Do Believers Have Two Natures?

It would make perfect sense to me if I had two natures. This would explain why I still sin. But if I have only one nature, how do I explain all the times that I act selfishly and not in love?

Christians are supposed to be people who walk in love, right? As I understand it, if we have the Spirit of God and if Jesus lives in us, then it should be evident to everyone around us, to everyone who knows us. People should be able to identify us as Christians by our love (John 13:35; 15:13).

The apostle Paul said, “We walk by faith” (2 Cor. 5:7). “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold all things have become new” (2 Cor. 5:17). Peter said, we “have received a faith” (2 Pet. 1:1).

Saints (believers) are children of God. We are children and heirs (Rom. 8:15-17). I believe faith is the key to our our journey. We are still children and this is why we sin. We are growing in faith. We are becoming more mature in the faith. We are awaiting our future glory ( Rom. 8:18). However, we have received divine power or the divine nature (2 Pet. 1:3), the seal of sonship, his Spirit in our hearts (2 Cor. 1:22; 5:5) guaranteeing what is to come. By grace we have received the precious promises, we participate in the divine nature (2 Pet. 1:4).

Those in the flesh (this isn’t speaking of a mortal body -  it’s referring to the sinful nature) cannot please God. But you aren’t in the flesh (Paul is obviously not talking about being a human being) but in the Spirit, if God’s Spirit dwells in you. Without the Spirit of Christ, we are not God’s children (Rom. 8:8-9).

Jesus lives in Christians by his Spirit, and Christians live by faith in Jesus (Gal. 2:20). It’s true that Christ has perfect faith, but we obviously don’t walk in his perfect faith perfectly. However, this does not mean that we are in the flesh or that we still have the sinful nature as Paul stated in Romans 8.

911 Celebration Of Freedom

Worldwide Grace Fellowship, Clarksville, TN

“You can take our land, but you can never take our freedom.” Mel Gibson in the movie Braveheart, portrayed WilliamWallace, a Scottish knight that helped lead the Scots to an upset victory over the English forces at the Battle of Stirling Bridge September 11, 1297.

Man has always equated blood for freedom and there have been many battles since the Battle of Stirling Bridge. Many have given there lives in quest of freedom.

In Genesis chapters 10-11, we read about a man named Nimrod, Noah’s great grandson. He saw God as someone who stood in the way of his freedom.  Just like Nimrod, human beings have tried to obtain freedom by their own best efforts.

Everyone wants freedom, but where does it come from and how can we attain true freedom?

Jonathan Ielpi worked for the New York City Fire Department in Squad 288, a unit that handled various kinds disasters. He was called to duty after American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the North Tower on September 11, 2001.

After getting a call from his son Jonathan, Lee Ielpi a retired firefighter, drove down to the Twin Towers with his younger son Brendan to see if they could help out. When they arrived, the North and South Towers had already collapsed and looked as though they had been crushed in a giant trash compactor. The two 110 story towers were now just five stories of broken rubble.

Lee and Brendan began to comb through the debris in search of survivors, Lee, hoping that he would find his son alive. The day ended, but Lee Ielpi had not yet found his son.

Somewhere in the pile is a woman named Genelle Guzman. She and some coworkers were heading down Stairway B when she stopped on the thirteenth floor to take off her high heel shoes. That’s when the North Tower collapsed and a rolling wave of concrete, steel and everything else that was in the tower, buried her. Only her head and left arm were free.

For twenty seven hours she waited to be rescued. While waiting, she believes she encountered an angel named Paul, who came and held her hand  until rescue workers could cut her free. Genelle Guzman was the last survivor to be pulled from the fallen towers.

Lee Ielpi was still searching for his son Jonathan. He had given up hope of finding him alive. However, he wanted to be able to bury his son. On December 11, 2001, Lee and Brendan Ielpi, helped carry Jonathan’s body from ground zero.

On this the tenth anniversary of the 911 attacks, families of the victims are gathered at the September 11 Memorial to remember those who were killed. They will notice two huge holes in the ground where the twin towers once stood. For me, these holes represent the 2983 people who were killed in the 1993 bombing and the 911 attacks. Their names sketched in the bronze plates that surround the footprints of the two towers. But they also symbolize our poverty and nakedness without Jesus Christ.

The Freedom Tower is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2013. It will be 1776 feet high, commemorating the year of our nation’s independence. However, independence doesn’t equal freedom!

Jesus said that everyone who sins is a slave of sin John 8:31-36. His words offended the Jews who thought they were free men. They were Abrahams descendants and to them, that meant they were free.

But Jesus explained that Abraham’s blood couldn’t set them free from sin. Slaves have no purchasing power, they have no inheritance, they can’t afford to purchase righteous garments to clothe themselves, nor could they purchase immortality. It was only Jesus who could do this for them, because it required his precious blood not Abrahams.

