EveryManComplete Podcast

We live in a growing counter-cultural world. The distance between the world and the gospel we put our hope in is widening every day. There is great animosity and bitterness toward those of us of faith. 
Many in the church are compromising to ease the conflict they are experiencing. Many are battening down the hatches and becoming more adamant in how they proclaim the gospel. Our message to a great degree has become tasteless as Matthew 5:13 says and is being trampled underfoot by men.    
Does the gospel have much to say about how we are to conduct ourselves in such a counter-cultural world?  Yes, it does! Get a pen and paper and write down the Scripture that God gives us in plain language how we are to live out the gospel in this present culture.

Even as new creations in Christ we are warned to not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of our minds. We have the Holy Spirit living within us but remain in the flesh until Jesus comes. And the flesh and spirit are in opposition to one another. We are barraged by the world we live in on an ongoing basis. Our flesh is susceptible to the enticements of the world and if we are not secure in who we are in Christ we can find ourselves once again being conformed to this world. 
We were created for eternity and God has placed eternity within each one of us. When we attempt to fill that eternal void in our lives with anything other than God's love and grace we will revert back to the conformity of this world. 
God desires for us to become partakers of His divine nature not to walk in the corruption of the world living by our old destructive lusts. When you and I forget about the love that God has for us we will allow the things of this world to take its place. Transformation is about living in the love relationship of Jesus Christ and experiencing the power of His grace.

We are constantly thinking about our security. We live in a world filled with conflict and turmoil. We spend a great deal of money on security systems for our homes and belongings and have them monitored on an ongoing basis. 
One of the areas of our lives that is the most troubling for us as far as security is concerned is in our relationships. Somewhere in the midst of our everyday lives, we have been disappointed in one of our relationships. Confidence or trust was broken and we feel insecure. We isolate ourselves and are hesitant to let anyone get close to us again. 
When it comes to our faith and the salvation that was given to us freely by God's grace sometimes we can feel insecure. There are even those in some Christian circles that would claim that Scripture tells us that we can lose our salvation. I believe that there are manipulative motives behind their teaching. 
If you are going to make a statement like you can lose your salvation based upon taking God's word out of context you need to know that there are several other Scriptures that very boldly contradict that claim. 
God's grace is sufficient and His love never fails. Join us in searching the gospel as we discover that God's grace is enough to secure our salvation for all eternity. You are secure in God's love for you. The question is not whether you can lose your salvation but whether you have the salvation that comes by grace through faith.

Living out the life that God has called us to live by faith is impossible without us surrendering to the Holy Spirit in us to strengthen and provide for us the grace that is needed to do so. The Spirit gives life but the flesh profits nothing. In other words, the flesh has nothing to offer us in our efforts to walk in faith. Our flesh and the spirit are in opposition to one another so that we are unable to do what we desire to do for God. 
Our salvation required the Holy Spirit to reveal the sin in our lives as well as the grace that God was offering to us for that salvation. Our sanctification requires the Holy Spirit to continue to reveal and provide all that we need to grow in our faith and produce fruit to the glory of God.
The evidence of the Holy Spirit working in our lives is seen by our increasing desire for Christ and His love to dominate every area of our lives. 
Are you sealed with the Holy Spirit? Is there evidence of His fruit?

God's word states that His will for our lives is our sanctification. Are you living the sanctified life? How would you know if you were or not? What would be the evidence? We are called to present our bodies as a living holy sacrifice which is our spiritual service of worship. We are living because of the living presence of Christ in us. Holiness is not something our human nature can produce or manufacture but if by faith we trust in the holiness of Christ in us through the Holy Spirit His holiness is revealed. Now in a love relationship, we can offer our living and holy lives as a sacrifice for the glory of God. 
We must sanctify or consecrate Jesus Christ as Lord of our lives. We can only live the sanctified life as we allow Christ in us the hope of glory to be revealed. We cannot live the sanctified life if we are continually being conformed to the world around us. As 2 Tim. 2:21 states; "If a man cleanses himself from these things he will be a vessel of honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work."
Are you a vessel of honor? Are you living the sanctified life? Are you useful to the Master? Are you prepared for every good work? This is God's will for your life; your sanctification.

