Somehow not only at Christmas but all the long year through, the joy that you give others is the joy that comes back to you. And the more you spend blessing the poor, lonely and sad, the more of your heart’s possessing returns to you glad. John Wittier (1807-1892), American Quaker Poet, Abolitionist Writer, Author of Famous Book, Snow-Bound.
Tag: blessed
Read! Hear! Speak! Revelation 1:3
Blessed is he possessing the character of God expressed as a believer in Christ who is well spoken of and is fully satisfied regardless of the circumstances. God’s Kingdom is in your heart. These blessings come when you read and hear the word of this prophecy. The prophecy of telling God’s word where His grace and empowerment are to be exercised in the church. You are to keep those things which are written therein: For the time or season of opportunity is given for these events to take place. Comment: The word Blessed used here could not be better expressed than in the life of the Apostle John! Regardless of circumstances! A lot of 21st Century preaching today says you are blessed only if your circumstances of money, wealth and health reflect it! John was boiled in a pot of oil! When that did not kill him the Roman Emperor had John exiled to a slave labor camp on the remote Greek island of Patmos working in a stone quarry! The 21st Century Christian would have trouble understanding his blessings? Lord if you just help me win the lottery I will serve you! The word Blessed has nothing to do with your external circumstances but everything to do with your internal condition! Your soul. It is all about Christ living and dwelling in you! His presence comes through reading his word and hearing his word and then speaking His word to others! Evangelism! The word time used in this scripture passage is not the word chronology and does not mean a succession of time! The Greek word for time, used here, Strongs #2540, means a season of opportunity for events to take place. You might call it grace! Your season and my season of opportunity will only come by once in your life! Use your opportunity today and the rest of your life to read, hear and speak His Word! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Choosing Good or Evil! Isaiah 56:2
Hebrew Translation: Blessed, happy and successful is the man that works, labors, toils and the son of man that layeth hold unto it; that keeps, watches and guards the Holy Sabbath, the 7th day of the week, on the same day God rested from His Creation and ceased from work. Keeping from polluting it or making it common and committing violence against God’s established law. Also keeping his hand of authority and responsibility from doing evil. Comment: The choice should be easy and obvious but it is not! The first day of the week is Sunday! Not Monday! In early America you could not find a business open on Sunday! If you are trusting in your own works then Sunday is just another work day for you! A chance to make more money! Then you believe the time you have is not a gift from God but belongs to you! All of it! This is an ownership question! No faith in God causes people to trust themselves and their own efforts! God rested on the 7th day so are we greater than God? Do you believe God is looking after you? Then show it! Pressures build as you try to carry the load by yourself! Your health is affected! Do not make Sunday just another day in the week! Do you follow God and His example or do you make up your own rules? I am almost 70 years old and have been walking with Christ for 44 years! The peace, joy and prosperity is beyond measure! I have been retired for 22 years! I have never been a slave to work but God works for me! May seem a prideful statement but not really! I do what I can do but understand I can do nothing without Him! My efforts are futile unless God Blesses my efforts! When I cease from my own labor and rest in Christ each Sunday I leave the results to God! Whether the experiences seem good or not my trust is in the Lord! When I tithe and make offerings each Sunday I am giving back to God what He has already given me! I watch for the Sabbath! I guard the Sabbath! Sorry sir I cannot work on Sunday! We will fire you! So be it! God will provide another job! I prepare for the Sabbath! My soul, mind and body prepare for it! Then I rest in Christ and he renews my soul, mind and body! My thoughts are continually on Him! My expectation is from Him! My reward is in Him! My joy comes from Him! My peace from Him and the relationship to Him! My eternity is framed by Him! His promises are mine! You can please God by making the right choice! Then your remaining choices for the rest of your life will be easy! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Church Growth & Decline! II Chronicles Chapters 6-7
Mary pondered these things in her heart! Do we ponder the things of God? His House? A church that was once strong and powerful fades away into history? Solomon built the most beautiful Temple for God in history! Solomon had so much wealth given to him! The Queen of Sheba gave him 4 tons of gold for a gift! Solomon did not spend on himself but invested it into the building of the Temple! The Jews made sacrifices to construct the Temple! Solomon asked God for wisdom but God gave him both wisdom and riches! Riches outside the will and purpose of God will come to nothing! After Solomon and many years passed the Temple declined and was destroyed and the Jews went into captivity! Why do some churches fail while others prosper? What series of events cause these opposite outcomes? We must see life God’s way and not our own way! Solomon took the wealth God had given him and invested it into the Temple for worship! God gave the provisions! The church began and the people gave their best! We see from the recorded scriptures here the people prayed and God heard their requests and acted upon them! He