In the old covenant, slaves were set free once every seven years (Ex. 21:2; Deut. 15:12) and only once every fifty years (called the Jubilee), on the day of At-One-Ment could they return to their inheritance - their land and their families (Lev. 25:8-16).

But the good news - the gospel of Jesus Christ is we don’t have to wait fifty years to return to our inheritance - our inheritance is Jesus Christ. We are set free when we trust in Him. Jesus redeemed us. He bought the righteous garments to cover our naked bodies and he will clothed us with immortality. He is rich in the love nature. A nature that is foreign to human beings. It’s the nature that loved even His betrayer Judas, in that Jesus washed Judas’s feet before he was crucified, knowing that Judas had already betrayed him.

How many men did William Wallace slaughter for freedom? His sword and his garments stained with the blood of men. Since the Battle of Stirling Bridge, there have been many battles. I witnessed the battle at the World Trade Center ten years ago this day from a high-rise office building on 15th Street and 8th Avenue.

Throughout history, man has been willing to shed his blood in exchange for what he has perceived to be freedom. In reality the exchange has kept him in bondage to a sinful hurtful nature.

Today Jonathan Ielpi’s fireman’s jacket is part of the remaining artifacts which is held in the September 11 Memorial and Museum. That garment couldn’t save Jonathan’s life.

Jesus died, but He isn’t in the tomb. He is in you and in me and in all those who have surrendered their lives to Him. Christ in you the hope of Glory (Col. 1:27).

I can hear him saying, “Don’t worry. I am your Tower Of Freedom. I have come to set you free from the hurtful, sinful nature. I will clothe you in white garments of righteousness (Rev. 7:14). I will clothe you in immortality (John 3:16). All that the Father has is mine (John 16:15). I am rich in the love of God, because I am God. I am a Warrior of Love! I have violent love for you.

It’s not the shedding of your own blood... it’s not the shedding of another man’s blood... No,  my robe has been dipped not in the blood of men, but in my own precious blood (Heb. 9:12; Rev. 19:13), which was shed for you, and you, and all of you. So that all men can live in freedom-  life forever more.

Let the celebration begin! 

Bibliography: You Tube, Genelle Guzman McMillan, Guideposts TV; Kelly, Mike, “Last Survivor pulled from WTC rebuilds life, recalls horror.” The Record (Bergen County, NJ) Sept. 10, 2003; O’Shaughnessy, Patrice, “God Willing, I Will Find & Bury My Son.” Daily News, October 14, 2001; Hastings, Deborah;/Lennihan, Mark, “911 Father: I Don’t Understand All of This Hate.” AP, Sept. 9, 2010

Jesus Is Alive

My good friend Clinton Tuck shared his journey of faith today with fifteen people who attended the Support Group meeting in Clarksville, Tennessee. The Support Group is a group of people who believe in Jesus Christ as their everything. Group participants are active missionaries who participate in Jesus' love, compassion and mercy for humanity. This group meets to pray for those who are hurting. Attendees are encouraged to share the love of Christ by using their own pain as training and to consider serving those who are struggling with similar hardships.

Here is what Clinton had to say to us: “I had two strokes,” he said. “I lay in the bed at the nursing home with my grandchildren sitting around me. I couldn’t talk to them. I wasn’t able to speak. I had a tube in my chest because I had double pneumonia. I had another tube in my stomach, a feeding tube. I asked God why did you keep me alive? God has a reason for everything. He put this on my heart,” referring to encouraging those who have ended up like him and have given up hope.

“Have you ever been to a nursing home? he asked. People in a nursing home can’t do anything for themselves. All they do is lie in bed. Many of them are just dropped off there. The people that bring them to the nursing home sometimes leave them there to die without ever coming to visit them, as he paused to take a deep breath, his voice somewhat broken. “If you visit a nursing home, you will be more thankful for what you have. You will stop complaining. I said I had two strokes. After the first one, my doctor said I needed to quit drinking and smoking pot, but I didn’t listen. I recovered and ignored what he said to me. I had all these friends and everyone loved me. It felt good to feel loved. They would say to me, ‘Oh Clinton, I love you,’ then when I got sick, they forgot all about me. I never heard from them again. Then I had a second stroke. It was massive. I thought I had an asthma attack. I said to God, ‘If you give me my voice back, I will praise you, no more filth will come from my lips.’ It took sixteen years to get where I am today. I am so thankful. I can get out of the nursing home now. I won’t let this stop me,” he looked down at his partially paralyzed body, his right leg is in a brace and his right arm is supported with a device to keep his fingers from curling up. “I want to tell everyone what God has done for me. Jesus is alive. He is a true friend. Friends are a dime a dozen, but a true friend is someone I want to hold on to.” He glanced around at various people as he spoke.

