Dear Beloved,
I hope this letter finds you well, and with a
curiosity about knowing God. I'm not talking
about religion as a hypocritical afterthought
(as we too often see it today), for that is not
of God. I'm talking about having a
relationship with God. If you’re interested,
please keep reading, and if you're not, then
please accept my apology for any
inconvenience this letter might have caused
you.
As very brief testimony, I can tell you that in
years past, I personally ruined my life in sin
and lost almost every single thing of Real
Value I ever had. I am very much a Prodigal
son who suffered greatly from the prison of
pride and pain I had put myself in. But the
Lord pulled me through and helped put all
the broken pieces back together, refining me
by His Word, His Spirit, and fire, all out of
Love for me (as He Loves you too !). It was
as though the Lord found a weary, scarred,
and hungry dog amidst His trash, and was
kind enough to take him in and heal him. So
at this point, I am happy to say I'm a very
loyal pup at my Father's feet, and that's
where I will stay. But I'm wagging my tail
that you've come to visit. :)
For anyone who is truly sincere about
knowing God in a wonderful relationship and
Walking with Him always, it's really very
simple. There are only two steps:
(1) knowing what Jesus teaches
(2) putting what Jesus teaches into practice.
And if you're just starting out, don't worry !
You know all those people who call
themselves "Christian" and say "Lord, Lord",
even for many years, but somehow don't
seem very Christ-like to you as they continue
to do the same things everyone else in the
world does ? Let me tell you, they might
know who God and Jesus are, and might
even be able to recite some Scripture. But
guess what ? The devil himself, Satan, knows
who God and Jesus are, and how to recite
Scripture better than anyone. And just like
the vast majority of self-declared
"Christians", Satan doesn't do what Jesus
teaches either. This is why Jesus tells us
clearly that no one like that will enter God's
Kingdom. But again, don't worry, there are
still a few True Christians left ! For you, just
pray to God with a sincere heart and ask for
the Holy Spirit to guide you as you follow the
two steps above.
And if you don't have a church yet, all the
better. Just use God's Word, the Bible, for
now, and you'll be fine. Frankly, a person
should only go through the process of
choosing a fellowship group after learning the
Truth from Jesus. You see, many churches,
as hard as it is to believe, don't actually
teach what Jesus does. Sure, they’ll pay lip
service to Him, but in practice, their hearts
are far from Him as they push their own
denomination's agenda and adulterating
doctrines, covering it all with a veneer of
false love. They avoid the fact that True
Love actually contains the Truth, and that
means teaching in completeness all that
Jesus does.
Truly, according to the Bible, if we follow
Jesus there would be no Sunday worship or
even denominations at all. Each of those
was formed later by the earthly motives of
men, not the Word of God. God's only
Sabbath rest in the Bible - for ANY of us - is
Friday evening through Saturday evening
(just when we need rest !), and the only
Christian church in His Word is the Original
one formed by the Apostles and disciples
after Christ's crucifixion and ascension to
Heaven, having no denomination at all. It
was simply just Christian, based on God's
Word, and was modeled after Jesus' earthly
Ministry, with His Great Commission
(Matthew 28:18-20) to teach all He taught.
Again, don't worry about these things right
now... with the help of the Holy Spirit's
guidance as you learn from Jesus, you'll be
able to discern the Truth from lies, and
eventually find a fellowship group that suits
you.
With that, here we go...
Step (1) - Knowing What Jesus Teaches :
There is no other way to know Jesus, and
therefore His Father, God, except to read
Jesus' teachings in the Four Gospels - the
Books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in
the Bible - a few chapters a week, each and
every week. If we will not give God that
much time, it shows our heart to Him, and
what our priorities are. But if we do give God
that time, which isn't much, then He will
show His Heart to us !
So start in Matthew, a few chapters this
week, a few the next, and so on. Then onto
Mark. Then through Luke. Then through
John. Then start over in Matthew. A few
chapters a week on endless reel... for life.
There is simply no better way to be
continually well-fed by the Bread of Life.
After all, if we make Jesus' teachings
second nature to ourselves, it becomes very
easy to know God. God certainly does not
prevent us from knowing Him, does He ? Yet
it is only those who truly want to know Him
who will take the very simple steps to do so.
