A REFLECTION OF HIS GLORY

Today’s Bible readings are Job 31:1-33:33, 2 Corinthians 3:1-18, Psalm 43:1-5, & Proverbs 22:8-9

2 Corinthians 3:16-18

¹⁶ But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. ¹⁷ For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. ¹⁸ So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

Did you know that you are a mirror? That’s right. You are a mirror. According to the bible when you come to Christ you become a mirror that begins to reflect the glory of God. What exactly does that mean?

First, it means that the life that you live is a life of victory. Jesus triumphed over the enemy at the cross. Jesus defeated satan at the resurrection. Sin was broken when His precious blood flowed. Jesus freed you from the curse of sickness as stripes were laid on His back at the whipping post. Jesus made a way for you to come to the Father as He suffered in your place.

All of these things lead to a life of victory for us. Listen to what the prophet said about this:

Isaiah 53:10-12

¹⁰ But it was the Lord’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief. Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants. He will enjoy a long life, and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands. ¹¹ When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish,
he will be satisfied. And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible
for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins. ¹² I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier, because he exposed himself to death. He was counted among the rebels.
He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels.

Jesus won the victory. He received the spoils of war. He shares those treasures with us. What a deal!!!

The second thing that we reflect is the power of Christ. Jesus has power of demons, sickness, & every form of darkness. He speaks & they all have to obey His command because He has authority of them all. He has been given the name above all names. He has all power.

We rarely question the fact that Jesus has all power. We all agree that He has power over demons, sickness, & darkness. Where we start to doubt is when we start to consider the fact that He has transferred that power to us.

Matthew 28:18-20

¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

In other words, Jesus is saying that that authority that He has is His to delegate to who ever He chooses. He chooses to delegate it to His church that is why He says:  ¹⁹ Therefore go… 

He wouldn’t send us without equipping us.

So in order that we be able to fulfill His mission, He gave us His authority just like He did the 12 apostles, the 72 disciples, & the 120 at the day of Pentecost.

This means that you can go out & cast out demons in Jesus name. This means that you can lay hands on the sick & they will recover. This means that you can breakthrough the darkness & spiritual wickedness that has kept cities & people lost for generations. It means that hell is terrified of you!!!

The third thing that we reflect is Christ’s love for people. Our heart is filled with love for humanity. That is why we give to missions. That is why we preach the gospel. That is why we reach out to the lost. It is the love of God in us moving us to action.

We can’t just sit by & do nothing. Love won’t allow us to do that. We also can’t just stay the same. Love wants to change us too. Love is what challenges us to reflect an even greater reflection of His glory.

Spend some time today considering what reflection you are casting to others. Make sure it is the glory of Christ. This is what you were designed to reflect!

Pastor Richard Schlotter

STOP VOLUNTEERING FOR BONDAGE

Today’s Bible readings are Job 28:1-30:31, 2 Corinthians 2:12-17, Psalm 42:1-11, & Proverbs 22:7

Proverbs 22:7

⁷ The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender.

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Would you intentionally do something if you knew that it could put you in bondage? Most people would scream NO to answer that question. We have worked hard to find the freedom in Christ that we have discovered. Our lives have been re-shaped by making choices that will promote freedom in our lives. We have tasted & seen that the Lord is good.

There are certain things that we refuse to do anymore because we don’t want to be brought under the power of it. We know what it is to be in bondage. We fell on our knees in brokenness when we found Christ, in order to get set free from the things that were holding us in bondage. Yet, there are some things that people STILL do that bring bondage into their lives.

One of the major things that enslave people in our generation today is DEBT! We borrow, borrow, & borrow. This only leads punishing bondage.

1.      It creates great stress.

2.      It leads to being forced to make decisions that we otherwise wouldn’t have to make.

3.      It is the source of most marriage tension.

4.      It keeps people from being able to experience the joys of giving.

5.      It leads to only greater lack.

6.      It keeps us stuck.

7.      It makes us focus paying debt rather than building the kingdom.

There are many, many more things that debt does. We have all experienced the crippling effects of it. Knowing this, why do so many people fall into the debt trap? I believe that answer is pretty simple.

WE WANT WHAT WE WANT & WE WANT IT NOW!!!

We can fall into the thinking that stuff will make us feel better about ourselves. So we go out & borrow whatever they will lend so we can feel better. This leads to feeling worse because the pressure that comes with the debt. It causes us to be slaves.

1.      You can’t take a day off because the bills have to get paid.

2.      You can’t go to church on Sunday because you need the overtime.

3.      You can’t make it to family events & kids functions because you need the hours.

4.      You can’t give to missions & you start to feel guilty inside.

We can put a stop to all of these things if we will get our heads out of the clouds & come back down to earth & LIVE WITHIN OUR MEANS!!!

 I want to share with you a formula to success. It is a formula that we practice in our own lives & is one that we teach our kids to practice. I assure you that this will work for you & lead to great prosperity.

               1. Take the 1^st 10% of everything you make & give it to God.

I know that this sounds crazy. Initially we think, “How can this work? I already don’t have enough to get by. If I give 10% I will have EVEN LESS.” In our natural minds this does not make sense. But I assure you it works. God has promised that it will.

Malachi 3:10

¹⁰ Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.

