s favorite book was an analysis of the book of Daniel. I once asked her what it was about. She told me it was so deep that she didn’t understand all of it but just that she liked reading parts of it. It is a pity that some of this passed over her head.

The truth is the truth, and to get the truth of God into our lives we must understand it. We have to read the word and let it take root in our lives. When we don’t understand the word, Satan just comes and steals the truth from our hearts.

Our born again spirit is completely united into Christ and our hearts contain all the good soil we need for the planted seed to grow and flourish. As we read and mediate on God’s word his spirit reveals his love and truth to us.

The smallest seed can grow into a mighty tree. All we need is just one seed, planted and digested into our system for the truth to set us free. All the riches of God’s grace have been provided in him through the cross. Christ is the living word, the word of God is alive and the Spirit magnifies Christ to us. The Spirit and the Bible are interwoven and inseparable. To love Christ is to love His love letter to us.

Just take a seed, mediate on it, understand it and keep it simple. The simple truth will set you free.

Grace Seeds # 6

Philippians 4:13

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Planted......

Planted into the good soil of Jesus Christ .

Planted into His finished work, and not my own efforts.

Planted into the knowledge that I am permanently plugged into heaven, whether I feel it or not.

Planted into the good news of the New Covenant that Jesus bore the punishment for my sin, in Himself, on the cross.

Planted to produce fruit that abides and lasts.

Planted into knowing that the power of sin, failure and condemnation is broken.

Planted into my right standing before God.

Planted into a message of love, grace and mercy.

Planted into grace that brings intimacy between me and the father.

Planted into the New Covenant and crowned with God’s glory, captured with His goodness and consumed by His grace.

Planted into believing that I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

Planted into knowing that God loves me, and I love myself.

Planted into knowing that the power of Jesus breaks the hold of sin.

Planted into the reality that by His stripes I have been healed.

Planted into the person and finished work of Jesus Christ.

Grace Seeds # 5

Psalm 103:3

He forgives all my sins
and heals all my diseases.

From A Park Bench - Planting Seeds

Last week I attended the Andrew Wommack Grace and Faith Conference at Telford. It was an amazing, rich, powerful and life enhancing weekend that once more shed God’s word into my heart. The three teachers, Andrew Wommack, Duane Sheriff and Wendell Parr all brought excellent words that spoke and confirmed truth’s that I had been soaking in.

One of the words that really spoke to me was a simple thought that connected with my heart.  God’s word is full of God’s seeds that we can sow into our lives and as we mediate on them the word of God become rooted and grounded in our lives. Now I have know this truth for years, but something happened that changed the word from knowing to revelation. I realized that more I mediate on the promises of God the more they cement in my life and become revelation to me.

There is nothing mystical or magical in this, it is the natural way that all seed works and produces fruit. My heart is the soil, God’s word is the seed, as I plant it into my heart, and it takes root and works in my life. It is also, not an instant process, like an instant email or twitter message where we can communicate and receive feedback in the space of seconds. Letting a seed work in your life takes time, time for it to take root, time for it to be established, time for it to bear fruit and the best time to start is now.

Life is full of problems, disasters and turmoil. Taking a few moments every day to plant seed into our lives will help us to grow in the grace of God, so when calamity strikes we have a sure foundation of the promises of God which we can trust and rely on.

God has provided all we need through the cross, Christ has done it all, and we already have all we need to live a life in and through the power of God. Planting seed helps us to understand all the grace God has given us enhances the garden of love we have in him and established us in the promises of God.  

Grace Seeds # 4

Ephesians 1:19-20

What is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places.

Grace Notes - Matthew 16:18

Matthew 16:18, 

"And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."

God’s word contains all the seeds we need to live an abundant, overflowing grace filled life. It is the perfect spiritual mirror that actually shows the true reflection of who we are in Christ. It is not a rule book to be obeyed but a love letter to be adored.

We are filled in our inner man with all the fullness of Christ, we are now a living temple, Christ in His fullness is interwoven inside every believer and His life flows inside of us. As we let the seeds of his word germinate in our souls and let our new creation spirit dominate our thoughts and action, the reality of Christ dwelling in us starts to become Christ working in and through us.

As Andrew Wommack explains the revelation of Peter in Mathew 16 that Jesus was the Christ, was the foundation stone of every believer. Christ is our cornerstone, and we are his temple, God’s dwelling place on the earth. Christ in us the hope of Glory.

“Some people have mistakenly interpreted this passage to say that Peter was the foundation on which Christ would build His Church. However, that would violate many scriptures that refer to Jesus as the "chief cornerstone."

Ephesians 2:20 does mention the apostles as being part of the foundation stones of Christ's church, but it doesn't single Peter out above any of the other apostles, This same scripture once again mentions Jesus as the "chief cornerstone."

There are two different Greek words used for "Peter" and "rock" respectively in verse 18. The word used for "Peter" means "rock" but signifies a piece of rock like a pebble. In contrast, the word translated as "rock" signifies a massive rock which certainly refers to Jesus, the "chief cornerstone." Some have suggested that the foundation rock referred to was confession that Peter made saying that Jesus was "the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Mt. 16:16). Although it is true that, to enter God's kingdom, we do have to confess that Jesus is Lord (Rom. 10:9-10), in light of the Old Testament prophecies and New Testament references to Jesus being the "chief cornerstone," this passage of scripture must be referring directly to Jesus as the "rock" upon which He will build His church.

One of the greatest differences between the New Testament believer and the Old Testament believer is the fact that New Testament saints are the temple of God. God Himself actually indwells us. God does not dwell in a building made by man's hands. He now lives in the hearts of those who make Jesus their Lord (Rom. 10:9). The cornerstone of our lives in God must be an ever-increasing revelation of His Son. If we had a real understanding of the reality of Christ in us (Col. 1:27), it would drastically change our attitudes, emotions, and actions.”

Grace Seeds # 3

Psalm 118:27

God is the Lord, And He has given us light;