And while the Ten Commandments are
contained in the Four Gospels, as Jesus
teaches us to keep them and expands upon
them for us and lives them out by example, I
can tell you that it's helpful for someone
new to God's Word to also have a copy of
the Commandments in their "list" form, from
Exodus 20 or Deuteronomy 5.
Regarding the Ten Commandments, Jesus
teaches the importance of knowing both the
Letter and the Heart of them, for the Heart
expands the Letter to its full meaning,
thereby revealing God's Standard of
Righteousness. For example, do not murder
(the Letter of the Sixth Commandment) also
means do not keep anger or ill will toward
anyone (the Heart of the Sixth
Commandment). In the same way, no
adultery also means no lust or divorce. Not
using the Lord's name in vain also means
not speaking His name lightly or frivolously.
Not stealing also means not robbing God (we
shall be freely generous with the resources
God freely gives us, by tithes and offerings
to share God's Word and help others in
need). Not coveting also means not
participating in the many inwardly and
outwardly destructive behaviors that stem
from using this world's superficial and
wrongful measures to define ourselves
(instead of pride, selfishness, vanity, and
comparison driving a desire for approval,
riches, status, power, or other exaltation, we
shall be content with God's providence and
His measure of us only). And so on. (I won't
give them all away here; it's up to you with
the Holy Spirit, as you go through Jesus'
teachings, to learn the Letter and Heart of
all the Ten Commandments, to see how they
include every aspect of human behavior.)
Now, as we read the Gospels, we might first
notice how Jesus heals many people. Then,
we might take in His message of Faith,
repentance, forgiveness of others, and
bearing good fruit - all critical to our
Salvation. And over time, as our eyes adjust
to see even more, it comes into focus that
Jesus' teachings also directly relate to and
expound on the Commandments... the very
things about which Faith, repentance,
forgiveness of others, and bearing good fruit
revolve ! This is because God and Jesus
want us to be healed as well.
Jesus not only teaches us to keep the
Commandments ("Good teacher, what shall I
do to inherit eternal life ?"), He also ties the
keeping of the Two Most Important
Commandments (Love for God and others) to
the keeping of the Ten Commandments
(Truth). (See Matthew 19:16-19, 22:34-40;
Mark 10:17-19, 12:28-31; Luke 10:25-28,
18:18-20.)
In fact, this is God's Law - the Two Most
Important Commandments and the Ten
Commandments working together - just as
Jesus came to teach, and just as He came
to fulfill as our example to do the same.
(Yes, Jesus wanted the Jews of His day to
also keep their Law of Moses regarding
priests, feasts, rituals, and ordinances,
because He knew it was in their minds and
on their hearts as part of their Righteous
devotion to God. And so it was good, IF they
were also keeping God's Law. Christians
today might also have various devotional
activities to God, and as long as they help
keep a person's heart right with Him, and
don't incorporate sin, it's okay.)
With this, we should know that keeping God's
Law written in our heart and mind, and
manifesting its Truth in our behavior because
of Love for God and others, is the very
definition of being a New Covenant Christian,
just as God tells us in Jeremiah 31:31-34.
There is also a New Testament reminder of
this in Hebrews 8:8-12, and both succinctly
state what Jesus makes clear to us.
I'll tell you what... the next time you see a
self-declared Christian, ask them out of
interest if they are a New Covenant Christian.
If they seem puzzled, ask them if they have
God's Law written on their heart and mind. If
they say yes, then kindly ask them what the
Two Most Important Commandments are.
Most will be happy to tell you. Then ask
them if they can list the Ten
Commandments. If the blood drains from
their face as they attempt to stammer
through a few of them, know that this is a
serious matter - nothing to judge, but an
opportunity to serve, by discussing what was
missed. And of course, to not be a hypocrite,
you'll need to know them yourself by having
them in your own heart and mind, and you'll
also need to be keeping them. After all, none
of us are to continue in willful sin once we
know better. Remaining sanctified - that is,
remaining in Christ, on the Path and moving
Forward - means keeping all the revealed
Truth we currently have to the best of our
abilities.
We're either keeping the New Covenant with
God, sealed by His Son's blood, or we're not.