Tithe means 10%. Some people attack this BIBE PRINCIPAL but it only leads to their destruction. God calls for the tithe. It is a faith thing. God honors your faith in Him. The more faith, the more honor.

               2. Take the next 10% & put it away in some type of saving, retirement, IRA, etc…

This is the one area that you can be flexible in. Start where you are. Maybe you can only do 5%. That is fine. Start there. But you want to work toward 10%. That is a great number that I feel really works. It is for your future. You never touch this money. It is there to build over time so that you future will be one of great prosperity & blessing. You are worth saving for. You are worth the sacrifice today. Here is a great quote from Dave Ramsey:

“Live like nobody else today, so you can live like nobody else tomorrow.”

               3. Live on the remainder.

The last thing you do is you learn to live on the other 80%. This is going to be a big change for most people in their thinking because they have been trained: “If you got, spend it; if you don’t, borrow it.” That is the recipe for slavery & bondage.

Start today. Take this serious. There is no need to voluntarily sign up for bondage. So make the choice to make the change. Handle your money with care.

Pastor Richard Schlotter

CALLED & COMMISSIONED

Today’s Bible readings are Job 23:1-27:23, 2 Corinthians 1:12-2:11, Psalm 41:1-13, & Proverbs 22:5-6

2 Corinthians 1:21-22

²¹ It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, ²² and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us.

Sometimes we think that being a person of faith is more than we can handle. There are times when walking in the Spirit is not easy. We may even have days when the circumstances that surround us feel like they are going to break us. At times the weight of the world seems to be resting on our shoulders as we get burdened down by heavy loads. In those moments, it seems like being Christ-like is out of our reach. That is FAR from the truth though.

God has placed His Spirit inside of us. The same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead lives inside of EVERY SINGLE BELIEVER!

Romans 8:11

¹¹ The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.

See, the truth of the matter is that God will enable you to stand firm for Christ! As we surrender our will & our lives to Him He empowers us. That is why the writer of Hebrews says “whose weaknesses were turned into strengths.”

I have learned that God, many times, has more faith in me than I have in Him. God knows the potential that He has placed in me while I often forget. God has placed His very OWN Spirit in each of us as believers. That Spirit is:

1.      The Spirit of Faith.

2.      The Spirit of Truth.

3.      The Spirit of Jesus.

4.      The Spirit of Power.

5.      The Spirit of Wisdom.

6.      The Spirit of Hope.

7.      The Spirit of Peace.

8.      The Spirit of Healing.

9.      The Spirit of Life.

10.   The Spirit of Love.

It is a result of Him & who He is that we can overcome everything that the world & the enemy would throw at us. We think that we can’t do it; & to an extent that is true. We can’t do it but it is not us that is doing it. It is the Spirit of Him who raised Christ from the dead that is working in us enabling, empowering, & encouraging us to persevere. Through Him we can do anything. Through Him all things are possible.

It is in this position of power & victory that Christ has commissioned us to witnesses for Him.

2 Corinthians 1:21-22

²¹ It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, ²² and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us.

God has called you & sealed you with His Spirit to show the world the difference that it makes to be a Christ-follower. Being a Christ-follower is not just about learning to live a good moral life. It is about learning to walk in the power of the mighty Holy Spirit that lives in us JUST AS Jesus did! It is about learning to let the life of that SAME SPIRIT take control of us causing us to triumph in all that we do so that the world can see that JESUS IS ALIVE!!! He is alive in me. He is sharing His life with all who will believe!

Let’s begin to be Christ-followers in more than just moral theory. Let’s begin to let the Spirit of Christ take hold of our lives to do the supernatural work that He desires to do through us. Let us begin to walk in faith & overcoming victory. Let us begin to enforce defeat on satan. Let us truly finish the AWESOME work that He started ALL FOR HIS GLORY!!!

Pastor Richard Schlotter

GIVE IT AWAY

Today’s Bible readings are Job 20:1-22:30, 2 Corinthians 1:1-11, Psalm 40:11-17, & Proverbs 22:2-4

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

³ All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. ⁴ He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.

Everybody has a story. Each of us has had experiences in this life that have shaped us into the people that we are. Along the way we have had many ups & downs. As life ebbs & flows, God is always there for us. He is constantly helping us. He is always there to comfort us.

Think of the times that you have had troubles in this life? Did God come to your rescue? He did that because He loves you. There is no doubt about that. But He also did it for another reason. It has to do with other people that He loves.

There are people that we all have relationships with that may not serve God or know God. They don’t’ talk to God, nor do they listen for God when He speaks. But they talk to you. They listen to you. You have weight & influence in their life. When you speak they let your words in.

The love & comfort that God has given to you was given so that you would give it to others. He wants to use His body, the church, to get His love to as many people as possible. This is made possible when we share our experience, strength, & hope with others who are struggling with what we have overcome. They can find victory through our testimony. They can find comfort in know that we made it out of seems impossible to them.

This is why it so important for us to reach out to those around us. It is important for us share our hope with others. When somebody is down we can give them encouragement. When somebody is hurting we can lift them up in prayer. When somebody is alone we can be their friend.

This takes sacrifice on our part. We have to give of ourselves but it is worth. We truly only keep what we have by giving it away. If you want to stay in love with Jesus, then remember to share His love with others!!!

Pastor Richard Schlotter