ABIDING IN THE VINE

John 15:1-6    15 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.² Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.³ Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
⁴ Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
⁵ I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
⁶ If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.

I am the vine, the Father is the gardener.  He cuts off every branch that doesn’t produce fruit.
He prunes the branches that do bear fruit, so they will produce even more.
Through the word we have already been pruned for greater fruitfulness…

Christ Jesus is the vine, and God is the gardener who cares for the branches to make them fruitful.  The branches are all those who claim to be followers of Christ.

The fruitful branches are true believers who by their belief with Christ produce much fruit.

The ones who turn from following Christ, and are unproductive, even after making a commitment to follow Jesus. They will be separated from the vine and will not have Gods favor in their lives.  Dead branches do not produce fruit. Jesus makes a distinction between two kinds of pruning.  Cut off the branches and cut back branches. The fruitful branches are cut back to promote growth.

God sometimes must discipline us to strengthen our character and faith.

But the branches that don’t bear fruit are cut off at the trunk, not only because they are worthless but also because they often infect the rest of the vine.

People who don’t bear fruit for God or who try to block the efforts of Gods followers will be cut off from his life giving power.  Many people try to be good honest people who do what is right.
But Jesus says that the only way to live a truly good life is to stay close to Him, like a branch attached to a vine.

Apart from Christ our efforts are unfruitful. God is glorified when people come into a right relationship with him, and begin to produce much fruit.

John 15:7    ⁷ If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye
will, and it shall be done unto you.

If you continue to live in a relationship with Christ and you believe His words as being the truth, and you receive his words as truth, you can ask for something and it shall be done.

Not only do you receive what you ask for, but since you believed you received, your bore fruit, and God the Father was glorified.  When you glorify God, his favor comes upon your life good things start happening.

Philemon 6   ⁶ That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.

 You need to start acknowledging every good thing which is in you, in Christ Jesus. In that way by faith everything in us will become effective for our lives.  If you want healing, acknowledge what God has invested in you when you were saved.

When you were saved, God invested prosperity, victory, salvation, all the gifts of the Holy Spirit. All that is needed is for you to believe and to abide in Christ Jesus.

Continue to read the word,

Brother Andy

CLAIMING YOUR HEALING

CLAIMING YOUR HEALING

READ 3^RD JOHN VERSE 2
THAT THOU MAYEST PROSPER AND BE IN HEALTH

READ JOHN 10-10
I AM COME THAT THEY MIGHT HAVE LIFE AND THAT THEY MIGHT HAVE IT MORE ABUNDANTLY

THROUGHOUT THE WORD OF GOD WE FIND PROMISES FOR HEALING HEALTH AND PROSPERITY

IT IS GODS WILL FOR US TO BE WELL AND ENJOY HEALTH AND LIFE IN IT’S FULLEST

ONLY WHEN WE KNOW AND UNDERSTAND GOD’S PROMISES CAN WE APPLY THEM TO OUR HEALTH AND LIVES.

YOU MUST KNOW WHAT THE WORD SAYS AND MEANS.

OUR GOD THAT HEALS, IS THE SAME GOD THAT IS ABLE TO SUSTAIN YOU AND KEEP YOU HEALTHY

HE CAN SUSTAIN YOU FOR A DAY, A MONTH OR A YEAR, OR EVEN A LIFETIME… IT IS ALL ACCORDING TO YOUR FAITH

WHEN THE DEVIL PUTS A THOUGHT OF SICKNESS IN YOUR MIND, DON’T CONFESS IT

WHEN YOU CONFESS SICKNESS OR DISEASE, IT ACTUALLY SHOWS THAT YOU BELIEVE IN SICKNESS MORE THAN YOU BELIEVE IN GODS WORD.

