The peace found in salvation Part A and B
(the important of prayer in the last days)
Psalms 26:12
says, My foot standeth in an even place: in
the congregations will I bless the LORD. The word even can be translated
equity. Malachi 2:6, The law of truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found in
his lips: he walked with me in peace and equity, and did turn many away from
iniquity.
If you trust
in Jesus Christ anywhere you go in life you know that you will be in a place of
peace and equity. Of course God treats men more than equal because He sends the
rain on the just and the unjust. All good things come from God. And those that
repent of their sins and trust in Jesus Christ of Nazareth become joint heirs
with Christ, they become kings and priests. They have an inheritance of all
spiritual blessings in heavenly places. Because of Christs infinite mercy and
redemption those whom believe in his name can stand in an even place.
Psalms 27:1
says, The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The
LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? The words
light and salvation go hand in hand because to be saved from eternal damnation
in the lake of fire you need the light of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ.
The LORD is the light. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the
life, no man cometh to the father but by me. The word salvation can mean deliverance,
safety, and prosperity. Another way of saying salvation is redemption from sin,
the forces of evil, eternal judgment for sin. Salvation is an eternal life
which includes all spiritual blessings in heavenly places.
Light,
salvation and strength come from Jesus because without the light of Jesus men
are blind to the truth. Without salvation through the precious blood of Christ
men are destined for hell. It is appointed unto men once to die but after this
the judgment. We need Jesus to be our strength because of ourselves we cannot
overcome our own sinful nature nor can we overcome the forces of evil. But
greater is he that is in you than He that is in the world. Light, salvation,
and strength, because of these we do just as it says in Luke 9:23, And he said
to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up
his cross daily, and follow me. Because of the light, salvation and strength
which come from Christ the children of God do not need to fear.
Psalms 27:2, When the
wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they
stumbled and fell. There are many horrible sufferings that those whom live Godly
in Christ Jesus have faced. Sometimes the things that Christians would suffer
from their enemies God spares them of because Christ is all powerful, He is the
Almighty God. Therefore the enemies of the children of God can be overthrown
and perished by His power. The words stumbled and fell means to be overthrown
and perished.
The devil is
called the wicked one. As a roaring lion He roameth
about seeking whom he may devour. Spiritually the evil forces of this world
want to devour the souls of men. But they will stumble and fail if you turn
from your sins and turn to Jesus Christ because salvation is based on grace
through faith and not on works. You cannot lose your salvation once you have
trusted in Jesus. Jesus has great grace, marvelous loving kindness, and tender
mercies. John 3:16 says, For God so loved the world, that He gave his
only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have
everlasting life.
Psalms 27:3-4,
Though
an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not
fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident. One thing
have I desired off the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the
house of the LORD all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the LORD,
and to inquire in his temple.
If there is
any place a Christian should desire to be it is in the place of the prescence of God and the fellowship of His brethren in
Christ. Because Jesus Christ is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the
end, the I am that I am, the eternally existent one,
Jehovah; He is everywhere at all times. The child of the King is the temple
because once a person is saved they receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
Therefore God is always with them in an intimate way. This is the reason we do
not need to fear the evil forces of the world because the LORD of Hosts, Jesus
Christ, is always with us to guide us and to protect us from the evil forces.
Psalms 27:5, For in the
time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his
tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me upon a rock.
Life has times
of peace and times of spiritual warfare. We live in the last days. The great
time of Jacobs trouble is coming soon. There shall come
a falling away first. In fact there already has come a falling away. The world
is filled with iniquity and great evil. Even
Psalms 27:6
says, And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round
about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will
sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the LORD.