“God brought me back. I didn’t do anything. So many times I wish I could get on my knees and pray. When I was able to get on my knees to pray, I never did and now I can’t. But I can still thank him and praise him. We come to church to give him thanks and praise not to criticize one another. Be thankful. We have so much to be thankful for. Be thankful for Jesus. Do you think what you are complaining about can compare to what Jesus went through? He didn’t have to do it, but he did it for us. We’re never to good to help another person. When you see me, you see Jesus. He is alive and he is your true friend and my true friend.”

Camp TAG 2011, Lasso Your Grief

I was privileged to attend Camp TAG (Teaching About Grief) for the third year in a row. Camp TAG was started to help grieving youth. The whole idea of grieving youth really disturbs me. Yet it is a reality of the world in which we live. A world in which sickness takes the lives of so many without regard to age, gender, or race. Some of the kids who attend camp have lost their moms or dads to illness, some have parents who have an addiction and others have no parents at all.

The highlight of Camp TAG is the memorial service, which this year was held on Friday July 22. During this service, we gathered in a large outdoor pavilion. There was a table set up with candles and photos of loved ones. Young campers and older campers got up to light a candle in remembrance of their loved one. There were many tears and some huddled together to comfort one another.

After the memorial service, the young campers gathered on the basketball court outside the pavilion. Each camper received a miniature hot air balloon made out of fabric. On the outside of the balloon, the camper had written a note to their loved one that they were remembering. We opened up the balloon and lit the inside fabric. Soon the balloon expanded and launched into the sky. It was exciting to see the young campers as they watched their prayers and letters ascend into the heavens.

I learned that day that the young campers weren't the only ones grieving. In fact I met a man whose son committed suicide and a woman whose son was murdered. I think everyone who attended camp was grieving in some way.

When God stepped into humanity in the person of Jesus Christ, he didn't come to be exalted. He came to suffer and share our deepest pain. He experienced it first hand when he was crucified for all our sins. Just like the miniature balloons that we sent off into the sky, Jesus Himself ascended to the Father in Heaven (Luke 24:51). However, now that He is glorified He isn't limited to any particular location. The King of the Kingdom is alive living in all those who yield to Him.  As noted by the apostle Paul:

I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me (Galatians 2:20 NKJV first part).

People often ask, "Where was God?" when something bad happens. But I prefer to say, "God is present wherever and whenever something good happens."  I do believe He showed up at Camp TAG living in those who yield to Christ and working through the Holy Spirit even in those who may not know it.

I look forward to the time in which children will no longer grieve. A time when children will be happy and never suffer. A time when the King and His Kingdom will reign throughout a new heaven and a new earth (Rev 21:1-3).

The streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets’ (Zechariah 8:5 NKJV).

Lord Jesus come.

Simplicity In Christ

Several months ago I thought I smelled something burning in my bedroom. I was pretty sure it was the light fixture. I climbed a ladder and took the glass cover off the fixture. I unscrewed the light bulbs and didn't smell any odor of anything burning. When I tried to screw the nut onto the screw that held the cover up, it turned along with the nut and I wasn't able to get the nut tightened over the glass cover. The screw went through a plate that was fastened to the ceiling. I put the glass cover on a table in my living room, thinking that I needed to get up in the attic to tighten the entire fixture. Several days later, I crawled around in my attic trying to find the mounting bracket for the light fixture. There is no floor in my attic, so I had to walk on a small piece of plywood that I dragged over the two by six beams. I moved along the attic by standing on the plywood that I laid on top of the two by six beams. When I walked to the end of the piece of plywood, I stepped off it and onto the two by six beams and then pulled the plywood out ahead of me. Then I walked on the plywood from the rear of it to the front it. I continued to do this for about forty feet, until I got to the place where I thought I would find the mounting brackets for the light fixture. I have cellulose insulation that covers the beams and the sheetrock ceiling and that made it difficult to locate the light fixture.

A couple of weeks later, I called my neighbor's son Payton and asked if he would come over to help me. I had him stand under the light fixture and tap on the fixture so I could find it as I crawled around the attic for the second time. He kept talking to me and tapping on the fixture and I was able to locate the electric box that the light fixture is connected to. However, there weren't any mounting brackets for the light fixture. I came down from the attic and observed the fixture for the second time. I realized that the tin plate somehow must drop down from the ceiling so that I would be able to tighten the nut behind it.  I called my cousin Mike to confirm this. He told me that everything that is holding the fixture up is below the ceiling. So yesterday I unscrewed the two screws that hold the tin plate that is mounted to the ceiling. I dropped the tin plate down from the ceiling and was able to tightened the nut that screws onto the stem and holds the glass cover in place. It took me about fifteen minutes to repair the light fixture.