bless their cause and work! At the end of Solomon’s prayer God was pleased and fire came down from Heaven and the sacrifice was consumed! What was going right in the Temple! People were obedient to leadership! It was more than just the ornaments of gold silver and jewels! Something was going on inside the Temple! Fire came down and the Lord’s House was filled with His Glory! His mercy endures forever! Solomon built a place where people could bring the sacrifices! God confirmed the blessings with his presence! God has chosen this place for himself! The power of faithfulness and obedience! God heard their prayers! If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves………! We will hear from Heaven! Revival! Times of refreshing! Heart’s right with God! Eyes opened! New revelation! Examine ourselves! Meet God! Who is your God? God is not the reason for a declining church! People have forgotten who they are in Christ! Lost favor of God! Lost sense of purpose! Focus on themselves! No witness of God to the community! Forsaken the God of our Father’s! Calamity follows! God moves out and the world moves in! Secularism! Return to the Lord! He will hear from heaven! He will heal with church growth! Now I must ask you a personal question? Have you given any sacrifice to God that he can consume? When God consumes your sacrifice his presence is manifested in his House! No sacrifice no consumption and no presence! No God in the House! Empty! Christ’s sacrifice caused God to consume Jesus completely with His manifested Glory! Miracles left and right! Are tithes and offerings too much sacrifice for you? Are ministries into your community too much for you? Prison ministry? Hospital and nursing home visits too much for you? Without your sacrifice he has nothing to work with! Do not waste your sacrifice on the world! Your effort will be lost forever! Have faith in God and trust him! You will never be disappointed! When the leadership and people stop sacrificing the ministry declines! When they begin to sacrifice the ministry grows! Pastor Ron Wilder, Mount Vernon Baptist Church, Fairburn, Georgia.
The Time is Now! Revelation 1:3
Greek Translation: “Blessed is the state of a believer in Christ as one possessing the character of a Deity who reads and hears the words of this prophecy from the office of the prophet. He who keeps these things that are written therein for the time, (Not Chronos), but the opportunity that you have now that may not pass by you again. The necessity is upon you to act upon the revelation of the truth and the time to respond is today.”
Giving to Ministries
I cannot tell you where to give or how much to give! That is between you and God! Jesus said it is more blessed to give than to receive! I am not soliciting to give to this ministry or any other ministry! I got a call from Joel Osteen Ministries today Sunday. They wanted a $35 dollar donation. I suggested to the caller that he should make a disclaimer to all donors that our tithe first belongs to the local church! He agreed yet I asked him why he did not tell me this? Then I asked him if he worked for Joel Osteen Ministries? He told me he was a private contractor collecting money for the ministry. I told him I thought Joel was a good preacher but does not enter into the cultural warfare breaking down America! I mentioned that Joel lives in a 10.5 million dollar mansion! He owns another house worth 2.9 million and another lot worth 1.9 million! The caller told me we cannot judge him! I told the caller I am not judging anyone but these are just facts about Joel’s lifestyle! His lifestyle does not fit the Jesus I know in my Bible? I told the caller I appreciate him giving up his 200 thousand annual dollar salary back in 2007 from the church. However his net worth is 40 million dollars! He sells his books but most of the money is gained by Christian’s buying his books! This is money from believer’s in the Church! Could this money have been more productive by church member’s investing in their local church? Also the 501c tax exemption allows the escape of tax money to the treasury department and that short fall has to be made up by the American tax payer! The caller told me I need to move on! Here is the point I am trying to make! Jesus said to render unto God what is His and to Caesar what is his! The tithe is automatic going to your local church! The offering is optional! To give to any ministry I need to see sacrifice from the leadership! If God speaks to you to give to Joel Osteen Ministries do it! Joel’s father is the one who really sacrificed to build the foundation for Joel! The same can be said of Franklin Graham. He gets 880 thousand dollars per year annual salary! Billy Graham’s net worth is 25 million dollars! I have to see examples of sacrifice for me to invest in any ministry! We need to put our money where our mouth is! These ministries do great things but the love of money is still the root of all evil! I would suggest that all ministries tithe their incomes to other ministries and support for the poor, widow’s and orphans! My prayer is those who read this will get a conviction in their heart’s including myself to be wise with our resources and invest into those who mirror Jesus Christ the most! Will 35 dollars break me? No! I wanted to make a point to our caller! God Bless your ministry! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Pride! Isaiah 39:1-2