It's not meant to harm us, for God only
wants to prosper us - His Way. The Father
Loves the children, but He doesn't want
them only Born Again, He also wants them to
Grow - in Him - in knowledge, character, and
responsibility. He's looking for Real and True
Christians who mature according to the
capabilities He knows they have and in the
circumstances in which they live. It's only
those on the Path and moving Forward who
will Walk into the Kingdom. Not all will be at
the same place on the Path, but assuredly
those going into the Kingdom will all be
Walking Forward. The lazy, the insincere, the
procrastinators, the stagnant, the
backsliders, the exit-takers... Jesus warns
over and over that dead wood and immature
plants that don't grow and bear fruit are
good for nothing other than to be thrown on
the fire and burned.
Let's not forget, God and Jesus are Love
AND Truth in perfect equal measure. Love
and Truth are like Grace and God's Law -
they are meant to be married, working
together as one. Many self-declared
Christians just want the Love while
attempting to throw out the Truth, wishing
and hoping that Jesus' death on the Cross
will somehow allow them to continue in
willful sin. But that's not what Jesus
teaches, so we'll listen to Him instead. In
fact, the True Love of the Father is not the
approval of sin, but the opposite. As Jesus
tells us clearly and repeatedly in John 14, if
we Love Him, we'll keep His
Commandments; that is how He will know
our Love for Him - by our keeping the Truth.
God Loved us first; so much so that He sent
His only Son Jesus here to enable us in
Victory over sin AND death. But if we refuse
to bother with the first one, we cut ourself
off from the second.
Therefore, for our part, by a heart of Love,
we must purposely seek to know our sin so
we can willfully change away from it. Sin is
a life-destroyer , so by His parental Love, God
wants it out of our lives - by repentance,
forgiveness of others, and obedience to His
Commandments. Willfully ignoring this Truth
God is trying to give us through Jesus is the
same as willful sin itself, and is in fact the
very basis of the Unpardonable Sin.
Again, Jesus tells us exactly what will
happen to those folks who despise the Truth,
pretending to be all about Him on the outside
at various times while they're really all about
themselves and the world on the inside. We
surely don't want their final ending. It's only
a Love of the Truth that brings us Blessing
now and Eternally.
With that reminder, be assured that you can
stick with the Four Gospels to find your
Salvation in completeness. I know many
Christians who are proud to believe they
know "it all" will tell you otherwise, that you
must know the Bible backwards and
forwards to not be lost. But I stake my own
life in front of you that God Himself knows
what I am telling you is exactly how He
pulled me out of the pit of sin that was my
former life. Yes, along with that, His Holy
Spirit often placed a helpful sermon or a
given life situation in front of me at just the
right time to reinforce what I was learning,
even as He still does. And yes, surely, as one
chooses, they will find the time to read all of
God's Word as they Grow with Him (Jesus
even points us to Old Testament Scripture
that pertains to His message !). But always
know that Jesus did not leave us incomplete
in His earthly Ministry which is recorded in
the Gospels. There is need-to-know and
want-to-know, and it is most important to
make sure we have the need-to-know
working properly within us first. Then the
rest is wonderful to consume, satisfying our
hunger for more as we Walk steadily Forward
in our Salvation.
A final point here regarding the rest of the
Bible... if anyone you know attempts to read
any part of the Bible in a way that refutes
something Jesus teaches, they are on
dangerous ground, rejecting Jesus Himself.
But they too are wanted in the Kingdom, so
by Love for God and them, and because you
read and know what Jesus teaches, you may
be able to gently help them re-make their
discernment using the Light of the Gospels.
So, Step (1) again... read Matthew, Mark,
Luke and John on endless reel, a few
chapters a week with a True heart to know
the Father, keeping refreshed in your heart
and mind the Two Most Important
Commandments and the Ten
Commandments. Easy !
Step (2) - Putting What Jesus Teaches into
Practice :
There is no better way to put Jesus'
teachings into practice other than to
purposely think about what you read in
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. It's really
quite simple. Each day, pray good morning to
God when you wake up. Then, as you go
about your day, keep your consciousness
with Him, discussing and contemplating what
you are reading, and how to apply it to your
every thought, word, and behavior, leaving
nothing out. Then at bedtime, pray goodnight
to Him as you go to sleep.
A beautiful change begins to take place
within us as we do this. As we get used to
our new habit of thinking about God's Word,
and praying and conversing with Him during
our daily routine, we begin to find God
extremely comforting in all situations. If our
heart is True, it isn't too long before we
crave to keep ourselves with Him continually,
and in that way, we find our thoughts, words,
and behavior increasingly conforming to His
Will.