Jesus Christ
of
Romans 8:3-4,
For
what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending
his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the
flesh. That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled
in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
After the
resurrection of Christ he was seen of the apostles and the other believers for
40 days. When he ascended into heaven there were some 500 witnesses. Today
there is still the empty tomb which testifies to the resurrection of Christ. Of
course we know Christ rose from the grave because Gods Word tells us so. And
we can go by the word of God. Accurate science, history, and geology will
always correspond with Gods Word. If
science does not then someone somewhere has lied because Gods Word is always
true. It is without error. The Words of the Lord are pure Words as silver tried
in a furnace of earth purified seven times, thou shalt
keep them O Lord thou shalt preserve them from this
generation forever.
The phrase
lifted up means to be extoled. The Christian will
always have enemies. But one thing we can look forward to is the resurrection.
Just as Christ was glorified those whom have turned from their sins to Jesus
will also be glorified because they are joint heirs with Christ. And now
shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies therefore will I offer in his
tabernacle sacrifices of joy. If anything the spiritual inheritance, the
freedom from sin, the glorified body that the child of God will receive is
something to look forward too and to be thankful to Jesus for. This inheritance
is something that is only possible because Jesus paid it all.
Psalms 27:7, Hear, O
LORD, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me. Prayer is
talking to Jesus. Sometimes when we pray we come to Christ more fervently and
beseechingly because of the burdens which the Spirit of God puts on our hearts.
The important thing about prayer is to make sure your sins are confessed to
Christ and that you have faith. It does not take a lot of faith just the faith
of a grain of mustard seed. God hears our prayers and answers them because of
His mercy. It is because of the mercy of God that His Son Jesus Christ came to
the earth born of a virgin and then died on the cross of
There are
things God is going to do regardless of what the forces of evil and evil men do
to oppose His will. But sometimes there are things that God will do just
because we pray and ask Christ. Psalms 27:7, Hear, O LORD, when I cry with
my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
Psalms 27:8
says, When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my
heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek. Jesus said seek and ye shall
find. God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to
repentance. What shall it profit a man if He gain
the whole world but lose his own soul, said Jesus. Jesus wants men to turn
from their sins to Him. Sinful men become aware of their need for Jesus Christ
when they hear the truth of Gods Word. You only need to ask Christ into your
heart one time to become saved for eternity. But a person who is truly
repentant does give an effort to not continue in sin. The Christian life is
based on trusting in Christ for forgiveness of sin and then continuing to
believe in His forgiveness and trying to do better every time you fail.
We live in the
last days. One of the great indicators that we live in the last days is the
failure of the Christians to repent of their sins. 2 Thessalonians 2:1-3 says,
Now
we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our LORD Jesus Christ, and by our
gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be
troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the
day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not
come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed,
the son of perdition.
There is no
other country in the world that has had such an opportunity to hear the Gospel
of Jesus Christ as
Jeremiah
50:4-10 says, The word that the LORD spake
against
Even after
Jesus judged the nation of
Psalms 27:8
says, When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my
heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek. The best thing for
Christians to do is to keep their sins confessed, and to rely upon the promises
of God. Those that live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. Perhaps
a horrible, unimaginable time of persecution is coming soon for Christians in
2:1-3 says, Now we
beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our LORD Jesus Christ, and by our
gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be
troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the
day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not
come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed,
the son of perdition.
Revelation
12:9-12 says, And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the
Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he
was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard
a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation,
and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the
accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and
night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb,
and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the
death. Therefore rejoice ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabitors of the earth and of the sea! For the devil is
come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth
that he hat but a short time.
In these last days Christians should
pray for the return of Christ. They should wait patiently for His return.
Christians should keep their sins confessed. Christians should rely upon the
promises of God. And Christians should continue day by day to pick up their
cross and to follow Jesus because He that is faithful in little is faithful in
much. The loving kindness and the tender mercies of God are always found in
Christ. Sometimes all that Christ wants is for His children to endure their
suffering. This itself is a testimony to the power of
Christ and to the power of His Word. Revelations 12:11 says, And they
overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and
they loved not their lives unto the death.
___________________________________________________
Copyright; 2013 by Bruce
Creech
All Rights Reserved