JUST AS HEALING IS RECEIVED BY FAITH… SO IS HEALING KEPT BY FAITH

CHRISTIANS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE WALKING IN DEVINE HEALTH

THE ONLY THING SATAN CAN DO IS WORK THRU THOUGHTS AND SUGGESTIONS OR CONVINCE YOU WITH SYMPTOMS…

IF YOUR LISTENING TO THE WORD OF THE WORLD, AND NOT THE WORD OF GOD.. WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WHEN THE WORLDS SYSTEM CRUMBLES…

AND IT WILL… SATAN WILL LET YOU DOWN, THE WORLD SYSTEM WILL LET YOU DOWN..DR.S PRACTICING MEDICINE…

ONLY FAITH IN GODS WORD AND HIS KINGDOM WILL SUSTAIN YOU IN THESE PERILESS TIMES.

 1^ST PETER 2:24    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.

ISAIAH 53: 5   But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

ISAIAH SAYS WITH HIS STRIPES WE ARE HEALED

1^ST PETER SAYS… BY WHOSE STRIPES YE WERE HEALED

ISAIAH WAS SAYING THERE IS COMING A SAVIOR THAT BY TAKING STRIPES WE CAN BE HEALED.

THIS WAS WRITTEN 700 YEARS BEFORE THE CROSS

1^ST PETER IS SAYING, BECAUSE JESUS FULFILLED THIS PROPHESY.. BY HIS STRIPES WE WERE HEALED

ALL WE NEED TO DO IS HAVE FAITH IN WHAT JESUS HAS ALREADY DONE.. IT WAS SETTLED AT CALVARY

SICKNESS AND DISEASE IS A DEMONIC CURSE

CANCER IS A CURSE, THAT IS WHY THEY WON’T EVER FIND A NATURAL CURE

YOU CAN’T CURE A SPIRITUAL DISEASE WITH A NATURAL MEANS, IT WON’T WORK

GOD DOES NOT PUT SICKNESS AND DISEASES ON PEOPLE TO HUMBLE THEM OR TEACH THEM A LESSON

ONLY THE NAME AND BLOOD OF JESUS WITH A CONFESSION OF FAITH WILL SUSTAIN YOU.

REMEMBER WHAT 3^RD JOHN VERSE 2 SAID

THE WILL OF GOD IS FOR YOU TO PROSPER AND BE IN GOOD HEALTH

Living and Understanding His Presence

Psalms 16:11   Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

If you will put away the stress of the day, and set aside its daily pressures, learning each day to rest in the presence of God, your life will change.

Gen 39:1-3   And Joseph was brought down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the Ishmeelites, which had brought him down thither.

² And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.
³ And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.

God was with Joseph and blessed him greatly: Joseph stayed in Gods presence.

Everyday we need to acknowledge the presence of God, recognize what God has already done for us.

In his presence there is joy, which is your strength, there is pleasure knowing God will never leave you or forsake you.

Expand your consciousness of his presence; let God be part of your life.

God can’t be a part of your life unless you practice being in his presence.

If your life is a big zero, I know someone that can make something out of zero.

See the Lord in everything you do, when you praise Him you’re continuing in his presence.

When you’re reading the word, thanking Him for what he has done for you, meditating, acting on his promises, you’re continuing in His presence.

Let the grace of God bless your increase. Experience what God has in store for you in the heavenly realm.

Christians should not have difficulty producing fruit, God is with you, God is for you, and God is on your side.

An apple tree has no difficulty producing apples, give it plenty of sun light and plenty of water and it will grow and produce fruit.

It is the same thing with Christians we can’t change and produce fruit unless we are exposed to the Son’s light and the living water of Jesus Christ.

What you are exposed to the most, that is what you will end up producing.

God can’t be a part of your life, the favor of God can’t be on your life until you acknowledge his presence.

When you get up in the morning do you say good morning Lord or do you say good lord it’s morning.

The presence of God was with Moses at the red sea:

The presence of God was with Daniel in the lions den

The presence of God was with Shadrac, Meshach and Abednego in the furnace

The presence of God was with David when he killed Goliath.

The presence of God was only with them, how much better off are we with the New Blood covenant, God is now in us.

Most Christians believe that God will help them if they help themselves.

When you work you get the glory, when God works He gets the glory.

Psalms 72: 17-19   His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed.
¹⁸ Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things.
¹⁹ And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen.

Resting in the Lord means you believe and trust what has already been done at the Cross.

When God created the earth, He didn’t create man until it was finished.

