Do you know that God loves you? Most believers would answer “yes” without thinking. However, I want to go deeper than that. Do you know that you are the beloved of God? Do you know that God loves you more than any other thing or person in existence? Even choosing to sacrifice His dearly beloved Son so that you would be spared? Most believers have a superficial awareness of the love of God for them, but have never really explored the depth of His love.
This is what we will be doing today. Digging deeper into the love of God which is poured out upon us. The matchless love which in Christ Jesus we have full access to today. By seeing the love which God has for you, it will make it easier to experience intimacy with Him, and help us to frame the right mindset for our relationship with God.
If you have been a believer for some time, you have probably heard about the wonderful promises of God… and even if you have not believed for very long (or at all) you probably still know that such promises exist at-least – or have some level of awareness of them. It's impossible to keep a secret on such an amazing truth as the promises of God. Promises of blessing of every kind. Starting first and foremost with salvation, and touch absolutely every area of life from health, wholeness, healing, provision, wisdom, peace and every thing named or unnamed… regardless of what it is, there is a promise from God about it.
However simply knowing that such promises exist, does very little good if we do not believe that they are for us, or know how to receive them. You may be surprised to learn that there is a growing number of believers who think that the promises either aren't for them, or that it's wrong to receive them. You see, the enemy knows that the promises of God are too big to keep secret, so instead he just keeps people in confusion about them. So that's why in this study today, we will be taking a look at how Jesus is our legal right to the promises of God, and how we can receive them without any doubt.
One day someone asked me straight out “what is the ministry of the spirit?” – now this man was a believer, and as embarrassing as it may seem, I hadn't actually considered that there were believers today which did not know what the Bible says about the ministry of the spirit, or even that there has been a change in ministry. So his question caught me a little bit off-guard. Since that time, I've come to realize that the majority of believers also have the same question, unaware that there has been a change in ministry due to Jesus Christ.
This is what we are going to be studying today, seeing the change that has occurred in our ministry. It's important to see this truth for two reasons: first because as ambassadors for Christ, we should know what the message from our King is! And second, this will also help us to distinguish between truth and falsehood in ministry.
When looking at men whom God has blessed throughout the Bible, Solomon can't be ignored. He was the most-blessed figure in the Old Testament – so much so that God said that there was never anyone blessed like Solomon before, nor will there be after him for all of his days. (1st Chronicles 2:12, 1st Kings 3:13)
Often times, we look at Solomon and wonder why God doesn't bless us in the same manner. After all, we are kings and priests in Christ. (1st Peter 2:9) However this question is based on a faulty premise: that God has indeed not blessed us to an equal and even greater measure than He has blessed Solomon. That's why in this study today, we will be looking at the blessings God gave Solomon, and also how today in Christ Jesus, we have such a greater measure, that if Solomon was here, he would be asking us for a loan!
You have probably heard it said before, that God is a God of second-chances. But what exactly does this statement mean? What is the implication of such a truth? If God is a God of second-chances, then does that mean that there are no second-chances without Him? And how precisely do we avail ourselves of the second-chances that we are offered?
In this study today, we are going to be answering these questions from scripture. Taking a look at where this popular phrase comes from and how it applies to our daily life. By seeing this truth, you can have security in the completed work of Jesus Christ, and doubt, confusion and fear will no longer steal the peace you have in Christ.