Blood shed

In fact, according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified with blood. For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness. That is why the Tabernacle and everything in it, which were copies of things in heaven, had to be purified by the blood of animals. But the real things in heaven had to be purified with far better sacrifices than the blood of animals.

Hebrews 9:22‭-‬23 NLT

One of my favorite fiction action movies is transformers. In tha series you see alot of different things from the robots coming to earth. To them saving the humans. To the humans turning they’re backs on the robots, and sending them back in space. In the first transformers movie there is a line that has stuck with me. It said “No sacrafice, no victory.” When I heard those words it made me think about all the different things that happens in our life. The different things we want and make sacraficed for. Just for the earthly reward we will sometimes place things on hold or get rid of just to have status, power, material things. What sacrafice have you made for God?

HERE IT IS…

Jesus died as a sacrafice. In the old testament, they sacraficed goats, bulls, and birds. All for the sake of being forgiven. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only son”, John 3:16. The sacrafice was made through his blood. The scripture let’s us know that even the things in heaven had to be purified to be used for us. The sacrafice that was made for us could never compare to what we have. In order for forgiveness to be given there has to be blood shed. Jesus used his earthly body as a sacrafice so you wouldn’t have to. We say we sacrafice for things we want. We save money and stop doing things to buy things. What about God? What about his sacrifice? What about his giving up of his self? Give God what is due to him, since he didnt give us what was due to us. Death…

By any means necessary

And he did not enter heaven to offer himself again and again, like the high priest here on earth who enters the Most Holy Place year after year with the blood of an animal. If that had been necessary, Christ would have had to die again and again, ever since the world began. But now, once for all time, he has appeared at the end of the age to remove sin by his own death as a sacrifice.

Hebrews 9:25‭-‬26 NLT

One of my favorite times is black history month. That is because when you are the son of a teacher, the son of a preacher, you are trained and see books all the time. I was trained to read alot. In the month of February I try to find things about people I didnt know. However, for this occasion Malcolm X is my focus and the saying by any means necessary. That saying was so eloquently placed by Malcolm and has been a staple in our history. That statement, malcolm was referring to us as a people to be able to be seen as equals and to take our freedom and place by any means. He sacraficed, along with others, so that we could be able to feel the way we do now. By any means necessary.

HERE IT IS…

Malcolm died, King died, and so many others took they’re stance and did it by they’re any means necessary stance. Christ died so that we could have a right to salvation and a life of eternity with him in heaven. He died once, but if necessary he would have died over and over again. The scripture says that in the old way priest would revisit the tabernacle annually to sacrafice blood for forgiveness. Since christ came, bled, and died for us it is by his strips that we are here today. By any means necessary get to God. By any means necessary trust him. By any means necessary believe in him. Christ came and sacraficed his life by any means so that we could live. It’s our time to live the way he intended for us. Dont let anyone or anything stop you. Get to God by any means necessary. Because he saved you with what was necessary, Christ.

Paid in full

Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.

Hebrews 9:14‭-‬15 NLT

One night as we were trying to figure out what to eat and deciding we made the choice to go to Buffalo wild wings. I get up get to the car and drive to the restaurant. As I get there and wait behind the person in front of me I see the person looking for their card. Checking every pocket. Looking all over the place wondering if they dropped it or left it in the car. As I waited patiently the person finally giving up knowing they had to go back to their car to find it. The cashier called me up, I told them my name and my food was ready. Before he rang my food up I asked him did the person in front of me pay for their food. He said they couldn’t find the card. I sacraficed and paid for that persons food and left.

HERE IT IS…

We were just like that person in life. Going to places and putting ourselves in situations where we seemingly forgot who we were. We made the decision to do certain things and we couldn’t pay for the consequences. We searched and searched for a way to pay for it and we realized that we didnt have it, didnt have enough, or lost our payment option. But thank God for Jesus who steps up behind us, bringing out his Red blood card swiping it for our sins that we deserve all so we can commune with him in heaven. Whatever it is that has you bound has been paid for. So when you come back to try and get it you dont have to, because he has already paid the price for our sins.

Update available

Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity. Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.

Hebrews 9:13‭-‬14 NLT

In this new day and time we have been subject to a technological change. We are in a time where we have everything at our finger tips through technology. One thing we have to get used to is the constant change and updates. Ever since this shift has happen we have had a constant changing which is called updates. The updates makes background changes to your software in your phone, computers, tablets, even your cable. It has gotten to the point where you can start your car, turn on lights, and run water from your phone in your home. However, they all have to be updated to keep up with the new way of things.