God has this thing about not putting man in a place when things are not ready.

God is only going to put us in a place when everything has already been made ready.

Under the dispensation of grace, God has us in a place that everything you need is already done.

Most of the time our prayers are asking God to do something that has already been done.

You need to see faith as what goes into the past to get what is already available and bring it to the present.

What you have confidence in the most is what you are going to lean on the most.

Let God know you need Him, he loves to be needed. This wonderful opportunity to trust God will one day be gone.

Allow Him to show up in your life

We are in the age of grace and God wants you to take advantage of it. Please trust God in this.

In order to experience the benefit of the presence of God you must be assured that he will never leave you or forsake you.

BATTLE OF THE MIND

BATTLE OF THE MIND

Heb 12: 1-3  12 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,² Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
³ For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.

Before you can enjoy the kind of victory that God has made available for you, you must first learn about the strategies the devil is using against you.

You must learn how he operates, so you can put a stop to his operations in your life. You must find out exactly where he is going to attack you.

We must lay aside and get rid of everything that slows us down… sin, wrong desires…We must look away from ourselves, or at the circumstances surrounding us, and keep or eyes upon Jesus.

If we start looking away, our eyes will be deceived; we must keep Jesus in our sight.

We are not the first to struggle with the problems we face, look at what the disciples faced.

Look at what Jesus faced, he saw the joy ahead of him, so he endured death on the cross and ignored the disgrace it brought Him.

Then he received the highest position in heaven, the one next to the throne of God the father.

Unless you become weary and faint in your minds, you too will have an eternal position with Christ.

As long as you live in a mortal body, your carnal natural mind is the place where your fight with Satan will be won or lost. Some people think Satan’s attacks come in the realm of the spirit, but they don’t.

Jesus defeated him where the spirit realm is concerned…once and for all. When we made Jesus the Lord of our life, that victory became forever ours. The battle for your spirit is over; it has already been fought and won.

As a believer you have been spiritually re-born into the image of God. There is absolutely nothing the devil can do to change that.

You must understand the difference between the soul and the spirit.

When you’re operating purely in the realm of the spirit, your mind, which is the realm of the soul is not in charge.

Even though Satan himself is a spirit, he has lost all his authority in the spiritual realm.  He can not fight you in the spiritual realm anymore. But he can battle you in the mind.

1^st Corinthian 10:13   There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

When you are tempted, God will give you the ability to endure the temptation as your way of escape.

That means, satin has to operate in this natural soulish realm, and even in the natural realm he has no authority.

But he can deceive you, deception is all he has. That doesn’t mean that he will just pack up and go home. He is still going to try to steal, kill and destroy you and your relationship with Jesus. He is going to try to do it by gaining control of your mind.

If you’re going to take a successful stand against the devil, you will have to do it on the battlefield of your mind.

If we start looking away from Jesus, our eyes will be deceived; we must keep Jesus in our sight.

Stay in the word,

Brother Andy

BLESSED BY GRACE

Eph. 1: 3-5   Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

⁴ According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

⁵ Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

Who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms or places.

This means, that in Christ we have all the benefits of knowing God.

Being chosen for salvation, Mathew 22:14 says, for many are called, but few are chosen.

To enter into these spiritual blessings, we must receive the invitation of his righteousness through Jesus Christ.

Being adopted as His children, Eph 1:5, we were predestinated (or fore ordained by divine decree) unto the adoption by Jesus Christ to Himself.

John 1: 12-13   That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.

Being born makes you physically alive and places you in your parent’s family.

Being born of God makes you spiritually alive and puts you in Gods family.

Another spiritual blessing is forgiveness.

1^st John 1:9   If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

All people by nature and by practice are sinners, at our conversion; all our sins are forgiven, past present and future.

Even after we become Christians, we still sin and still need to confess or repent.

Another spiritual blessing is insight

Insight is a clear understanding of the inner nature of some specific thing.

Insight is: The ability to see and understand clearly.

2^nd Tim 2:7   Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.

God speaks through His word and we need to be open to it and meditate on it.

Read the word then consider what you have read by thinking it through and meditating on it.

God, through the Holy Spirit will give you understanding.

