Craig

John writes in 1 John 3:16-19: "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence." As those who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ who taught that it is more blessed to give than receive, do until others as you would want them to do until to you, and to love your neighbor as yourself, we canot ignore the poor and needy both within and without the walls of the church. We cannot do enough to express the love of God to the world. Christians are responsible for, and called to impact the world on a spiritual and physical level now for Jesus Christ!!!!!!!! Acts of love, mercy and kindness in the name of Jesus Christ go a long way in building fellowship among the believers and presenting the gospel to the world.

As long as belief or faith remains in a person's head it is fantasy and means nothing. Therefore it is dead. When belief/faith is acted upon and lived out, it becomes a living vigorous faith that means something and impacts the world around me. Therefore it is alive. People live out their deepest beliefs. If I am not living out my Christian faith, is it really a deep held belief or just a fantasy?

It is called the "royal law" because it is the supreme law that is the source of all other laws governing human relationships. It is the summation of all such laws -- also note Matt. 22:36-40 and Romans 13:8-10.

I examine my life to look for what I am doing both right and wrong. I confess the sin in my life that dishonors and offends God that I may grow spiritually. I don't see the point in examining my life just for the sake of examining it. There is no point in it. The Holy Spirit helps in identifing sin in my live that I don't always see. Identification, repentance and confession help me to get over the sin and remove it from my live. The self-examination process helps me to be sensitive to how I live my life and be open to the movement of the Holy Spirit in my live to bring change that leads to Christ-likeness.

The balance lays in our spiritual health and maturity and relationship with God. I examine myself not to punish myself or beat myself up. I examine my life in order to improve it. Socrates said that an "unexamined life is not worth living." If there is no objective examination, there is no growth or improvement in any aspect of my life, i.e. emotional, spiritual, intellectual, etc. Self-examination is healthy when done using God's Word and prayer.

God brought punishment to the offending parties at Cornith because they did not stop their sinful behavior so God dealt with the sin in their lives. Sickest and death is not harsh because their behavior was affecting the spiritual lives of those around them, both in the church and outside of it. Eternal spiritual realities are of the gravest importance and have eternal ramifications. The behavior of a professing Christian is important and serious. If a Christian cannot or will not take care of sin in their lives that affects others, God will. The eternal destiny of others is on the line. With this in mind, sickest or death for Christians who are openly sinning is not too harsh. God's discipline works in the lives of those professing Christians who are open to it.

It is a grave sin because because the Lord's Supper is not being taken seriously and the Royal Law, "love your neighbor as your self," is not being practiced. One aspect of the Lord's Supper is unity with Jesus as well as the body of Christ. Jesus' high priestly prayer in John 17 reflects Jesus' prayer and desire that His church be as one as He and the Father are one. Unity in love and purpose. So the world can see the love of God through His people. Dissention, division, prejudice, sobbery, slander, etc. within the church is extremely evil because it diminishes the witness for Jesus Christ. The world looks at a church that practices the beforementioned and ask themselves, what does the church have to offer that is any different from the world? When these things are allowed to go on in a church how can the love of Jesus Christ be seen within and without of the church? It's satanic and destroys the beauty and effectiveness of the church of Jesus Christ and opens the church to unncessary criticism and mockery by satan and the world.

Showing favoritism towards a certain class or kind of people blinds us to the needs, gifts, talents, etc. of others. It limits our ministry and flys in the face of Jesus' earthy ministry. Favoritism limits the scope of possibility of personal and church ministries and the blessings that go with it. Favoritism is evil because it is self-centered (what's in it for me), and not in accordance with God's Word and the ministry Jesus modeled.

I tend to discriminate against those that use the church for their own gain and against those who are actively dealing drugs in my community. My church is not trying to impress anybody. We seek to please and honor God in everything we do. My church is open to all who want to be ministered to.

When meditating on "seeing His face," I think of intimacy, awe, love, togetherness, and oneness with the Lord God. I think that everything is okay and the battle in my life with sin and the world are over. I think of being in a pure and holy state with the Lord God. I think of being with the One who created all things -- my creator. I am thinking joy, delight, and love. The Lord's Supper should stimulate these thoughts every time we partake of it to create a real expectation and excitement in us of what is ahead. Like preview to a great movie, the Lord's Supper should create in us an excitement in being part of the Great Banquet and the experience of eternal life with the Lord God.

The Lord's Supper points to the past in remembering what Jesus did on the cross for us; it points to the present in that we are communing with Jesus as we celebrate the Lord's Supper; and it points to the future in the expectation of eternal life with God Almighty.

The Lord's Supper finds it fulfillment in the Great Banquet at the end of the age in Jesus gathering His followers/disciples/saints together for the Wedding Feast. One aspect of participating in the Lord's Supper should be looking forward to the Wedding Feast with Jesus as some point in space and time.

They are tests of pure religion because they require self-control and giving without looking for a return. The practice of love in our life and ministry shouldn't require a personal return. In practicing pure religion the emphasize is on giving to and blessing others. During quiet time we are looking for interaction with God and we are looking for spiritual growth during that time. We looking to give and to receive.

