Determine Where

From that time on Jesus began to proclaim His message with these words: Keep turning away from your sins and come back to God, for heaven’s kingdom realm is now accessible.  Matthew 4:17 TPT

The Kingdom of God has come to earth through Jesus. His work in restoring creation is now in process, the Lord of all is seeing His work done on earth as it is in heaven. He commands us to voluntarily change our minds and our lives to full allegiance and alignment with His reign. Did you catch that?!? He voluntarily reaches out to us!

This is good news. The Gospel. Jesus Christ will right all wrongs. When we repent, He will fix all that is broken. He gives us the opportunity to admit our sins, to receive God’s forgiveness and join Him in the kingdom of heaven. Our only alternative is to continue in our brokenness ignoring Jesus and, in the end, be forced to acknowledge His rule and face punishment as His enemies. 

Mark 1:15 NET He said, The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the gospel!

God calls us to seek Him, to call on Him, and invites even the wicked to return to the Lord. What will happen when we do this? God will “have compassion on” us: “He will abundantly pardon.” My friends please grasp this truth! This is profound consolation for us as we find ourselves time and again wandering away from the Lord, looking for provision, wisdom, calm anywhere but in His embrace and instruction. 

Hebrews 12:1-2 NASB Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Returning to God with the truth, which He knows even when we try to hide it, humble enough to be corrected by Him, however ashamed and disgusted with ourselves, is the lane way to salvation - Jesus will not just pat you on the head and tepidly pardon. He will abundantly pardon those who believe He is the risen Saviour. He does not merely accept us as a number on His vast checklist He sweeps us up in His arms again and again. 

Every day in life we face challenges: be it in our homes, the job, in our relationships, health or finances. Every one of us is subject to battles, but the way we deal with our challenges will make the difference in the outcome. I’ll say it again! Take hold of Jesus Christ’s hand! He is right beside you, reaching for yours! Reaching for mine! 

2 Chronicles 7:14 NASB and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Hallelujah! God designed us to be consumed with Him, but the enemy infiltrated, and now we spend HIS time thinking about us, our needs, our problems, our trials, our tribulations and a way out of troubles by our own might. 

And While we may not have control of all the thoughts that run through our minds, we have the power to decide what stays, and our point of focus will determine where we end up. 

And Jesus understands that! He loves us, He corrects, He teaches, He repairs us. He doesn’t want people to cover up brokenness with good deeds and outward personas without affecting the heart that He causes to beat.  He isn’t like you and me. Even the most intense of human love is but the faintest echo of Jesus Christ’s cascading abundance. His heartful thoughts for each of us outstrip what we can conceive. Our Heavenly Father intends to restore mankind into the radiant resplendence for which we were created. 

And that is dependent not on us keeping ourselves clean but on each of us taking our mess to Him. He doesn’t limit Himself to working with the unspoiled parts of us that remain after a lifetime of sinning. 

His power runs so deep that He is able to redeem the very worst parts of our past into the most radiant parts of our future. 

Praise God! In His overwhelming care for humanity He has not left us stranded but has empowered us with an advocate to combat every lie of the enemy, Holy Spirit! 

Matthew 3:11 NET I baptize you with water, for repentance, but the one coming after me is more powerful than I am – I am not worthy to carry His sandals. He will baptize you with Holy Spirit and fire.

When we study the Bible, reflect on the Lord’s holiness, justice, goodness, and truth, and meditate on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, let us remember to examine our own hearts. What must we grab hold of by absolute faith? My friends, I pray we are receptive to the convicting work of Holy Spirit and the ministry of the Bible. 

God wants us to be changed by His forgiveness, seeking Him, admitting to Him our sins, because trust me He knows every single piece of shrapnel in us left by sin, and ask Him for redemption, repent and stop doing what it is we must put away from us permanently! Like stop! Holy Spirit will be with you through the breaking of the enemy’s chains! He will pull us through and out of the mud! and then to offer that same grace to others. God commands humble hearts which in gratitude show mercy to others in the same way we are shown His mercy.