After I put away my tools, I started thinking about my relationship with Jesus. Paul reminded the Corinthians that our relationship with Jesus is simple based on faith and trust in Him. Jesus Christ is everything that we need to stand on. He is the Rock that is under our feet. Our salvation is in Him. Paul wrote to the Corinthians:

But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ (2 Corinthians 11:3 NKJV).

Paul was defending the gospel of grace from those who wanted to make it complicated thinking that faith in Jesus wasn't enough. Three different times the Lord spoke to Paul and said to him:

"My grace is all you need" (2 Corinthians 12: 9 NLT).

The gospel is grace by faith in Jesus Christ. We need to keep it as simple as that.

Oh yeah and the burning smell that I thought was coming from the light fixture, turned out to be a plastic bag that I had in the room which had the smell of garlic in it.

Clinton Tuck, "Keep Hope Alive"

You wouldn't think a guy who has had two strokes would have much hope, but Clinton Tuck not only has hope, he is excited about his life. (See the link at the end of this story to read more about Clinton's journey). Last week, during my visit to Shady Lawn Nursing Home, Clinton asked if I would take him with me to Trigg Manor Nursing Home to participate in their weekly prayer service. So yesterday, as I was preparing to pick him up, I thought that as long as he was going to come with me, he might as well be given the opportunity to talk to the residents and share the love of Christ with them. I know that Clinton loves Jesus and loves to encourage others.

It's not easy for Clinton to get around. I pulled around to the back of Shady Lawn Nursing Home to pick him up. He refused any help from me choosing instead to push himself forward with his left arm and left leg. I watched as he plodded along in his wheel chair. His right side is mostly paralyzed, so it takes a great deal of effort for him to get from his room to the exit ramp at the back of the building (approximately seventy-five feet). He rolled his wheelchair alongside of the front passenger door of my 1998 Toyota Camry, then I helped steady him as he lifted himself up from the wheelchair. He held onto the front door of the car while I packed the wheelchair in the trunk. Thankfully, it collapses almost like an umbrella and easily fits in. Even though the front seat of my Camry was pushed all the way back as far as it would go, I still had to help him lift and twist his legs to get them into the car.  

Trigg Manor Nursing Home is only a few miles from Shady Lawn and when we arrived there, we went through the same procedure, only in reverse, to get Clinton out of the car and into his wheelchair. I don't know that Clinton will ever get use to his struggles, but he certainly isn't a complainer.

Every Thursday we meet for prayer. All the residents at Trigg Manor are invited. On the last Thursday of the month, we also have a Bible Study. After our prayer time,  Clinton spoke to about twenty residents. Here is a summary of what he said:

 

I had two strokes but I didn't give up hope. We need to keep hope alive. God supplies all our needs. I was on a feeding tube, I couldn't walk-it was God who brought me where I am today. I am so thankful. We need to be thankful. We all have so much to be thankful for. We are so blessed. God loves everybody. Tell people about God and don't be ashamed of Him. Tell people about how He loves you. We all have a different story to share. Your story is different than mine.

Take one day at a time. Yesterday is gone and tomorrow isn't promised to anyone. We need to start with our children. How many of you have children? We have to leave them an example. It starts in the home. You can't blame the principal.  We need Jesus.

I am so thankful that I met Clinton Tuck. He is an inspiration to me. Sometimes it takes great hardship and suffering to recognize that all we really need in life is right before our eyes. Don't let another day pass before you come to this realization. Take what my friend Clinton says to heart. And be reminded of what the apostle Paul wrote:

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us (Rom. 8:18 NKJV).

http://brotherjoeradosti.blogspot.com/2010/10/message-from-clinton.html

God Is An Infinite Supply Of Love

Are you receiving enough love? Are you looking to fulfill your desire for love by trying to find it in another person? We as human beings crave love.

I have repented from trying to obtain love from human beings. Although I have some great friends and family members who love me, I know that the love that they have to give is limited. They cannot satisfy my most intimate need for love. How do I know this? Because they are human beings just like me. No human being can meet our need for love. God created us to need Him. In Jesus Christ, God became man so that He can share this love. He is forever united with us. God loves you and me and every human being that has ever lived.

As human beings we have expectations and sometimes we expect to receive from another person only what God can give us. Only God is an infinite supply of love. Only He can meet our deepest need for love. He is the source of love. There is freedom in understanding this truth. It helps us show grace to others who fall short of our expectations and it helps us point other human beings to Christ.

So on this Independence Day, why not experience true liberty. If you haven't done so already, why not ask Jesus to give you His love and to live His life within you. His love will meet your innermost needs and your deepest desires and will truly set you free.