And since we can't walk with Jesus in
person at this time, we're even given the
Holy Spirit just for the asking, to be our daily
interactive Friend and Counselor. We're
never alone ! As your Faith increases, you
will be amazed at how the Holy Spirit
interacts directly with you, especially as you
get used to knowing it's Him !
In your growing relationship with God, you
will see how His Son, His Holy Spirit, and His
Word all work together for the good within
you. They will guide you and prompt you.
They will uplift you with Love and convict you
in the Truth, thereby filling in the valleys of
life and lowering the mountaintops of pride,
all to make your Path smooth and straight.
They will help you apply God's Word to your
life, one realm at a time. They will use your
current knowledge of Jesus' teachings to
reveal even more. They will help you
Spiritually understand the world around you,
the very field where you are to Grow. And
They will challenge you, to direct and stretch
your Faith even further. As the Love pulls
and the Truth pushes, the tears will roll, my
friend, and it will be amazing !
Is it easy ? Nothing truly Valuable is easy,
but in a daily Walk with God, it's more
surrender than effort. The main challenge
comes at the beginning, from a person's
human side. A person just starting out might
still be toxic with the inner or outer habits of
pride, sin, self-righteousness, hypocrisy,
hatred, and a lack of forgiveness of others.
But God takes us where we are so we can
clean up with Him. If we persist with a True
heart, we Grow, and through Jesus, our
hardness dissipates. It's like soft water
flowing over hard rock in a stream... the rock
is eventually worn away. Frankly, it would be
much more difficult to continue a life in sin
than to be persistent in changing some bad
habits in order to come to know Peace in a
Reclaimed Life in Jesus.
It's a matter of understanding who we are.
As Jesus tells us, we are to Love God with
all our heart, Soul, mind, and strength.
Different than the Holy Spirit, our Soul is the
Spirit God put in each one of us at birth. But
it essentially remains a lifeless, ungerminated
seed until we feed it God's Word. The rest –
our heart, mind, and strength – is our “fleshâ€,
also known as our mental, emotional, and
physical states (or “human sideâ€).
I tell you there is no better feeling in the
world than to watch as our Spirit grows to
become the Parent within us over our human
side, all from the nourishment of God's Word
and our willingness to surrender in Faith to
what Jesus teaches. As we persevere with
Love and a True Heart, we see our "self"
diminish as our Spirit increases, and Proper
Order is established within us, solidifying
over time. With Proper Order, our "flesh" (our
mental, emotional, and physical states) no
longer rules us, but is subject to our Spirit
which is subject to God.
To see such Real Results spring forth,
knowing how it pleases our Father and His
Son and all the Angels in Heaven who
rejoice for us... and all in the Light of Jesus'
Sacrifice, even as undeserving as we are... it
breaks a person in a wonderful way, bursting
their heart with humility and Joy as they
learn to Walk in the Spirit with their Creator.
It is indeed the Greatest Blessing of all.
So, to reiterate Step (2)... we must put
Jesus' teachings into practice, just as He
tells us in Matthew 7:21-27. And the only
way to do that is to focus on the Father and
His Word in our daily living, just as Jesus
shows us.
As an example of how other Scripture
supports the Gospels, the way to put Jesus'
teachings into practice is also beautifully
stated in The Message version of the Bible in
Romans 12:1-2, shown here:
"So here's what I want you to do, God
helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life
- your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and
walking-around life - and place it before God
as an offering. Embracing what God does for
you is the best thing you can do for him.
Don't become so well-adjusted to your
culture that you fit into it without even
thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God.
You'll be changed from the inside out.
Readily recognize what he wants from you,
and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture
around you, always dragging you down to its
level of immaturity, God brings the best out
of you, develops well-formed maturity in you."
-------
Well there we have it... Two Simple Steps to
a great relationship with God, available to
anyone !
Therefore, to start, don't let any person or
denomination block the door for you. Simply
go straight to the source, Jesus, because
His teaching is Pure and complete. With the
guidance of the Holy Spirit, and a bit of
surrender in Faith on your part, a fantastic,
life-changing relationship with God will come
to Life within you, all with the solid
Foundation of His Word.
It's time... the Father wants you with Him,
and frankly, so do I. It will be good to see
you in His Kingdom !
With Love and Truth,
A Witness