How important is it to have a yearly checkup? We may feel we are doing fine but after having some blood work and other diagnostic tests done it may be determined that we have some underlying health issues that need to be addressed. We would have never known the problems existed if we had not had the exam. 
So it is with our spiritual health. If we do not allow ourselves to come under the exam of God's word and the Holy Spirits piercing of our soul and spirit and motives and intentions of our hearts we may be allowing a dangerous spiritual issue to go unchecked. 
In regards to our spiritual vitality, we must remind ourselves that we have an enemy that prowls about looking for the weak and the wounded to steal, kill and destroy. If we are unwilling to do the exam we have to ask the question, what are we trying to hide? Why are we avoiding the truth if the truth sets us free? 
There are many Scriptures in this podcast today and I encourage you to write them down and spend the needed time for the Great Physician to reveal how your faith is really doing. He desires for you to know Him and the abundance of the life He wants you to experience. 

We come across those encounters with people that we haven't seen in a long time and we ask the proverbial question; "What's new with you!" And then a few fleeting moments we attempt to catch up on all the events and changes in our lives that have come about since the last time we saw each other. 
Sometimes the events and circumstances are minuscule and others are major life changes. But we all experience some sort of change in our lives on a yearly basis if not more frequently.
But if you are a follower of Jesus Christ and you are not seeing any significant change you need to examine the faith you say you have. How can we believe that the Creator of the Universe spoke things into existence out of nothing and then say He lives within me and there is no change? 
God is not changing us into a better version of you and me but is transforming us into the image of His Son Jesus Christ. He still has a long way to go in each of us as we still live here on Earth. God works from the inside out.  We are  His workmanship and He is working by a predetermined design; the image of His Son. 
So, I ask the question again; What's new with you? The question is not what better job do you have or what nicer house you live in. It's not that you have stopped drinking or gambling or got out of debt, which are all good things within themselves, but those things could happen in your life without God doing anything spiritual in your life.
How are you becoming more like Jesus?

In our efforts to maintain strength for our physical bodies we must get enough rest, have a healthy diet and be consistent with our exercise regiment. Otherwise, we can become weak and ineffective.  Even with all of our efforts to maintain physical strength, life and the gravity of aging can rob us of that needed strength. 
But when it comes to our journey of faith we find ourselves attempting to use our physical strength to overcome a spiritual conflict. There are spiritual battles going on behind every physical conflict we are faced with. We are incapable of overcoming any spiritual conflict with our human strength or resources. 
We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us! (Phil. 4:13) But that requires that we acknowledge that when we are weak that is when we are strong. When we admit that we are incapable of doing anything outside of the grace of God, it's then that He reveals the surpassing greatness of His power that's within us. 
We must put on the full of armor of God which is represented by the fullness of who Jesus Christ is in us! It is Christ in us that is the hope of glory! It is Christ in us that is the power that overcomes! It is our faith in the Christ who is in us that is the victory! 
Are you living in the power and authority of Christ in you or are you still fighting the battles in your own strength? 

Praise God for Easter morning and the victory we have through the resurrection of Jesus Christ! The cross and the blood that was shed for the payment of our sins have redeemed us and given us a new life. But are you experiencing the abundance of that new life?
In Philippians chapter 3 the Apostle Paul stated that he desired to consider all things that resembled self-righteousness as being nothing but rubbish in order that he might gain Christ! He desired to have the righteousness that comes through faith that he might know Him and the power of His resurrection. 
Many today know of the grace and mercy that God offers us through the cross of Jesus Christ but many are not experiencing the abundant life that comes from knowing the power of His resurrection. We are like the man lying at the pool of Bethesda waiting for someone to help us find total healing and the abundant life we know has been promised to us. 
This man was in the place of grace and mercy but was still depending upon man to help him discover the fullness of life that God had promised. Jesus asked him the question; "do you want to get well?" Do you want to be complete? 
For everyone that has come to  Jesus for salvation, the promise is given to each one of us to receive the anointing of the Holy Spirit. The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is offered to us to know Him and the powerful life that comes with that knowing! 

Hey, it's April 1st, April Fools! Not! This is no April Fools joke. 
As I was reflecting on all the April Fools jokes I have found myself believing I guess I would have to agree to some extent that I am a fool at times. But what I would like to share with you today is what the Gospel has to say concerning those God sees as playing the fool as they live out their foolish lives without Him. 
When you look at the Scriptures that use the word fool or foolish you begin to see a pattern of those lives who though they may say they believe in God their hearts are self-reliant and self-righteous. They honor Him with their lips but their hearts are far from Him. 
Like the 10 virgins who are awaiting the return of Christ the foolish were unprepared not having the anointing of the Holy Spirit. They were told to go and purchase for themselves the oil that was needed. The foolish virgins had been religious but only wanted their ears to be tickled and not their hearts surrendered and transformed.
A life without surrender is foolish! Faith without a relationship is foolish. Faith without works is foolish! When the Bridegroom comes religion without true salvation is foolish!