Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.

Mark 12:29

Right belief and right doctrine, ultimately, are the same.  God is one.  He is not separate from Himself in any part, nor is there any shadow no matter which way you look at Him.  It could be said that to know any part of the Lord perfectly is to know all of God perfectly.

You see, while righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne, you cannot have true righteousness without true wrath.  You likewise, in the full scope of God’s character have true justice without true mercy, true punishment, true grace, and every other part of who God is.  God, in everything He does is perfect, in wisdom, depth, insight–every facet.

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For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

Philippians 1:21

Who cares what this life will bring?  Why do we involve ourselves with what will come in this life?

For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

1 John 2:16

For surely, whether I live, I live for the Lord, and whether I die, I die for the Lord.

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Yet the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body.

1 Corinthians 6:13 (portion)

Our bodies were made for the Lord.  Consider the parable of the yeast in Matthew 13:33.  The kingdom is likened to measure of yeast which a woman hid in a large quantity dough until the whole lump was leavened.  That little bit of something worked its way through the entire lump, changed it, and transformed it into something better.  What happens when the Holy Spirit comes into us?  Let us look a moment at some examples.

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This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

1 John 1:5-7

The verdict God brought was that men loved darkness rather than the light.  They preferred to remain hidden, covered, and in the shadows.  From the fall, man has chosen to hide from God at His approach, and to fashion inadequate coverings to hide his nakedness.

In God, there is no darkness at all.  There is no shadow of turning in Him. From the beginning, Light shone forth, the radiance of God, and called forth light, and light was.  And, from this light, all creation exists.  But, it is the continual union with the Lord that all life is.

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But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’  And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?  They said, ‘The first.’

Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.

Matthew 21:28-32

When we look at the faith teachers in the past, we do not always see the Gospels and the teachings of Jesus explicitly mentioned, even though they do teach Faith, the anointing, and the realm of the Spirit perfectly.  While there are many variations on faith teaching, it must be noted, however, one crucial thing.  Despite how much revelation one teacher had or another, or how well any person was able to present the message of faith, of more important than the ability to understand and teach faith is whether we choose to LIVE it!

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At the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, ELOI, ELOI, LAMA SABACHTHANI? which is translated, MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?

Mark 15:34

The Lord walked in a continual communion with His Father.  He, being God, yet living as a man, dwelt continually with God who is the Father, forever holy, forever Divine.  The Lord said He was never alone, for He always did what pleased the Father (John 8:29); He and His Father were one (John 17:11).  That is, up until the end.

Jesus said that where He went, we could not follow.  Upon the cross, He became a curse for us, and the Father looked away, departed from Him, not for His own sins, but for ours.  And, in this place, forsake, Jesus cried out.  We know Jesus was forsaken on the cross, because He cried out that He was.  This is a place that we never need to tread.

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Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

Romans 8:12-14 KJV

This passage was written to the brothers by Paul, meaning to believing Christians.  In verse 14, he indicates a most profound phrase, to believing believers.  If we live according to the flesh, we will die.  It is not enough simply to have a prayed a prayer once.  It is those who are led by the Spirit that are the Sons of God, and only those that do the will of the Father shall inherit the Kingdom.

Bear this in mind, the Father’s house is very large, and the one who has been given much is required of much, and those given little required of little.  If all our capacity is to give a cup of cold water to one of His disciples, we shall not lose our reward.  But, for those who do not live by the Spirit, and mortify the deeds of the body, where then is life?

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For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;

Ephesians 2:8

Faith is not a work.

This is one of the places John Calvin, the leader of reformed theology,  in my opinion, missed it.  In depth doctrinal analysis of all of the branch of theology today called Calvinism aside, the essence of his argument for many of his works hinged upon the understanding of total depravity as being excluding using the faith God provided.  According to that branch of thought, any effort on our part was lacking when it comes to pleasing God.

Many people complain about having “faith in faith”, and saying that it is not what saves you.  Unfortunately, this steers very wide of the margin of scripture, and does nothing but raise a smoke-screen against the real issue, that many do not have a real understanding of what faith is.

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And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

Matthew 17:20 KJV

As has been talked about elsewhere, unbelief is the greater belief in the seen, rather than the unseen.  This is often described as more than simple a lack of faith, is a force that works against true faith as it is a “faith” in the visible, rather than in the invisible.

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Keep watching and praying that you may not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

Mark 14:38

It is the heart willing to say yes and to follow it with obeying that sustains.  It is the heart, the spirit, that wants to follow, that chooses to believe, follow, and obey that receives the blessing.

Life grows from a willing spirit.  The heart that chooses to go on, the heart that has a will to live.

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