The Babylonian Ambassadors came to King Hezekiah in Israel to give him gifts for they had heard he had been sick. Hezekiah showed them all the treasures in the Temple and government treasuries! He gave them a tour of all his stuff! Isaiah inquired after they left and asked the king who were these people and what did they want? After Isaiah learned who they were he warned the King he had made a grave error! He told the King the following generations would be taken captive to Babylon as slaves and all their wealth carried away! Pride before the fall? It is good to give a testimony to people for how God has blessed you! However some will become jealous and try to steal your goods! Sometimes treasures can draw the wrong people into your life! If you have a loyal faithful friend when you were poor they will be faithful when you are rich! Someone like Jesus! Remember Job after he lost it all? Miserable friends! God recovered Job! The real treasures God has given us can never be taken away! We have this treasure in earthen vessels! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Blowing Smoke! Malachi 3:8
The first time the tithe is mentioned in our Bible is in Genesis 14:20. Abram gave a tithe to the Priest Melchizedek! This was before the Law of God was given to us by Moses. I find it difficult sometimes when Christian’s profess that they trust God with their Salvation and eternal life yet they will not trust God with ten percent of their income? This is a contradiction! Jesus commended the widow when she put all she had into the offering plate while others just gave a little off the top! We had some interesting experiences while doing mission work in India! When we would go into the remote villages and preach the Gospel the people would bring us tithes and offerings after the services! This widow brought us a small little chicken on a string about the size of a pigeon! I could not refuse it because it was all she had! I understood this tithe and offering was going to cost her a few meals! Another villager brought us a goat! We named him Charles but he was a real headache for me! I have found that the more money people have the harder it is to give! Why? Simply because they begin to trust in their wealth rather than God! You say you trust God here on earth? Show me! Your tithe belongs to the local church and your offering as God leads you! As a small boy growing up on a farm in Nebraska the annual county fair was the highlight of our life! All the carnival rides, freak shows and other entertainment would be there! Today all the freak shows have moved to Washington D.C.! We would save our quarters all year long getting ready for the fair! They had this one little side show where you put a quarter in the machine and then you turned this little crank wheel and moved your drag line out above the toys beneath it and dropped your bucket to try to catch a prize! I would explain to my little brother Tommy how the last guy that lost his quarter made his mistake and I would have not done it that way! We watched others for two days lose their money to learn from their mistakes! Finally the guy running the concession stand lost his patience with us and shouted at me and said, “Hey boy! Put your money where your mouth is!” That is what God is asking us to do! Not unreasonable! Also other ministries should tithe their income to other ministries! Otherwise they rob God of His tithes! You can read the rest of Chapter three to see the outcome if you disobey God! Simple obey Him and be blessed! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Are You The One? Mark 14:61-62
I believe every generation born asks this question sooner or later! Caiaphas the High Priest asked Jesus this question! After Judas betrayed Jesus the Jews apprehended Jesus and a mock trial was held! Jesus was a threat to the religious leaders of Israel as He is to the religious system today! The religious leaders raised up false accusers against Jesus to nail Him! However the false witnesses could not agree with their testimonies! Why was Jesus such a threat? They had their long robes and long prayers but Jesus at the snap of His fingers raised the dead, healed the blind and the lame, walked on water and cast out demons! So Caiaphas had to ask the question that he dreaded to ask and inside knew this was probably the guy! Jesus are you the Christ the Son of the Blessed? What was he really asking? Let us break these words down one Greek word at a time! Christ means the anointed one! That is He was covered with the Glory of God! The word son used here, “Hulos”, is a specific word reserved for the Son of God as opposed to the generic word used meaning the offspring of parents! The word Blessed is reserved for God who is worthy of praise! Humans can be favored by circumstances however these circumstances can change and usually will over time! God is the creator of all and we are the recipients of His love! Jesus replied to his question with an affirmative yes and added more as we see in verse 62. Caiaphas then accused Jesus of blasphemy and Jesus persecution and execution followed! Suffering can come because of who you are! Good or bad! Jesus suffering was pre-planned by God! Jesus always referred to “His Father” except at the Cross! At the Cross Jesus said, “My God why have you forsaken me?” Have you ever felt forsaken? There are many benefits for following Jesus such as eternal life, peace, joy, love, long suffering, patience and the list goes on! Also remember many suffer today because of His name! Such as the Christians in the Middle East, Africa and places including America! It is not easy to suffer for who you are however Jesus suffered because of who we are! Sinners saved by Grace! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com
Communion Services!
Your meditation may be as profound, as exalted, as devout as you like; you may practice every pious exercise you can manage, but all this is nothing in comparison with the Blessed Sacrament! What we may do may be Godly, but this Sacrament is God Himself! Johannas Tauler, German Theologian (1300-1361) Comment: Great voices out of the past remind us that the present day Communion by a believer in Christ is not about what we have done or could have done it is about what God has done for us is what counts and will last forever! James and Hamsa Sasse. GodWhoisGod.com