HERE IT IS…

Think about how your life would be if we were still under the old system of God? Think about what you would have had to go through without the update of Christ. Think about how your judgement would be. Because of the update that came over 2,000 years ago saved us, we no longer have to worry about what could have happen. We dont have to use the blood of bulls and goats and doves to cleanse ourselves. But by the blood of Jesus we are made whole. By the blood of Jesus he has set us free. By the blood of Jesus we have the victory over sin. Have you downloaded the update? Have you received your request to update your life? Have you started the software update, so that your software will be saved from a life of incompatibility with the host? Get the update and see how much better your system of life runs.

SWITCH

Then I realized that my heart was bitter, and I was all torn up inside. I was so foolish and ignorant— I must have seemed like a senseless animal to you. Yet I still belong to you; you hold my right hand. But as for me, how good it is to be near God! I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter, and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do.

Psalms 73:21‭-‬23‭, ‬28 NLT

I have had my heart broken just like many of us. A hurt and pain that is indescribable. A pain that constitutes a person to act out of character. A pain that divides you from normalcy. A pain that creates a hole in the place where you felt the safest. We all have had that pain. Where even after it’s all over you dont realize that you are now a different person on the inside. You have created an alter ego of yourself, just to protect yourself. That’s when we start to see just how painful it is. You start acting different. Feeling different. Doing things different. It’s in those places and times God reminds us of his love.

HERE IT IS…

The psalmist tells us in this chapter that we that we start to look at what everyone else is doing and wondering why are we making the sacrafice to be who we are. We try to do what they do and it doesn’t work out. That’s when we realize just how hurt and broken and in pain we are. We start to change. Oh, but when we realize how amazing and how far the lord has brought us, we see how silly we must have been in Gods eyes. What is amazing is that gives us the chance to switch the letters in bItter to become bEtter. We go to the safest place we know. We go to his presence and he reminds us just how he feels about us. It’s time to switch those letters and your mindset.

The process of elimination

But as for me, I almost lost my footing. My feet were slipping, and I was almost gone. For I envied the proud when I saw them prosper despite their wickedness. Did I keep my heart pure for nothing? Did I keep myself innocent for no reason? Then I went into your sanctuary, O God, and I finally understood the destiny of the wicked.

Psalms 73:2‭-‬3‭, ‬13‭, ‬17 NLT

In school they taught us what alot of kids are not learning today. They called it “the process of elimination”. This process meant that you went through the questions and asked questions and looked at the answers and seen which one was least likely to be the answers. Once you went through this process you would ultimately end up with either the 1 answer or the most likely answer to the problem. We dont use this illustration in life. The process of elimination can help us weed out the wrong way to go when we wonder what to do. Sometimes it may take a little time, bit in the end it will all work out.

HERE IT IS…

The psalmist is using this process as he talks to God. He ponders about his downfall and how he was ALMOST gone. The problem he is having is how the people who dont worship seem to get ahead while he was left behind. He said he used to envy them. He then asked in essence, what am I doing keeping myself from doing what they are doing and feel like I’m stuck. The process leads him to the answer in verse 17. He said, “Then I went into your sanctuary “. The answer you search for is in his presence. Eliminate all the other things. Eliminate the wrong thoughts. Eliminate the envy and jealousy. Eliminate the hurt and pain. Once you step into his presence then you will be able to see and understand why he has you where you are. To save you from what’s to come. Be steadfast, and unmovable and watch God do something amazing.

I belong

Yet I still belong to you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny. Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever.

Psalms 73:23‭-‬26 NLT

When I was a child I can remember seeing some older people and if they didnt recognize me or know who I was they would ask, “who do you belong to?” It wasnt in the context as property, or as a commodity. Instead it was a question of who do I reflect. They were asking who were my parents. In this they were trying to see what type of child I was because once they knew who your parents were they could tell what type of person I was. It was the conclusion that who my parents were reflected how I was guided and reared as a child. Even when we grew up and made our own choices in life we still had that connection to who we belonged to.

HERE IT IS…

The psalmist says this in the previous verses;
Then I realized that my heart was bitter, and I was all torn up inside. I was so foolish and ignorant— I must have seemed like a senseless animal to you.