Another blessing is the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

 Eph 4:4-12   There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;
⁵ One Lord, one faith, one baptism,

⁶ One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

⁷ But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.

⁸ Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.

⁹ (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?

¹⁰ He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)

¹¹ And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

¹² For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Eph 1:17   That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:

The spirit of wisdom, knowledge and understanding, comes from God the Father, through the Holy Spirit who reveals the truth to your spirit.

We receive through His mercy and grace. This is His gift to you. It is not of your works, but of His grace and favor.

Another spiritual blessing is Power to do the will of God.

God’s will is His word, and the will of God, will never lead you where the grace of God can not keep you.

2^nd Peter 1:3   According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

Many believers want an abundance of God’s special favor and peace, but they are unwilling to put forth the effort to know Him better.

The power to lead a godly life comes from God

God allows us to share in His divine nature, in order to keep us from sin.

God by his spirit empowers us with his own goodness…

Another blessing is the hope of living forever with Christ.

Hope is the inner image of who we are in Christ Jesus

Heb 6:19   Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;

This confidence is like a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls.

Two unchangeable things are God’s promise and his oath. He can not lie, because God is truth.

You can be sure of his promises; you don’t need to wonder if he will change His plans.

Our hope is secure and immoveable, anchored in God

Don’t loose hope, have faith in God, faith is a positive response to what grace has already made available.

FOUNDATION FOR OUR DAILY LIVES

Psalms 11: 1-3   In the Lord put I my trust: how say ye to my soul, Flee as a bird to your mountain?
² For, lo, the wicked bend their bow, they make ready their arrow upon the string, that they may privily shoot at the upright in heart.
³ If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?

If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?

For some reason David was forced to flee for safety several times.

Being Gods anointed King did not make him immune to injustice and hatred from others.

Even with all of this happening David always knew that God was always in control.

Like David, faith in God keeps us from loosing hope, and helps us to resist fear.

Hope is and always will be the foundation for faith. In knowing Gods word we build on this foundation.

David was comforted because he knew God was greater than anything his enemies could bring against him.

When your foundation is shaken and you feel like hiding, remember that God is still in control.

God’s power is not diminished by the turn of today’s events.

Nothing happens without his knowledge and permission

God has had a plan since the beginning of time and no leader, no president, no man or event can change Gods plan.

It is going to be as He planed, and just as it was planned

So if you watch fox news and sometimes feel like running away, run to God.

He is the one with the plan.

God will restore justice and goodness on the earth in His own good time

Something you should know. God does not preserve the believers from difficult circumstances.

But he tests both the righteous and the wicked.

For some, Gods tests become a refining fire, while for others they become an incinerator for destruction.

Don’t ignore Gods tests and challenges; use them as opportunities for growth.

Sometimes for Christians in these days, living for God in a deceitful world can be full of difficulty and lonely.

At one time the great prophet Elijah felt so lonely he wanted to die.

We are never alone in our battle against evil, so when you feel alone, seek out other believers for strength and support.

God cares for the weak and the needy. He promises His protection. His promises and provision are mightier than any problem.

We have one hope, the word of God. God’s words are as flawless as refined silver, so listen carefully when He speaks.

Sometimes all we need to do is talk over a problem with a friend

A believing friend can help you put things in a different perspective.

There are times we think that God is slow to act on our behalf.

Like most humans we want it, and we want it now.

When you feel impatient, remember David’s steadfast faith in God’s unfailing love.

God not only expects us to obey his guidelines but he wants us to love Him with all our heart.

No one except Jesus Christ has done that perfectly, sometime we humans fall short.

Today we live among evil people whose standards and morals are eroding.

Our standard of living this life, as believers, should not come from our evil society, but from Gods word.

Words are powerful and how you use them reflects on your relationship with God.

It is human nature to make our own plans and then ask God to bless them.

Instead, we should seek Gods will first.

 We can do this by constantly thinking about the Lord and His way of living.

Believers and unbelievers alike experience pain and trouble as well as failure at times.

Those who seek God can move ahead, confident in knowing what is right in Gods eyes.

Those who know God know that God will help keep them from straying off His chosen path.