Many of Jesus' teaching are directed toward the future because that is where we and everything else is heading. Jesus is giving us a bit of a preview regarding what the future has in store for both the saint as well as the unsaved. As I reflect upon the great banquet with Jesus I think of a time of love, fellowship, thanksgiving, well-being, joy, delight, friendship, a sense of achievement and victory. A time of celebration of overcoming the world and finishing the race. A time of togetherness and oneness with Jesus and each other. A time of celebration in being together in Christ in love.

The perfect law that James speaks of is the same law that God gave to Moses in the Torah and that Jesus reiterated to the scribes and the Pharisees, love your neighbor as yourself. God is love. Love should be the unlying factor in everything that we do as Christian human-beings. I would define the perfect law as loving God with my total being and loving, with no prejudice, my neighbor as myself. If I cannot do this, I am in spiritual trouble. My relationship with God and those around me is based on a love relationship. My ability to practice love in real ways reveals where my heart is. I cannot say that I love God and hate my brethren and others around me. Perfect love casts out all fear and truly brings liberty to the soul. We need to permit the love of God to flow in us and through us to those around us. If we have a hard time doing that, we must permit the Holy Spirit to give us a hand. It's all about love -- John 3:16.

Unfortunately, many people believe that just going to church and participating in Bible studies is practicing Christianity. Head knowledge seems to equate to Christian living. I think people compartmentize their lives. We have a life we live daily and then we have a church life and the two never meet. The Christian life to many is a private self-righteous faith that is all about them. The nature of self-deception is our selfishness and living the gospel according to ourselves. We like what Jesus said, but only apply in our own lives what is comfortable and convince ourselves using our own logic that this is God's will for our lives and then get angry with those that practice the full gospel.

Jesus is the Word of Truth. In Him is salvation. Asking Jesus into our lives activates our spirit enabling us to have a relationship with God. His spirit identifies with our spirit and this is how we know that we are the children of God. Jesus was the Living Word of God and lived out God's precepts for all to see and learn from. His words were recorded for our benefit today. Our faith grows through hearing and living out the Living Word of God. Out spiritual development depends upon our knowledge of Him through His Word and prayer and subsequent obedience to Him.

Eating of the Bread of Life nourishes our faith in that it is to believe Jesus' words and trust in him as the source of our life. It means to utterly depend upon Him and the truths Jesus teaches for sustenance and life itself. The main point of the Bread of Life discourse and the "do this in remembrance of me" is that Jesus is life and what He did on the cross for us in sacrificing Himself for our sins is life for the believer.

If I lack wisdom I should ask God for it. And when I ask God for wisdom, I should believe, with no doubt, that He can provide the wisdom that I am asking for. Trials put me in a position for spiritual growth. Trials put me in a position that requires wisdom that I don't always have and that is certainly the point in the trial. Trials are all about spiritual development and maturity. Spiritual development is a lot like going through Navy bootcamp. The drill instructors are putting civilians through training and challenging conditions in order to develop a person from a civilian into a sailor. This requires challenges that develop teamwork, trust in leadership, obeying orders, placing other about self, etc. in order to make an effective sailor. God is doing the same thing to the Christian. He is puts us through a tailored program to develop us spiritually, to bring the best out of us and to develop the mind of Christ in us. So that we can effectively serve Him and make a difference on this planet and throughout eternally for God. It's all about developing spiritual maturity.

The trials in my life have forced me to turn to God for help, guidance, understanding and to face sin in my life. Trials have helped my spiritual growth because they forced me into God's Word and prayer. Ultimately in correcting issues in my life that God wanted corrected i.e., selfishness; apathy toward God and the Bible; complacency in honoring promises that I made to God, and many more. Most importantly, spiritual growth by trials have lead to stability in all areas of my life. In addition, trials have to lead to a consistent relationship with God in my daily living and decision making.

People blame God for evil because they have not thought out what God really created. He provided us with free will when He created us. People want to blame God for what humanity does and refuse responsibility. Man has created evil on this planet under the influence of satan and the fallen angels who rebelled against God. As long as there is free will and people not committed to the life changing power of the living God there will be evil on this planet. God permits free will and with that freedom God permits evil to exist. James tells us that God is not tempted by evil and does not tempt us with evil.

The trials I have encountered in my life have directly contributed in developing my spiritual life and my relationship with God. Satan has not destroyed me by any trials I have encountered in life. God has and is continuing to refine my faith through all events in my life. As a result, changes in my life include: my trust in God has grown immensely; I have developed a giving and generous heart and lifestyle; I have developed an unselfish desire to minister to others; a disire to be a blessing to others and a sensitivity to His direction in my life. Most importantly, I have learned to permit God to be my God.

Jesus is emphazing an in-depth, enduring faith in Him. People have a hard time staying focused and following things through. Jesus taught constantly, as well as throughout God's word, that follow through is where the blessings are at and where true spiritual growth is found. It ultimately ends in eternal life with God in Heaven. The difference between the Disciples and the crowd of so-called disciples that turned away from Jesus was their degree of faith. A mark of a true disciple is one who holds/practices Jesus' teaching.

Jesus is referring, when He says "This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world"?, to His physical body that He gave/sacrificed so that we could have eternal life with God. Both passages record Jesus' teaching that He was going to give His physical body not only for His disciples, but for the entire world.

In practical terms, the meaning of "eating the Bread of Life" is believing in Jesus Christ, the one who God the Father sent. Nibbing is not fully committing yourself to Jesus Christ. Actually making a meal is fully engaging my life (total being), in Jesus Christ and His teaching.