Psalms 73:21‭-‬22 NLT

If you take those verses together and read them it will tell you that even though I acted a fool. Even though I made wrong choices. Even though I didnt do all that I was supposed to do. People walked away. I still belonged to God. No matter what has happened, will happen, or may happen, the fact remains that you still belong to Him. He doesn’t stop there because he says God will guide us, hold our hands, and lead us to our destination. You will make it. You will prosper. You will be ok. Because of who you belong to.

Pray with your heart

I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them.

1 Timothy 2:1 NLT

Have you ever felt like God was pulling on you? Like God was sitting right beside you pushing you or urging you to do something? It’s usually when it’s something that we think we shouldn’t do. Usually something we are fearful about. Perhaps even something that we believe that would cause more harm than help. It has happen to me many of times. Especially concerning prayer. When you dont know how to pray and cant figure out the words to say concerning what God has placed on you to pray about it. Sometimes God just wants you in that p you ace so that you dont try and think of something cleaver. He wants you in that place where you have no words to say. He wants you in that place where you cant speak from your mind, but, your heart.

HERE IT IS…

The scripture goes on to say in verse 3 and 4 that;
This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth.

1 Timothy 2:3‭-‬4 NLT

Understand that your prayer doesn’t have to be well thought out. It doesn’t have to be a collection of scriptures and words that will sound good. Alot of times you just have to let your heart speak. The bible tells us that the Holy Spirit will intercede on our behalf. All you have to do is be available to release it. We get caught up in how to and what to say that we fail to realize that we have someone who knows just what we are feeling and trying to say. Open your heart and pray and let the Holy Spirit speak.

You prayed for this… right?!?!

“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘Just as my anger and fury have been poured out on the people of Jerusalem, so they will be poured out on you when you enter Egypt. You will be an object of damnation, horror, cursing, and mockery. And you will never see your homeland again.’

Jeremiah 42:18 NLT

Prayer, we may have all come to the conclusion that prayer is essential. We may even know that we have to be careful of what we pray for. My question to you today is, when you do pray and ask God to speak to you and tell you what to do, where to go, how to handle something do you listen? We seem to have gotten this ideal in our head that all we have to do is pray and not follow through with what God says because we think we know what is right. Jerimiah tells the story that after a group of men were spared and given the opportunity to get right with God by coming before Jerimiah the prophet and asking him to pray for them. Saying that tell us what God tells us to do, and we will do it. They already had a preconceived plan to do what they wanted because they were spared. As we do we pray and ask God to help us get through this and once he does we go do the opposite of what he told us to do.

HERE IT IS…

The bible says,
“ God has plainly told you, you leftovers from Judah, ‘Don’t go to Egypt.’ Could anything be plainer? I warn you this day that you are living out a fantasy. You’re making a fatal mistake. “Didn’t you just now send me to your God , saying, ‘Pray for us to our God . Tell us everything that God says and we’ll do it all’? “Well, now I’ve told you, told you everything he said, and you haven’t obeyed a word of it, not a single word of what your God sent me to tell you. So now let me tell you what will happen next: You’ll be killed, you’ll starve to death, you’ll get sick and die in the wonderful country where you’ve determined to go and live.”
Jeremiah 42:19‭-‬22 MSG
You asked for it, now do it.

He came for you

“There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil.

John 3:18‭-‬19 NLT

One of the first scriptures that I memorized was John 3:16. At the time as a child I just knew how to recite it. I knew how to say it with emphasis. I knew how to say with control. I remember because it was one of my speeches for Easter as a child. I learned how to say it as a child, it wasnt until I became older that I understood it. As I came to understand it it became abundantly clear what he was saying in the verses that came after John 3:16. This told me more about who I was to him than what he did for me. Sometimes it’s not in the gift, but it’s in the thought of the gift.

HERE IT IS…

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life. He loved me so much that even in my pitiful, dark, unrecognizable state he still came to get me. Even when I wasnt worth it he said I was. Even when I wasnt where I should have been, he still came to find me. Here is why. “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him…”

John 3:18,A NLT

He rescued me from a place that I didnt deserve to be rescued from and put me in a place where I wont have to worry about what others remember about me. Now the only thing that matters is what he thinks about me.
He thinks I am worth it…
Rev. J.B.