God is...

GOD IS

He is my God, my Jesus,
He is my father,
He is my comforter,
He is my best friend,
He is my creator,
He is my teacher,
He is my confidant,
He is my rock, my fortress,
He is my protector,
He is the love of my life,

He is the light in the darkness,
He is the Truth.

He is the only One in this entire universe that understands all of me, accepts all of me, and loves all of me – unconditionally.

He is the only One that ever loved me so much that He gave His own life for me. He didn’t just give His life for me, He gave His life for my sins; He alone bore all of the ugliness, all of the wretchedness, and all of the disgrace of my sins.

Only He is worthy of my heart, my praise, my worship, and my life.
My thoughts and words on God’s message to His people:
God created us in His image. We are uniquely different from all other parts of His creation. God sent His Holy Spirit to reside inside of man, not plants, animals, or any other part of His creation.

God loves us; He desires to have an intensely personal relationship with us.

God hates sin; it separates us from Him. God wants to forgive us of our sins, but we must repent of our sins and ask His forgiveness. God wants us to believe in and accept His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. God wants us to be “born again” to have His Holy Spirit living within us so that we might know His will for our lives.

God wants us to seek Him and His will for our lives.

He yearns for us to know His Truth, and to share His Truth – to be a light to the world. God wants us to first love Him and then love our “neighbors.”

God wants to see the “fruit of the Spirit” in our lives – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

John 3:16-21 (NIV) “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Who ever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”

A. Define truth
John 8:31-32 (NIV) “To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Jesus’ Teachings:
 John 3 – Jesus Teaches Nicodemus
1. v3 “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” In this verse and subsequent verses (through verse 8) Jesus teaches about being Spirit filled. Jesus teaches about being baptized not only by water, but also by the Holy Spirit. In essence being born again is to be filled with the Holy Spirit (which only comes from repentance and acceptance of His forgiveness).
2. In the remainder of John chapter 3 Jesus tells about gaining entrance into heaven – “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
 John 4 – Jesus talks with a Samaritan woman
1. Jesus teaches that He is the well of eternal life (v1-14).
2. He also talks of a time when worship of God will not be in this earthly world (v21-26).
 John 5 – The Healing at the Pool, Life through the Son
1. Jesus heals a man that has been ill for 38 years (v1-15). The point? That we should help those in need, regardless of the day (Jesus performed this miracle on the Sabbath).
2. In v. 16-30 Jesus talks about how he only does what the Father does, and “for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.”
 John 6 – Jesus the Bread of Life
1. v.27 Jesus teaches us not to put our effort into things that will spoil, but to put our effort into what endures to eternal life.
2. v.32-35 Jesus teaches that God, the Father, will give us life through Christ.
3. v.48-58 Jesus teaches of communion with him (eating of his flesh and drinking of his blood). He stresses that who ever communes with him, remains in him, and will have eternal life. We are to have a personal relationship with Christ that we take seriously and place first in our lives. He is of GREAT importance.
4. John 7
1. v.21-24 Jesus wants us to make right “judgments” about others – we are not to “judge” a book by its cover.
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How can you hold to Jesus’ teachings and know His truth if you never read the bible?

Define light, darkness, and evil.


Acts 3: 19 “Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.”

Acts 17:30

Luke 13:3

Jesus transcends all physical realms and the everyday meaning of life.

Creation:
 Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
 Psalm 148:5 “Let them praise the name of the Lord, for he commanded and they were created.”
 Colossians 1:16 “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.”

Personal Relationship:
 John 6:53-58 “Jesus said to them, ‘I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever.”
 Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”
 All of Luke 15 – The parable of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son.
 Luke 14:27 “And anyone who does not carry his bross and follow me cannot be my disciples.”

Sin:
 Isaiah 59:2 “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.”
Repent or Parish:
 Luke 13:1-9
 “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
 John 3:18-21 “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”
Accept Jesus
 John 5:24-27
 Mark 9:7 “Then a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: ‘This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!’”
Born Again
 John 3:3(-8) “In reply Jesus declared, ‘I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.’” In this verse and subsequent verses (through verse 8) Jesus teaches about being Spirit filled. Jesus teaches about being baptized not only by water, but also by the Holy Spirit. In essence being born again is to be filled with the Holy Spirit (which only comes from repentance of sins and acceptance of His forgiveness).